My new Tub..

[Chainsaw Driver]

After years of working with poorly designed pens, we're on our way to a nice SAFE set of pens. The tub frame is almost finished in this photo. Yes it is 8' tall. I have seen yearling 5-6 weight calves jump a 6' fence. Then last year my last crazy tried to clear our 6' pens and almost made it. She was 1150 pounds and tore the entire corner up. I hate jumpers, they leave as soon as I can trailer them. Anyway thought the forum would find my tub design interesting. Maybe I should call it the safeTtub like my T-post tool.... :unsure::)

 

[Dsth]

looks like you have a lot of time and work into it already. I don't think you will have any problems with anything jumping over the top. post pic when the whole project is done please. Impressive work.

 

[GoWyo]

After years of working with poorly designed pens, we're on our way to a nice SAFE set of pens. The tub frame is almost finished in this photo. Yes it is 8' tall. I have seen yearling 5-6 weight calves jump a 6' fence. Then last year my last crazy tried to clear our 6' pens and almost made it. She was 1150 pounds and tore the entire corner up. I hate jumpers, they leave as soon as I can trailer them. Anyway thought the forum would find my tub design interesting. Maybe I should call it the safeTtub like my T-post tool.... :unsure::)
View attachment 14130

That welding technique highly resembles mine. But I only have one ladder. Overhead bars at 12' are really fun.

 

[Brute 23]

Is that what cow jail looks like?

 

[GoWyo]

Here's a pic of mine in a not quite finished state. It is a 10 foot crowd gate on the left that sweeps around and the outlet is on the right hand side on far side of the tub. There is a load out gate right before the outlet and still need to build the load out. It might need more bars down low, but this is working for now.

 

[wbvs58]

After years of working with poorly designed pens, we're on our way to a nice SAFE set of pens. The tub frame is almost finished in this photo. Yes it is 8' tall. I have seen yearling 5-6 weight calves jump a 6' fence. Then last year my last crazy tried to clear our 6' pens and almost made it. She was 1150 pounds and tore the entire corner up. I hate jumpers, they leave as soon as I can trailer them. Anyway thought the forum would find my tub design interesting. Maybe I should call it the safeTtub like my T-post tool.... :unsure::)
View attachment 14130

Looks strong, I'd hate to pay for the steel in it especially at todays prices. Are you going to sheet the outside with anything like vinyl? A bit of covering can have a calming effect on your crazies. As it stands it looks too open to me, that would be my only criticism.
Good work.

Ken

 

[SBMF 2015]

Good job, looks nice! Will you sheet a portion of the bottom?

 

[Chainsaw Driver]

I've thought about sheathing a portion kind of like you do for deer. Most of my girls are stupid gentle but every once in a while I get a crazy. The yearlings are my biggest concern, they always seem to be full of piss and vinegar...LOL

 

[Chainsaw Driver]

I like the load out sweep idea, very nice. The steel prices are terrible thus this a 100% scrounge up what I can find show. One little piece at at time.

 

[chaded]

I think I would have made it a few feet taller.

 

[GoWyo]

I've thought about sheathing a portion kind of like you do for deer. Most of my girls are stupid gentle but every once in a while I get a crazy. The yearlings are my biggest concern, they always seem to be full of piss and vinegar...LOL

Our cows get worked 3-4 times per year with AI. They are mostly pretty easy going, which is why a bud box doesn't work very well here -- they would rather be hanging out in the bud box with the pusher than getting up the alley. I made alleys to the chute with continuous fence panels welded to alley bows. The only ones that stick their heads through are the calves at weaning time and occasionally a yearling. I think they flow better with the open bars after having borrowed portable tubs and even a Daniels double barrel alley. I wouldn't sheet the bottom until you try it as is.

 

[Dave]

I have some material they use in pulp mills called dryer felt. It looks like canvas but it has stands of metal woven through it. It lasts for ever. The stuff I have is 7 feet wide. It works great to turn a tub or gate into sheeted. The whole idea behind something being sheeted is the animal can't see through or over it and is then less likely to jump. It is a lot easier to hang this material up than it is to weld up metal sheeting.

 

[Dave]

Here is a couple pictures where I have hung that dryer felt. One is on a gate and the other in a weak corner.

 

[kenny thomas]

Your exactly right. They don't try to go where they can't see.

 

[RDFF]

If you sheet it, you can't move the animals from outside of the fence with your body position as easily. I prefer open fence for that reason. I also prefer high enough that they don't ever want to try to jump it. Any of the farm store gates/corral panels with a cow on 'em tends to depreciate 'em real fast.

BIG believer in the heavy freestanding panels, so I can set up any way needed, anytime, anywhere.

 

[Travlr]

I've thought about sheathing a portion kind of like you do for deer. Most of my girls are stupid gentle but every once in a while I get a crazy. The yearlings are my biggest concern, they always seem to be full of piss and vinegar...LOL

There are some people around here that use old four foot wide or wider conveyor belt for corral walls and feedlot fences. Solid, smooth, and impossible to climb and you can attach it to your existing structure. Cheap too.

I was wondering if you ever considered placing the ribs vertically? I've never seen it done but I'd think it would be just as easy to build and harder for an animal to climb out.

 

[greybeard]

Did you get your 'table' from all that fiber optic stuff they're running up and down FM945?

 

[RDFF]

I think they flow better with the open bars after having borrowed portable tubs and even a Daniels double barrel alley.

Curious... I'm personally not a fan of the tubs vs. a properly designed and operated Bud Box (one is designed to push/force the animals into the opening, the latter is designed so that they will WANT to go there by themself), but what did you like and not like about both?

Second question... Since the Daniels DBL alley doesn't have any kind of factory designed "entry system" attached to it... how did you go about handling that when you used it? Bud Box? Crowding tub? Couple of guys trying to pressure them into it from the holding pen? ???

 

[GoWyo]

My tub and alley is open bars that cattle can see through. I try to limit to 3 cattle in the tub, which is what also fits in the 30' alley. To fill the alley, the person working the alley steps to the "dead corner" of the tub and the first animal naturally steps into the alley, push that one up and the other two follow in. The tub gate can then close off the alley or put a stick in and go get 3 more for the tub. If I'm by myself, I can usually fill the alley from the tub and leave the tub gate closed to hold the alley and work the ones in the alley through the chute. The portable tubs I borrowed were full sheeted sides and the cows just balled up in the tub and wouldn't go down the alley.

I had a bud box in a couple different set ups. Non-gentle (not wild, but not pets either) worked fine in it. Old show heifers just wouldn't go up the alley from the bud box. We still have a few and they work fine in the tub. I took a couple pics of the tub and alley I built in 2021-22. Planning to put the chute on concrete with a scale set up before the chute and will probably tune on the alley some more, but this is functional now and I AI'd 60 cows through it last spring working mostly by myself.

First pic is from the working side of the chute and alley. Second pic is from the outside (non-working side) showing the load out that comes off the tub - the gate to the load out shuts off the alley if using the load out. Third pic is the load out gate from the tub. Next project is making the load out permanent, then raising the overhead bars on the alley and building a scale section with a slide gate on the back right before the chute. Notice my high class working table chute side :cool:

 

[Brute 23]

Curious... I'm personally not a fan of the tubs vs. a properly designed and operated Bud Box (one is designed to push/force the animals into the opening, the latter is designed so that they will WANT to go there by themself), but what did you like and not like about both?

Second question... Since the Daniels DBL alley doesn't have any kind of factory designed "entry system" attached to it... how did you go about handling that when you used it? Bud Box? Crowding tub? Couple of guys trying to pressure them into it from the holding pen? ???

That's not true. Go read on the bud box. It says to push the cattle in the bud box at a light trot and use that energy for them to then wrap around and got back out.

You have been on a kick about tubs. They both have their place.

Get some dog tame cattle in a bud box and you will starve to death before they want to leave. Same on the opposite end with cattle who know what an alley is or want to fight you.

We all know how they are suppose to work in the perfect scenario. We have all seen the videos.

I would never encourage some one to build facilities with out a way to pressure the cattle through. It's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. Same with a hot shot. It's only a stick unless you decide to push the button.