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Theoretically if the dams were well immunized against tetanus there would be a good chance of colostral protection for banding baby calves?

Start over. Tetanus vaccine is cheap. If the booster is given greater than 6 weeks after the first dose you lose a lot of antibody response.

Yesterday we went from 62 at noon to 42 at 5pm and 19 at 10pm. Chores this morning at 4F with -13 F wind chill. Sunday’s forecast is mid 60’s and thunderstorms. WTF.

The cow lines is the reason I do this. Some have been in my family since the 70’s. If I was only interested in creating calves to sell I wouldn’t do it any more. Yes they pay the bills but the joy is in the cow families for me, pure and simple. I will second the biosecurity issue.

We wear ski goggles on the tractors. Open station don’t cha know!

I would have no trouble keeping a tested carrier in my herd if she was otherwise worthy to stay. I would not sell her or her progeny as a breeding animal to anyone without a clean test. Selling a carrier as a feeder calf is no guarantee that it will not end up in someone’s herd.

I agree, I think they were a little creative with the breeding behind those heifers.

Yes with a better tool.

This is what we do. I like to do it while they are still on the cow as they are moving around more and seem to have less stress. There was a study in Switzerland that suggested waiting until they are over 16 weeks was best. Biggest drawbacks are operator error and a sprung tool. They warp easily...

Week and a half ago we had a blizzard warning. Yesterday our high was 89. Snow predicted on Sunday. Girls are suffering in their winter coats. These temperature swings are ridiculous!

They advertise up in northern Wisconsin too.

With colostrum supplements/replacers the globulin content per feeding is the biggest factor. 50mg is a supplement while over 100mg is a replacer. I keep a minimum of two doses of 150mg replacer on hand at all times. If you can’t find it locally talk to your AI people (a few of the companies...

Don’t forget temperament. This is your first year and the learning curve is steep. You will learn a lot more and have a lot more fun with a calf you enjoy working with.

Consider artificial insemination. You can breed her to a quality calving ease bull for less than it would cost to feed one for a few months. I don’t know where you live but even a dairy guy or vet can help you with that.

See if you can get a dose of meloxicam from your vet. It really helps the calf get over a hard pull.

If you find the link to the info about that on ASA’s website can you post it? Can’t seem to find it.

Dare ez reel with power fields 9 strand polywire. Not a fancy reel but they hook over t posts really easy when crossfencing.

We have a storm coming through tonight but behind it they are predicting wind chills down to-55 F Tuesday night through Thursday. We are used to cold and they have a wind break but the long period is making me a bit nervous.

Studies have shown that calves younger than 3 weeks will have a poor immune response to vaccines. Best to wait until 3-4 weeks old.

Neighbor just had an excavator out to dig up a broken pipe, said the frost line was down 3 1/2 feet already.