ear tags

[D.R. Cattle]

IS anyone using the large ID tags for calves? I would typically use something smaller for calves but it was hard to read from a distance so I switched to large. Now I wonder if my calves are going to have a lazy ear as they grow to weaning weight. As long as were on the subject of tags, I wonder what different kinds of numbering systems folks are using. Bulls and cows are tagged and firebranded by the breeder I purchase from. For the calves I duplicate the mothers number and add a dash and the 2 digit year the calf was born. This helps mammy up calves easily, while grouping the calf with it's mother in the inventory database.

 

[dun]

I haven't measured them, but the tags we use are large. Ca;ves and cows where the same size tag.
Our numbering system for heifers is pretty simple. The letter for the year and the sequentila number that the heifer was born that year.
The bull calves are even easier. We use a blue tag in the right ear with whatever number happens to be the first one I grab out of the box. When we ship them they're retagged in both ears with a number from the marketing association and the next year we reuse the blue tags.
If we don;t get several calves tagged at birth, when we work them in the spring we just stick a tag in their ear and see who they nurse and correlate calves to cows that way.
With cattlemax we just put in the calves id for the cow and it's all kept track of from then on by th software.

dun

 

[D.R. Cattle]

Why different for heifers and bulls? Because you hold back some of the heifers?

 

[dun]

Why different for heifers and bulls? Because you hold back some of the heifers?

Correct. All bulls, steers by the time their a month old at the latest are all headed to the feedlot. When they're all red it's easier to sort out a particular calf at a distance when they're able to be visually seperated. Most of the heifers don't stay around either, but there is a chance that a particualr heifer shifts from a shipper to a possible retain based on her own performance. We generally know which heifers are potential keepers or sellers as replacements, but one can never tell. We have certain cow familys that their daughters are of interest, and there are cow familys that are no more then steer makers. If they have a heifer it's still a steer for all intents and purposes.

dun

 

[D.R. Cattle]

I'm kinda fond of my numbering system but I never thought of color diff for sexes. Think I'll try it for next calving season.

 

[dun]

Some friends of ours tried your sytem for a couple of years but the numbers for some ofthe heifers started getting too long for a single tag when they got down a couple of generations.
We usedto use the same color tags for bulls and heifers and the same numberuing system. The only difference was the boys (it's) got tagged in the right ear, the girls got tagged in the left ear. Now it's a habit to tag opposite ears even though we've gone to different colors and numbering schemes.
Concerning the droopy ear. If you tag them back at the weeb where they should be tagged they don't droop. Last year we had a calf that jerked and yanked his head back just as I put the tag in. The tag was 2/3 of the way to the end. The ear hung a little, but the biggest thing was that the ear kind of rolled/folded down, the tag was also towards the top of the ear, so you could never read the tag. But since he was the only one I knew who he was without seeing the tag.

dun

 

[Jake]

as of right now, we've started putting a number system in place instead of just assigning a number to the cow. The year they are bred is the first number so 2004 tags were 400 series, they get assigned 1-99

 

[D.R. Cattle]

as of right now, we've started putting a number system in place instead of just assigning a number to the cow. The year they are bred is the first number so 2004 tags were 400 series, they get assigned 1-99

Not sure if I understand the "year they are bred" part. My cows get bred every year and retain the same number through the life cycle.

 

[Jake]

sorry I mean heifers get the tag # starting with the year they were bred.... Cows over 4 all have assorted tags of different numbers. The # system is just so we know what set of heifers they belong to

 

[dun]

I broke down and measured the tags. Excluding the tab part where they attach they are 3x3, that's inches, not feet.
The picture I posted of that little heifer P1 has had that tag in her ear since the day she was born and it hasn't caused her ear to droop. Of course if it had then the Brahman folks would like her better.


dun

 

[Dee]

I number the calf the same as the cow. Boys in the right ear, girls in the left. Different tag color for different years. Hot pink the first year, red last year, and this year is orange. I also put their birthdate in small print on the top, and my initials on the back of the tag.

 

[docgraybull]

We use the large tags also. No droopy ears (caused by the tags anyway). We identify cows and heifers with large preprinted numbered tags in the left ear. Steer calves get small sequentially numbered (hand written on blank tag) tags in the right ear. They are cheaper than the large preprinted tags, serve their purpose, and go with the steers to market. All tags get a letter written on the base of the back of the tag to identify year of birth (Z=2000, A=2001, B=2002, etc.). I have a friend who runs some cows with mine, and also have some cows that I partner on and each group has a different color - white for mine, orange for the partnered cows, and yellow for my friend's cows. We usually identify the bulls as the ones without a tag.

 

[Beefy]

we usually tag the heifers we retain when we sell off the others. bulls/steers dont normally get a tag. i am with the cows enough to know which calf belongs to who so if there is a need to identify one (usually there isnt) i can point it out. we switch colors after a while. for instance, main herd is 1-162 yellow. i have them sorted by age in columns on an excel spreadsheet. 1-10 are/were 12 this year, 11-47 are/were 11, etc. then we have 1-50 orange (my sisters). my heifers are 1-82 white. etc. its a lot less complicated than it sounds but i dont even pay attention to the ear tags. i know the cows and their numbers individually. comes in handy when they are missing ear tags. Dad likes to have them tagged so he can ask me about a certain cow from time to time. this really came in handy while i was away at college.

 

[Beefy]

Just kidding, that didnt answer the question at all. the large shouldnt make them droop if you tag them in the right place. ive seen some ears droop kind of like a chester white hog but i wonder if thats from hitting the vein in the ear? surely we dont have frozen ears in south georgia..

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

We use Ex Large eartags from the day they are born. Red in left ear for heifers, yellow right ear for males. I put the birthdate (mo & day) in small numbers on the bottom of the "neck" and put the sire below that on the top of the main tag, than the number, which is the same number as the dam except change the letter to match the international year-letter code. 2005 is R. The tags work great for when people come to see our calves. Anyone can walk around and figure out the cow families & easily see only heifers or only males if that's what they are interested in. Helps for sorting also. When our calves were spotted, I never needed to look at the tag, but I find myself looking at them more & more with the solid reds & blacks. I generally have them figured out through AI season, because I spend a lot of time in the fields & study the calves. Right now, I drive tractor to feed & get out to check for health problems, but don't diddle dattle too long - not like in the spring/summer.

 

[jt]

I put the birthdate (mo & day) in small numbers on the bottom of the "neck" and put the sire below that on the top of the main tag, than the number, which is the same number as the dam except change the letter to match the international year-letter code. 2005 is R.

i have been trying to come with a good numbering system, and noticed that others do like you in that the calf gets the number of the dam. but what do you do after that if both the original dam and her calf are retained and both have a calf the next year? if i have a 433J and a 433L and they both have a calf this year, how would you tag their calves?


i had also considered something like what jake talked about earlier... tying it in with the year... i like that idea, but not sure about any cows that make it to be 10... then i would be duplicating numbers??

open for suggestions.


thanks

jt

 

[D.R. Cattle]

tag calves with the number of the dam and the code for the year. If heifers are retained change the number when she gets bred to her own unique number.

 

[jt]

tag calves with the number of the dam and the code for the year. If heifers are retained change the number when she gets bred to her own unique number.

i dont know how well changing numbers would work with registered stock.
it would seem easier to just give them their unique number at birth??


jt

 

[docgraybull]

change the letter to match the international year-letter code. 2005 is R.

Where can one find more information on this? Do they use Q, I, and O? I wasn't aware of an internationally recognized system. Don't deal with tagging registered cattle though. When we started using letters to note the year of birth a few years ago (before 2000), we used 2001=A as a starting point and worked backward. Since we crossed the year 2000 threshold, it makes more sense. We put the letter on the back of the tag so we can use Q, I, and O and not worry about getting them confused with numbers.

 

[dun]

You don't use I, O, or Q. I also think that there are couple of breed associations that use their own numbering system.

http://www.beefimprovement.org/guidelines/App2-2.PDF

dun