Fence Crawlers

[randiliana]

Why is it always the best looking ones that turn into fence crawlers? Brought one home a week ago, told DH that we should just take her to town and get what we get. Only problem is that she is one darn good looking bred heifer, has some pretty good genetics behind her and is due to calve early in the first cycle. But I don't know if I can tolerate having to put her in every day...or else we lock her up with the background calves and feed her grain with them...

 

[Jogeephus]

I've come to the conclusion life is too short.

 

[A.J.]

Seems like that's the way it goes a lot of times . Wouldn't be worth the headache to me. Good chance her calf would be the same way, and I'd be afraid she would rub off on some of the others .

 

[randiliana]

The thought is that we will keep her till she calves, then steal her calf and foster it on the milk cow.. And either sell her or feed her to butcher.

 

[dun]

The thought is that we will keep her till she calves, then steal her calf and foster it on the milk cow.. And either sell her or feed her to butcher.

Works For Me!

 

[A.J.]

The thought is that we will keep her till she calves, then steal her calf and foster it on the milk cow.. And either sell her or feed her to butcher.

Ok. Gotcha. That makes sense.

 

[randiliana]

It just socks when it is one off a good old cow, and one of the better looking heifers. We just got rid of one this fall that was the same way, only we kept her 2 years longer than we should have...

 

[hillbilly beef man]

A bucket of feed a day can work wonders for their attitude. One way trip to town if that does not work.

 

[1982vett]

It just socks when it is one off a good old cow, and one of the better looking heifers. We just got rid of one this fall that was the same way, only we kept her 2 years longer than we should have...

Yeah...but in the end, aren't the "favorites" and "special" ones from good old cows usually a big disappointment anyway. Not sure I'd bite on calving her then putting her calf on the milk cow....If I did that I'd end up with needing another milk cow for the other disappointments likely to happen.

This year the "favorite" heifer from her group had a dead, premature calf a month early. She is a nice calm brindle, follow you anywhere, leader of the pack type.

Last year the "favorite" out of its group was the last to calve. She palpated 8 months when I sold her. She was the oldest and a good 5 months behind the rest of the group.

This years group has a cattleguard walker. I finally got around to cleaning out the one she walks. If that doesn't stop her she won't be around here much longer.

 

[randiliana]

From my experience, fence crawlers are not curable.

I love heifers off good, old reliable cows. There is a lot of proof that they will work out well, we have a couple of this one's sisters in the herd. They stay where they are put though. And this is part of the reason we have the milk cow. Either that, or we will foster it, sell it or put it out on shares in the spring. It's often useful to have a couple of culls around for foster calves.

 

[Rafter S]

I've come to the conclusion life is too short.

I agree. And as I've quoted one of my father's sayings here before: "There's too many good cattle in the country to put up with one like that."

 

[dun]

Several years ago at the Mo Red Angus Association sale I had my heart set on one particular heifer. Went into the pen with her at the sale and she walked up to me. That pretty well sealed the deal. I bought her (for more then I should have) but she had the EPDs disposition and genetics that I really wanted. Ended up taking her to the sale barn as a bred coming 2 year old. Couldn't keep her in hot wire. She would crawl under it (most of ours runs 28-32 inches and a single strand). Most every day we would find her out just wandering around either a different pasture the one she as supposed to be in or up around the barn or the house. Watched her crawl under the fence once and could hear the electricity sizzling on her back as she went under. I have only ever seen one other that was insensitive to hot wire, that was a steer that fortunately left with the other weaned steers that year.

 

[Putangitangi]

Keep a daughter and she'd probably do the same thing! When I did an insemination round a few years ago, there was a guy who had a lovely herd dairy cows and knew every one and all their families back generations. He knew exactly which bull he'd used which sired the group of cows which were all fence-crawlers. They were great producers so he kept them on and their daughters all did it too.

 

[Muddy]

Had a fence crawler few years ago, was about to cull her till we got our heeler dogs. Apparently she thinks its much safe in the pasture than outside of the fence. Still has her and is expecting her fourth calf next spring.

 

[randiliana]

Tool, we've already got the dogs...