black buzzards, any other ideas

Help Support CattleToday:

Littlejohn

Active member
Joined
Feb 22, 2009
Messages
38
Reaction score
2
Location
KY
I practice SSS, but they are getting wise to when i'm at the farm, and stay out of shot gun range.
Any one had any luck hanging an Effigy or dead one upside down from a tree or pole? If so, about how many would i need to cover, say a 10 acre pasture?
Any luck with a Donkey? If so, is there any advice picking out a good one?
Traps?
This is the second calving season at this farm, and we never had this kind of problem at the last place. I've already lost one calf this year, and can't afford to lose as many as we lost last year.

I know this has been talked about before, but, it seams like most people SSS, and I'm not making a dent in them with that

Thanks
 
Build a trap .. make a box with hog panel ..cover it with hog panel .. put something dead at the other end from where you will come from .. cut a small hole in the end that you will approach from .. when the buzzards go in walk up and shoot the dang things.. the will try to get away by running away before they fly .. as you walk up they will move away from the hole ..
 
The damned things are spreading. I haven't seen any here yet, but a friend about thirty miles away lost six calves last spring and that was with only four or five buzzards. He applied for a permit to shoot one, but you know how that goes. I'm planning on spending a lot of time out in the pasture this calving season.

Hypothetically speaking, I wonder if baiting and poisoning them would work?
 
JSCATTLE, How big? Will 12' long, 4 ft wide work? How big of a hole for an entrance? Maybe 1'x1'? does it need to be staked to the ground?

WRFarms, Hypothetically speaking, someone may have tried it, and did not see any results

M-5, in the past, the market around here does not like the calves with ear, but would one or two eared mom's be enough to get the job done?

thanks
 
JSCATTLE":v8e7csj8 said:
Build a trap .. make a box with hog panel ..cover it with hog panel .. put something dead at the other end from where you will come from .. cut a small hole in the end that you will approach from .. when the buzzards go in walk up and shoot the dang things.. the will try to get away by running away before they fly .. as you walk up they will move away from the hole ..
Exactly just have a pre dug hole to place the offenders
 
Littlejohn":g2nthxxz said:
JSCATTLE, How big? Will 12' long, 4 ft wide work? How big of a hole for an entrance? Maybe 1'x1'? does it need to be staked to the ground?

WRFarms, Hypothetically speaking, someone may have tried it, and did not see any results

M-5, in the past, the market around here does not like the calves with ear, but would one or two eared mom's be enough to get the job done?

thanks

how many calves you got to loose before the Deduct is a wash ???????

Not all are feisty but most are. Ive seen them get upset and chase cow birds off when a calf wants to chase them. Biggest issue is when cow is calving off to herself and no other cows around, that's when the buzzards usually attack . not much defense in that situation.
 
The population of the black vulture in comparison to the turkey vulture is increasing in Kentucky. If a deer is on the side of the road, there will be as many black as turkey on it.

I bring all my cows up to the headquarters for calving. I have a very narrow calving season so it is convenient. The producers here who do not manage their calving season have a much more difficult time doing that. As M-5 said, if they are on the back 30, better watch out. There are so many of them, it is impossible to control them. I am running all AI now, my calves are valuable, I cannot tolerate losing them to vultures. So I stay right on them when I calve.
 
We've got plenty of em around here. You can't shoot or trap em all. And it's not convenient for most to bring the cows in the house. :cboy:
We are right on a major topography change between the hill country (Rocky brushy country) and the Blackland prairie. (Flat open country) and we work equally in both topographic areas.
I am convinced that the best protection from these things is to simply have some heavy brush for the cows to calve in. In most cases the cow is only down a few minutes. And once she's up , most will defend the calf. Out in the wide open the buzzards will get on something pretty quick. But in the brush the cow is hidden, and the buzzards are more worry of landing in tight brush. Gives the cow the time she needs.
That's been my observation. :2cents:
 
callmefence":4h0lxkvp said:
We've got plenty of em around here. You can't shoot or trap em all. And it's not convenient for most to bring the cows in the house. :cboy:
We are right on a major topography change between the hill country (Rocky brushy country) and the Blackland prairie. (Flat open country) and we work equally in both topographic areas.
I am convinced that the best protection from these things is to simply have some heavy brush for the cows to calve in. In most cases the cow is only down a few minutes. And once she's up , most will defend the calf. Out in the wide open the buzzards will get on something pretty quick. But in the brush the cow is hidden, and the buzzards are more worry of landing in tight brush. Gives the cow the time she needs.
That's been my observation. :2cents:

Not here Fence. I had a cow pushed into a stand of thick brush and they were driving her nuts. Nice big bull calf down under her legs. She would run at them and then a couple would fly in on the calf. The trees were black with the basturds. Her tongue was hanging out. I ran them off, went back to the house, returned and closed the chapter on that episode. I moved her and the calf up to the facilities where I could keep an eye on her.
 
yeah when that cow has twenty or so on the ground in a circle and more up above....there is only one way it will end...unless something intervenes....we try to avoid calving in big pastures so that the other cows are in proximity...that helps a lot...usually a few other cows will come down and fight em off as well...I have had cows run along looking up chasing them while they were flying...
 
Margonme":32fmw1n6 said:
callmefence":32fmw1n6 said:
We've got plenty of em around here. You can't shoot or trap em all. And it's not convenient for most to bring the cows in the house. :cboy:
We are right on a major topography change between the hill country (Rocky brushy country) and the Blackland prairie. (Flat open country) and we work equally in both topographic areas.
I am convinced that the best protection from these things is to simply have some heavy brush for the cows to calve in. In most cases the cow is only down a few minutes. And once she's up , most will defend the calf. Out in the wide open the buzzards will get on something pretty quick. But in the brush the cow is hidden, and the buzzards are more worry of landing in tight brush. Gives the cow the time she needs.
That's been my observation. :2cents:

Not here Fence. I had a cow pushed into a stand of thick brush and they were driving her nuts. Nice big bull calf down under her legs. She would run at them and then a couple would fly in on the calf. The trees were black with the basturds. Her tongue was hanging out. I ran them off, went back to the house, returned and closed the chapter on that episode. I moved her and the calf up to the facilities where I could keep an eye on her.

Sounds like the cow used the brush to successful y birth and defend the calf.
 
callmefence":3a6ubef9 said:
Margonme":3a6ubef9 said:
callmefence":3a6ubef9 said:
We've got plenty of em around here. You can't shoot or trap em all. And it's not convenient for most to bring the cows in the house. :cboy:
We are right on a major topography change between the hill country (Rocky brushy country) and the Blackland prairie. (Flat open country) and we work equally in both topographic areas.
I am convinced that the best protection from these things is to simply have some heavy brush for the cows to calve in. In most cases the cow is only down a few minutes. And once she's up , most will defend the calf. Out in the wide open the buzzards will get on something pretty quick. But in the brush the cow is hidden, and the buzzards are more worry of landing in tight brush. Gives the cow the time she needs.
That's been my observation. :2cents:

Not here Fence. I had a cow pushed into a stand of thick brush and they were driving her nuts. Nice big bull calf down under her legs. She would run at them and then a couple would fly in on the calf. The trees were black with the basturds. Her tongue was hanging out. I ran them off, went back to the house, returned and closed the chapter on that episode. I moved her and the calf up to the facilities where I could keep an eye on her.

Sounds like the cow used the brush to successful y birth and defend the calf.

Yes. But she was losing ground. They had her backed up into the fence, tired, and demoralized. I knew she was due and happened to be checking her. I am guessing this standoff was well into several hours. As pdfangus said, the outcome was obvious. I don't let mine calve out in the big pastures. I have what I call the calving pasture near the facilities.
 
M-5":2hi8gl6c said:
/quote]

how many calves you got to loose before the Deduct is a wash ???????
You have a really good point. I'll have to see what's available around this area.
 
The ones in my area are adapting. They are going after older calves. The one we lost this week was a week old. They circle the mom and calf with about 20 birds, and they will either work her over till she can't keep them off, or get her so turned around she starts stepping on the calf, and kills the calf that way.
 
Littlejohn":1kklsvx6 said:
M-5":1kklsvx6 said:
/quote]

how many calves you got to loose before the Deduct is a wash ???????
You have a really good point. I'll have to see what's available around this area.

Everyone (ive done it too) Bytches about 2 much ear, wrong color I got docked, all the time while wasting for more money chasing that elusive buyers idea when in reality for the avg small producer they are far better off to just raise what you like and what works. 1 dead calf no matter the reason reduces revenue. Having cows that are not only good mothers but know how to calve right is just as important Like FENCE said. I got one that will calve in the middle of the herd in the pasture , she stays with the group and when its time she lays down and calves with 20 or 30 inspecting the process. Used to have one that would crawl thru the fence and go to the thickest woods and calve wouldn't see her for nearly a week till she brought it home to show it off. all of them are different and ones with a little bit of ear IMO have it figured out. They need to ad a line to the maternal EPD's for DGM (dam good mama) that way you know she has the genetics to protect and survive
 
my neighbor lost a couple to coyotes last year...
another neighbor lost a 300 pounder to a lion...tracked the blood and drag down to the swamp and found the carcass....
Even though he has seen the lion and has photos of it.....VDGIF says there are no lions around here...
told him that even if he saw one he could not shoot it....
how do you shoot something that is not here?
 

Latest posts

Top