Two bulls together full time

[Orkneyboy]

Hello all,

I am considering buying 2 new young bulls, they will be of the same breeding, from the same place, and have already been raised together.
The plan will be to run them together with a mob of 50+ cows for 9 or 12 weeks every year, and then keep them together in a field or pen for the rest of the year.

I have no experience of keeping bulls together.

Is there any reason why this shouldn’t work??

 

[exmoorromney]

Hello all,

I am considering buying 2 new young bulls, they will be of the same breeding, from the same place, and have already been raised together.
The plan will be to run them together with a mob of 50+ cows for 9 or 12 weeks every year, and then keep them together in a field or pen for the rest of the year.

I have no experience of keeping bulls together.

Is there any reason why this shouldn’t work??

They will be fine, we put 2 bulls of different breeding out on the hill together with the cows and they have come in to the same pen together for the winter. If they've always been together you wont get any problems.

 

[Cowslip]

Should be. I find problems start when the hierarchy is changed. We currently have 5 stock bulls. You soon learn which ones get on and which don't. Current top dog 11 years old but the 9yr old thinks he should be, they can't live together. The key for us is to pair a young one with an old one, they have company but there are no arguments over who's boss. They go to work individually but are housed in pairs.

 

[tr250]

We find young bulls are fine for a year or 2 then eruptions start we tend to run the 3 youngest bulls together and keep older ones separate. We find 2 don’t get on that great 3 is better. All depends on the individuals we’ve got some big ones that don’t fight at all and some little ones that would fight anything.

 

[milkloss]

I'd wager they'd be ok as long as you don't separate them for any period of time and certainly when there is fanny about.

 

[Timbo]

1 angus & 3 sims go in a pen for winter together.

Go their separate ways to work although sometimes two sims work together. Then they're back together in a field after working before housing. This is the key point- they get used to one another again and have a push around in this field where there's plenty of room.

Does depend on breed temperament I guess.

 

[Tim W]

I'd wager they'd be ok as long as you don't separate them for any period of time and certainly when there is fanny about.

That's my experience---if they are ever separated to work in different groups when you put them back together the trouble can start
Had 2 Char bulls once that we foolishly did this with , i had to drive a landrover between them to stop them fighting & one of them pushed the landy over onto it's side ----they eventually bashed each other up so much that their eyes closed up from the bruising and we managed to get a JCB between them
Never again !

 

[Fendt516profi]

Should be. I find problems start when the hierarchy is changed. We currently have 5 stock bulls. You soon learn which ones get on and which don't. Current top dog 11 years old but the 9yr old thinks he should be, they can't live together. The key for us is to pair a young one with an old one, they have company but there are no arguments over who's boss. They go to work individually but are housed in pairs.

Id like to see how you house 5 bulls in pairs

 

[Cowslip]

Well the south Devon was with two of his sons but they have recently been sold and I am looking to purchase another which will have to live with him. Not enough housing for them to be individual.

 

[Radio]

As long as one is bigger or more dominant than the other. If matched then trouble as Tim described.

 

[puppet]

My experience of mixing bulls has involved bent gates, flattened dykes and the knackery

 

[puppet]

Not too funny when we had to shoot one with a broken leg because the knackery couldn't get through the snow.

 

[matthew]

They will be fine, we put 2 bulls of different breeding out on the hill together with the cows and they have come in to the same pen together for the winter. If they've always been together you wont get any problems.

Not always the case.

That's my experience---if they are ever separated to work in different groups when you put them back together the trouble can start
Had 2 Char bulls once that we foolishly did this with , i had to drive a landrover between them to stop them fighting & one of them pushed the landy over onto it's side ----they eventually bashed each other up so much that their eyes closed up from the bruising and we managed to get a JCB between them
Never again !

Try that in a smaller space...

As long as one is bigger or more dominant than the other. If matched then trouble as Tim described.

Nope. That doesn't always work either.
A customer of ours had two bulls from one farm, and they'd been reared togather and during their 'off' time, housed with his cows together. Fine for a few years.
And then the smaller bull got to be a torment, and bigger one turned on him, threw him around, over cubicles, up and under the shed door .... and killed him.

Not nice.

 

[roscoe erf]

Hello all,

I am considering buying 2 new young bulls, they will be of the same breeding, from the same place, and have already been raised together.
The plan will be to run them together with a mob of 50+ cows for 9 or 12 weeks every year, and then keep them together in a field or pen for the rest of the year.

I have no experience of keeping bulls together.

Is there any reason why this shouldn’t work??

do this ourselves and have done for years no problem when in and just the two of them but wouldn't do it in the field with the cows

 

[Orkneyboy]

Interesting, pretty varied response so far.
What do people think is more risky?

A: Running 2 bulls together with 50+ cows for 12 weeks?

Or

B: Running 1 bull with 50+ cows for 12 weeks?

 

[Agrivator]

Interesting, pretty varied response so far.
What do people think is more risky?

A: Running 2 bulls together with 50+ cows for 12 weeks?

Or

B: Running 1 bull with 50+ cows for 12 weeks?

Or run 1 bull for 6 weeks, and then the poorer? bull for 6 weeks.

And then sell the worst performer and buy a decent Limousin.

 

[Gulli]

They should be fine having been reared together, they might have a bit of a tussle when you put them back together.

Depends on the bulls really, most of the time it's ok so long as they have plenty of space, sometimes it goes horribly wrong

 

[Timbo]

If turned out same time to a bunch of on heat cows theyd both have plenty to occupy their attention

 

[AftonShepherd]

Interesting, pretty varied response so far.
What do people think is more risky?

A: Running 2 bulls together with 50+ cows for 12 weeks?

Or

B: Running 1 bull with 50+ cows for 12 weeks?

No scope to split the cows and swap bulls after 6 weeks?

 

[milkloss]

Interesting, pretty varied response so far.
What do people think is more risky?

A: Running 2 bulls together with 50+ cows for 12 weeks?

Or

B: Running 1 bull with 50+ cows for 12 weeks?

A run 2 bulls together. Why make life difficult?