Cut 'em or Band 'em?

[circlet]

What is your preferred method of Castration? Curious as to how most everybody is doing it these days!

 

[S.R.R.]

Band

 

[Hawk]

Band.

 

[randiliana]

We band them.

 

[circlet]

for the record...i prefer band also

 

[Texas Ranch Man]

Banding, with a tetnus shot.

 

[Hippie Rancher]

I've never done anything except cutting. Why do so many of you band? Flies? How old of an animal can you do that to? I have a couple of bulls I miss most years and I hate cutting those big suckers - is banding easier?

My inclination is ...seein' the pile of potential calf fries is a sure sign the job got done right.

 

[warpaint]

I prefer to cut. More time consuming, but that way I know that both were got.

 

[randiliana]

I've never done anything except cutting. Why do so many of you band? Flies? How old of an animal can you do that to? I have a couple of bulls I miss most years and I hate cutting those big suckers - is banding easier?

My inclination is ...seein' the pile of potential calf fries is a sure sign the job got done right.

We used to cut them too, but one year we had to band a bunch of them because they were going on the truck (to pasture) the next day. The ones that were banded and these were up to 3 months old didn't lay around feeling sorry for themselves nearly as much as the ones that were cut. As well, we had a couple calves get infected and one die, when they were cut, and have never had that problem with the bands. Hubby figured he could have bought a lot of bands for the money we would have gotten out of him had he lived.

As for size, as long as the band goes over them it will work. We did one at 6 months of age (which isn't saying much for his development ;-) ) and he was around 600 lbs. Usually though I would think 3-4 months would be tops for the little bands anyways.

 

[Proverbs 12:10]

We have used callicrate bander and tetanus shot with no problems. You can band full grown bulls with this...not with the small bands.

 

[jcarkie]

i band mine when they are very small, one or two days old. less than a month old. make sure you count to two.

 

[Saltydawg]

I band cause it's easier for me.

I toss a rope around their necks and straddle them while they're standing.
Reach down, count two, release bander.

Usually get them under a month old when it's easy for me to handle them with one hand and a rope.

 

[Anonymous]

I cut them

 

[Workinonit Farm]

I band mine within 24 hrs of birth.

Where I work, most are banded within 24 hrs of birth except the ones chosen to be possible future bulls. The ones that aren't "developing" with the qualities they want, get cut.

Katherine

 

[LaneFarms]

I band mine and give a tetanus shot. Lost too many calves using a knife from either stress or tetanus.

 

[Texan]

Knife-cuts make everybody happy on the other end. Banding limits your number of buyers.

 

[sidney411]

knife cut. If it's done with a clean knike and the cut sprayed with a wound type spray then the chances of infection is greatly reduced. Healing time is shorter on cut calves also. I think it is less stressful to get it over with then drag out the process of letting the sack rot off.

 

[mitchwi]

Cut - I have been burned with getting some stags when banding has been done... last fall was the first time I became adamant about buying cut only.

 

[Howdyjabo]

Cut-- too big and I need them on feed fast- takes too long for these calves to get over banding.
If I was doing it young and on farm I'd band.

When you guys cut(or band) keep in mind that if there are not two hanging down-- leave them alone or finish the job. Cutting or banding only one really screws the next guy and ends up being really cruel to the animal. If left alone we can get the one hanging back pretty easy.
And of course count to two-- I can't understand why that is so hard.

 

[farmwife]

Banding, with a tetnus shot.

I agree. Less work, less stress, and less worry.