Building permanent pens.

[Cormac]

What width (in inches) should I set the path to the squeeze chute. I am looking for a good ID dimension between the two vertical pipes so nothing has the opportunity to turn around. I will be using 3/4" sucker rod inside the ID. Angus cattle. I have heard/seen anywhere from 26" to 34" Pipe to pipe ID. Then subtract 1.5" of sucker rod drops the width for cattle to 24.5" to 32.5". Any guidance?

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Mine is 28 inches wide Inside the alley. I like as long of alley as i can get.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Had mine at 26" and came back and put in two inch periling on the bottom two foot. That make's it 26" on top 24 " on bottom, had a 6 month old brimmer cross show her butt and got halfway turned around and stuck.
Thats not the blue ribbon winner in the alley but she did take the red ribbon.

 

[dun]

epends on the size of the animals. Our cows are really wide/thick and 29 inch inside works good for them. Whoever calves upto weaning size can still figure out how to turn around sometimes. Usually they get just far enough turned that they're stuck and can;t finish turning and refuse to turn back forward

 

[novatech]

Mine are 28" but I have younger calves turning around. I always thought the ones with sloped sides would work a little better, 24" at bottom 30" at top. Or some build like caustic did, furring in the bottom section to make it a couple of inches narrower.
What I don't like is is open sided chutes. I have some excitable calves get their legs caught between them. I much prefer solid sides most of the way up.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Mine are 28" but I have younger calves turning around. I always thought the ones with sloped sides would work a little better, 24" at bottom 30" at top. Or some build like caustic did, furring in the bottom section to make it a couple of inches narrower.
What I don't like is is open sided chutes. I have some excitable calves get their legs caught between them. I much prefer solid sides most of the way up.

The first chute and alley I built was 30" years ago to many train wrecks. I decided when I built my new system which is ten years old. I wanted them tight bull leaves some hair thats OK as well.

 

[bigbull338]

my chute/ally is 28in wide.an i dont have trouble with any of the cows or calves going through it.the holsteins made it though it fine.but dont know the beefmasters will like going through it.

 

[Cowdirt]

TN extension service information now says finished ID should be 26". They also talk about the advantages of having it more narrow at the bottom.

 

[skyline]

Mine's not wide enough. Trying to worm this morning and had them twisted every whichaway in the chute. My young helper told me it was stressful. I tend to agree. What a rodeo...

My project this afternoon is to try to figure out a plan. I like the idea of putting more boards/purlins on the bottom. I also need to replace the 25 to 30 year old rotten posts. ARGH. What a bloomin mess. I probably ought to push the whole works down and start from scratch.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Mine's not wide enough. Trying to worm this morning and had them twisted every whichaway in the chute. My young helper told me it was stressful. I tend to agree. What a rodeo...

My project this afternoon is to try to figure out a plan. I like the idea of putting more boards/purlins on the bottom. I also need to replace the 25 to 30 year old rotten posts. ARGH. What a bloomin mess. I probably ought to push the whole works down and start from scratch.

I repalced my old pen with pipe, purlins and cattle panel. I was in the same boat before I started replacing mine. It was easier to replace it than try to repair all the old ties and boards. The old one was designed poorly for a one man operation, built this one where I am always working a cow behind a gate.
Also designed the alley way so I can cut a cow out ot the pasture, back in the pen, or loaded in the trailer.

I took this design as a basic layout except I made a round pen out of it with no corners.
http://www.cps.gov.on.ca/english/bc1000/bc1831.htm

 

[skyline]

CB, I like that pen design. I especially like the way the cut gate lines up for the working chute or the loading chute. That's where I have most of my problems at that cut gate. Things don't line up good and they have room to turn at that point. If I used that design as a starting point, I think I'd like to add a cut gate just downstream of the squeeze chute so that you could use the working chute to sort. Did you install the gates labeled 1 and 3 like they are shown? Is gate 3 close enough to the working chute to squeeze them down the chute? That's another problem area in my current layout.

 

[Caustic Burno]

CB, I like that pen design. I especially like the way the cut gate lines up for the working chute or the loading chute. That's where I have most of my problems at that cut gate. Things don't line up good and they have room to turn at that point. If I used that design as a starting point, I think I'd like to add a cut gate just downstream of the squeeze chute so that you could use the working chute to sort. Did you install the gates labeled 1 and 3 like they are shown? Is gate 3 close enough to the working chute to squeeze them down the chute? That's another problem area in my current layout.

There are two gates hung off the gate 1 post so gate 1 closes off the pen and gate 2 and 3 will met in the middle if that makes sense. I cut the cows out into the smaller area and then squezze them down the chute where they can be cut out to the pasture back in the pen or on the trailer.

Forgot to add the cows are worked down from a two acre lot to drive through alley then into the pen.

 

[novatech]

My design is similar. In the chute there are gates that swing into the chute that will allow cattle to exit to what ever area I want them to go to. Or just leave them shut and they continue to the squeeze or trailer. The gates are part of the chute when they are not being used. I have sliding gates in the chute that can stop the flow or trap them between the gates.
As someone stated before. You cannot have to many gates.