banding question

[jt]

i have a couple of 7 weight bull calves that i want banded. my bander only goes to about 4 weight calves. my vet (according to his assistant) doesnt band calves that big. i dont know why, and didnt ask.

anyway, i am considering buying one of the XL banders that according to the literature will band up to about 750-800 #s. has anyone used one of them enough to make a recommendation either way with it?

i dont band much at all, so i want to know what some thoughts are on banding at this time of year. i am in the south and it is getting warm down here. the highs now are around 80, but by the time a band fell off, it is going to really be hot.

i have given a tetanous shot already and will boost it.



thanks

jt

 

[bigbull338]

i have a couple of 7 weight bull calves that i want banded. my bander only goes to about 4 weight calves. my vet (according to his assistant) doesnt band calves that big. i dont know why, and didnt ask.

anyway, i am considering buying one of the XL banders that according to the literature will band up to about 750-800 #s. has anyone used one of them enough to make a recommendation either way with it?

i dont band much at all, so i want to know what some thoughts are on banding at this time of year. i am in the south and it is getting warm down here. the highs now are around 80, but by the time a band fell off, it is going to really be hot.

i have given a tetanous shot already and will boost it.

what you some of you think?

thanks

jt

personally i see nothing wrong with banding them.if you can get a bander big enough.an get both their nuts in the sack.as your banding them.would be easier than knifing them.id boost the tetnes as well.

 

[jt]

bigbull338,

kinda what i was thinking too, but like i said, i dont do much banding, so i wanted to ask about the heat factor and,

what i am really interested in is if anyone knows much about that XL bander. valley vet has it for a little less than $100.

jt

 

[bigbull338]

bigbull338,

kinda what i was thinking too, but like i said, i dont do much banding, so i wanted to ask about the heat factor and,

what i am really interested in is if anyone knows much about that XL bander. valley vet has it for a little less than $100.

jt

i dont know anything about the bander your asking about.

 

[HAY MAKER]

i have a couple of 7 weight bull calves that i want banded. my bander only goes to about 4 weight calves. my vet (according to his assistant) doesnt band calves that big. i dont know why, and didnt ask.

anyway, i am considering buying one of the XL banders that according to the literature will band up to about 750-800 #s. has anyone used one of them enough to make a recommendation either way with it?

i dont band much at all, so i want to know what some thoughts are on banding at this time of year. i am in the south and it is getting warm down here. the highs now are around 80, but by the time a band fell off, it is going to really be hot.

i have given a tetanous shot already and will boost it.



thanks

jt

Im betting you will be disapointed with the bander at valley vet,if its any thing like its higher priced counter part the EZE Castrator Kit Model T-1 , I know you will,I use that type bander on calfs up to 4 weight,use your favorite search engine to find the "california bander" I have banded with it,in my opinion,its the best out there and you will like the price.....................good luck

 

[Boss Cowman]

I have a callicrate (sp?) bander made by no-bull enterprise. I have banded bulls 800+ with it. They claim you can band any size of stuff with it. It wasn't cheap but has more than paid for itself.

 

[twabscs]

I used the XL Bander last year on several 700 lb calves. No issues whatsoever. I now have all three banders, cherio, Tri, and XL so I'm all set for whatever size. However, I did use Tetanus shots for the bigger calves as most recommend.

 

[hillsdown]

I have a callicrate (sp?) bander made by no-bull enterprise. I have banded bulls 800+ with it. They claim you can band any size of stuff with it. It wasn't cheap but has more than paid for itself.

I have used that one also,it was around $400 dollars to buy so I just rented it for $20 a day and the bands you need are around $5 each.It took a long time for the sack to come off but he was fine afterwards and we will be finishing him in a couple of weeks.He was a 7 month old Holstein and doesn't even look a little bit bullish now.So I would see if you can rent a good bander from a supply company if you aren't going to use it enough to get your moneys worth.

 

[IL Rancher]

Calcrater or however you spell it wasn't that expensive, at least not when I bought it and the bands were like 1.50 or so a piece.. We did a bunch (150) of 6 wieghts with it and it seemed to work fine baring 3 animals that had a bit of.. Something, that didn't get banded off, Rebanded and it came right off.. Kind of looked like fat to be honest and they were a bit too fat when we did them... Have done lambs tails and testicales with them as well, no problem and have also done a yearling bull or two.. Never a problem..

My bigest complaint about them is waiting for it to work and my damn crimper handle on the thing broke so I had to rig something to make it work better.

 

[MikeC]

O'l guy down the road uses "Tie-Wraps" (plastic "Zip" ties?) for banding bigger calves.

He claims they work like a charm.

 

[Scotty]

IMO get the bigger banders. It takes time but just manipulate the testes into it. It will be painfull on the calve but I have banded sheep that were thaught to be to big and it worked. Patients is the key. Get one in and the force the other. You will be amazed at the size the green cherio banders will do.

 

[Txwalt]

I'm going to ask around about the zip ties. That seems like a good idea.

Walt

 

[CowgirlUpNY]

Don't have experience with the XL, we just bought the callicrate (SP) and it was a cinch to use!

I would (as you already plan to) boost the Tet. and with the heat, do you have flies yet? If so, I would put a healthy coating of Swat on it and keep an eye for infection. But we've done banding in the height of summer, just a little more observation.

 

[Rangenerd]

Why are you going to use a bander rather than a knife? I have found it is easier to just cut 6 and 7 weight calves with a knife.

 

[Texas PaPaw]

I've used the California bander on 700# bulls and it works well. The tool cost $29.95 and bands are $.85.

Heres a link to their website:http://www.inosol.com/

They mail them to me and it only takes 3-4 days.

 

[gberry]

Agree with the california bander recommendations. Can't imagine any other bander being easier, faster or more effective. Does take about a month to fall off though.

 

[jt]

thanks for the replies. i had about decided to go ahead and get the callicrate bander (smart bander), but now i am undecided between it and the california bander. i was not familar with the california bander before now.

regardless which one i get, how long do the bands stay good? it might take me years to use a bag of 25.

thanks

jt

 

[Texas PaPaw]

thanks for the replies. i had about decided to go ahead and get the callicrate bander (smart bander), but now i am undecided between it and the california bander. i was not familar with the california bander before now.

regardless which one i get, how long do the bands stay good? it might take me years to use a bag of 25.

thanks

jt

jt

The california bands are shipped in a zip lock bag. If you keep the bag sealed and out of the light they should last a long time. Like you, I was leaning toward the Callicrate bander until I learned of the california bander. With the great difference in price I decided to try the california bander first and if it wasn't satisfactory I had only wasted $29.95. Am well pleased with it.

 

[jt]

texas papaw,

i have other smaller banders that i have always kept the bands in the refrigerator. i know that might sound crazy, but i figured in a dark cool place would be the best. i am going to try the california bander first too. like you say, its so much cheaper and has lots of people satisfied with it that i figure its worth a try.

neither of the 2 vets in my town band calves at 7 weight (one said he didnt have the equipment, and the other i am not sure why), but even if they did, i would be spending about what this bander is going to cost me.

thanks

jt

 

[jt]

on the subject of how long it takes the bag to fall off, i heard something interesting from a very knowledgable cow man this past weekend.

he said that a buddy of his that worked in a feedyard or something like it where they received in cattle that you and me have sold at the sale barn would band these bull calves and then cut a small part of the bottom of the sac off to allow fluid to run out. according to their story it took about 1/2 the time for the sac to fall off versus leaving it intact.

my first question to him was about the size of the hole cut, it cant be too big or the testicles will fall out. he said no, it was just a small hole for drainage. i dont know if i put a lot of stock in it, because that hole is going to seal off fast imo, but i wasnt going to argue with him, he has forgotten more than i know about cattle.

anybody else ever tried this or have any comments?


jt