my dilemma

[tncattle]

Got 5 new steers Tuesday evening and turned out with the 6 already there. They are fully weaned between 550-690 lbs. calm cattle and have been worked with. My other 6 steers are around 800 lbs. and have been there for awhile and are used to the hot wire etc. These new ones were able to get under one small section of hotwire because dumb me left it up too high. They got out Wednesday afternoon and are in some very thick woods very close to the pasture-about 200 yards away. The problem is they are right on the river with tons of cover and grass so they have kind of hunkered down and seem kind of scared. It's very difficult to get to them because of the underbrush and flood debris from last year.

Even the horses can't get to them.

My idea is to feed them everyday in a small feeder and keep moving it closer until they are about where I want them and then they also should be calmer and used to me feeding them and will follow the feed bucket.
I talked with a guy who catches cows for a living with dogs and horses, he said it was $100 if he could drive them back as a group or $100 a head if he has to rope them. But he kept talking like he probably would have to rope them which led me to believe he wouldn't try very hard to push them as a group because he could make more $ by roping them. I also thought if they were roped and put through all that stress it sure wouldn't help calm them down like if I fed them daily and were patient with them.

Any better ideas are appreciated.

 

[Running Arrow Bill]

Start feeding them a LITTLE amount of some favorite food. Move the feeding couple hundred feet or less closer & closer to your catch area. In behavioral psychology this is called "Successive Approximation" and is used to "train" critters.

Worth a try in your case, anyway...

 

[hillsdown]

I like the idea of feeding them too. It doesn't take much to turn any cattle into grain hoes . You might want to set some panels up and feed them in there, and when they all come in, load them up and bring them home. I think sending in a horse and roper might just rile them up to the point of no return, sometimes those guys do more harm than good.

Good luck.

 

[Mat Man]

What about letting the 6- 800 pounds in with them. They will probly follow a feed bucket
any where.

 

[Howdyjabo]

That was my first idea too-- I always let out more when I am trying to catch loose cattle that are worried.
I would let them bond while loose for a few days before I tried to do more than feed them back up.

 

[Anonymous]

Set up a set of panels like a funnel. Put the tight end at you fence and install a gate there. Let em get used to eating in there then when you think they're ready drive em thru the gate

 

[tncattle]

I've fed them everyday for 8 days now and they aren't interested in following the feed bucket at all. A friend of mine said to put out loose salt everyday that they would come to that when they wouldn't come to feed. Of course I don't have any at the moment, I do have a bunch of rock salt we use to make ice cream---would that work? What about just a plain old salt block and move closer a little bit everyday? If I could afford it I would just shoot them and be done with it but I can't afford it!

 

[Anonymous]

What about a protein tub. The shouldn't be able to resist the molasses and should be easy enough to tell if they have been eating on it. Plus it will help them hold condition til you get em back. Did you set up a feeding area with panels?

 

[tncattle]

Do you think they will want the protein tub as they have tons of grass and especially Johnson grass?

 

[Anonymous]

Oh yeah...the molasses is like candy for them

 

[BC]

You said you put them with some bigger cattle that would come to feed, but these new ones got out. Have you considered letting the fence down and putting the gentle cattle out with the new cattle? Hopefully they will take up and the gentle ones can lead them home with some feed.

 

[Anonymous]

The only problem I see with that BC is the risk of sending good after bad and losing more..I dunno I've never tried it

 

[tncattle]

You said you put them with some bigger cattle that would come to feed, but these new ones got out. Have you considered letting the fence down and putting the gentle cattle out with the new cattle? Hopefully they will take up and the gentle ones can lead them home with some feed.

I've thought of doing that but am too chicken that the crazy ones will have more influence than the calm ones. Plus, it's literally 40-50 acres of thick woods.

 

[hillsdown]

You need to send in a few head of cattle that are grain hoes and are leaders. That will definitely work , the steers will be monkey see monkey do . Usually a a few calm cows can change some wild ones not the other way around.

 

[ga.prime]

How high was that wire they went under?

 

[tncattle]

How high was that wire they went under?

It's normally right around 35 inches but right at the post where it's wrapped around with the rubber insulator strip it had got pushed up to around 55 inches and they went right under it. It was my fault for not checking first. Live and learn.

 

[CKC1586]

You said you put them with some bigger cattle that would come to feed, but these new ones got out. Have you considered letting the fence down and putting the gentle cattle out with the new cattle? Hopefully they will take up and the gentle ones can lead them home with some feed.

I've thought of doing that but am too chicken that the crazy ones will have more influence than the calm ones. Plus, it's literally 40-50 acres of thick woods.

That would be my luck too. Know anyone with some good cattle dogs???

 

[BC]

I had an old yearling operator teach me to turn an old Jersey cow out with young calves. They will take up with her. If your big calves will come to call and feed you may want to try this to get the younger ones back.

 

[TheBullLady]

If they have plenty to eat they are going to be hard to catch.. especially since they didn't stay in lng enough to know that's where they belong. I would see if I could find five or six buddies that would help you herd them back to your place.

 

[djinwa]

What were you feeding them?

On the bright side, looks like they're using alot of grass that otherwise would have gone to waste.

Whose land are they on? Can they take off further from where they are?

Wondering if you wait till the grass is gone if they could take off, or if they'd come toward the feed.

I've got a heifer who'll run a long ways at the sound of a feed can rattling, even on a full belly. Maybe you need to train one to bring them back, or as suggested, find a gentle old milk cow or something.