Please don"t try this at home!

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Rod

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I was helping an elderly cattle man move one of his herd bulls and as we were in process of getting him to the lott the bull would just stop and the elderly man would push on the bulls shoulders and/or stand right in front of the bull and push his head to where he needed it to go. At this point my stomach was in knots and i thought that i would throw up at any given secound. But it gets worse.... as we got the bull in the chute (that was covered on top by panels and tied down) he proceded to crawl down the chute with the bull and encourage him down the rest of the chute towards the trailer! The dam#$dest thing I have ever seen. I all but begged him not to do half of these stunts, but he never missed a beat. I know he's been at this alot longer than me BUT these practices will eventually get you killed one day. I'm not scared of bulls but i definately have learned to respect them and by the good graces of the dear lord I'm still around to talk about it. I spoke my mind about the whole bizzare episode to him afterward, but he just smiled and said "awe those are just big 4H pets. " It would be good for anyone reading this post to look up how many fatalites there were last year from pet bulls. It will make you stop and think the next time you are working these animales. I've vented and said my peace...please be safe!
 
You're right Rod. That is unsafe. Look at that woman who was attacked by a chimp.
I have a very healthy respect for our bulls. Even though our oldest bull acts like a pet I don't treat him as such. He could stomp me into nothing if he wanted to.
 
I luv herfrds":2u0x7l6r said:
You're right Rod. That is unsafe. Look at that woman who was attacked by a chimp.
I have a very healthy respect for our bulls. Even though our oldest bull acts like a pet I don't treat him as such. He could stomp me into nothing if he wanted to.


I'd trust a Bull any day over a Chimp.
 
Rod":1kfvaz1r said:
I know he's been at this alot longer than me BUT these practices will eventually get you killed one day.

For someone who does not know how to "read" bulls, you're right. I suspect this gentleman knows fully well how to "read" bulls, and also knows exactly how far he can go with any particular bull without getting hurt. If he didn't, I seriously doubt he would be here today.
 
I luv herfrds":2ql3w4il said:
You're right Rod. That is unsafe. Look at that woman who was attacked by a chimp.
I have a very healthy respect for our bulls. Even though our oldest bull acts like a pet I don't treat him as such. He could stomp me into nothing if he wanted to.

It's just a matter of time Rod..... may not be this gentleman, but sometime... somewhere.... the bull will do exactly what i luv herfrds describes above.

:( Sad that some people don't get it and still push their luck with animals that don't recognize their size or strength. These are the ones you read about in the papers with lame excuses for taking deadly chances. :cry2:
 
I get very nervous working around "pet" cattle-
every now and again people post about working so they can go up and scratch their cows- If I'm walking towards a calf/cow/bull I want it walking away- if it doesn't its gonna get a poke and learn about respecting my space.
I watched a pet cow turn into a killer in a blink of an eye- he was too close to react to it and she got a guy up against a fence and beat him good. It took three of us to get her off of him.If we weren't there she wouldn't have stopped till he was dead.Ever seen the news reals on Circus elephants loosing it- it was just like that.
 
Every year around here there is a news story about someone being killed by their "pet" bull. The only time I would consider a bull a pet is if I have his tanned hide stretched out on a sofa.
 
msscamp":9uim8te5 said:
Rod":9uim8te5 said:
I know he's been at this alot longer than me BUT these practices will eventually get you killed one day.

For someone who does not know how to "read" bulls, you're right. I suspect this gentleman knows fully well how to "read" bulls, and also knows exactly how far he can go with any particular bull without getting hurt. If he didn't, I seriously doubt he would be here today.
Your statement has merit. But it will not be recognized as such on these boards.
 
msscamp":3ox9e7zd said:
Rod":3ox9e7zd said:
I know he's been at this alot longer than me BUT these practices will eventually get you killed one day.

For someone who does not know how to "read" bulls, you're right. I suspect this gentleman knows fully well how to "read" bulls, and also knows exactly how far he can go with any particular bull without getting hurt. If he didn't, I seriously doubt he would be here today.


My thoughts exactly, 100%.
 
3waycross":28p0natp said:
I luv herfrds":28p0natp said:
You're right Rod. That is unsafe. Look at that woman who was attacked by a chimp.
I have a very healthy respect for our bulls. Even though our oldest bull acts like a pet I don't treat him as such. He could stomp me into nothing if he wanted to.


I'd trust a Bull any day over a Chimp.
I trust bulls over about any animals. I'd rather my kids play with a ton bull than a Shetland pony. The bull will at least be consistent.
 
youve just seen how the oldtimer cattlemen handle their cattle.an that was the way he learned to handle them.an theres no way in the world youd get that oldtimer to change his ways.i to was trained alot like him.except that i knew i could get hurt or killed if things blew up.my dad trained me working cattle.an he taught me to stand my ground with them.an if i didnt an they got by me.i got chewed out real good.an ive stood on some pretty rank cows.an those cows would dance on your grave.
 
It only takes one time for a bull or cow to ruin your day or life. I understand their behavior and that is that you just don't ever know for sure what they may do. Walking in a chute with a bull or cow is an unnecessary risk and is a recipe for disaster!
 
Ryder":2zw9wtck said:
msscamp":2zw9wtck said:
Rod":2zw9wtck said:
I know he's been at this alot longer than me BUT these practices will eventually get you killed one day.

For someone who does not know how to "read" bulls, you're right. I suspect this gentleman knows fully well how to "read" bulls, and also knows exactly how far he can go with any particular bull without getting hurt. If he didn't, I seriously doubt he would be here today.
Your statement has merit. But it will not be recognized as such on these boards.

No problem, I can live with that. ;-) :lol:
 
So when I get in the chute behind the sweep gate and sweep them into the head gate I am taking unnecessary risks? What shall I do? Buy one of those Molly chutes with the remote control turrett gate that cost 30 million dollars? I dont think so.
 
Whenever I hear or read about working with bulls, I think about something my dad told me. When he was about 20 years old back in the early 30's, my Grandpa sold a mature bull. Pa had always worked with the bull, so when it came to load it he took him by the ring and led him quiet as a kitten into the truck. He stepped out of the truck, and they closed the doors. When the truck pulled out and the bull realized he was trapped, he started roaring and raising particular hell. He kept it up all the way to town where he had to be unloaded to be weighed. He kept up his hell-raising all the time he was being weighed, and Grandpa was paid. When it was time to reload him, the trucker told Pa he would have to lead the bull back in the truck, Pa said, " you must be nuts, I wouldn't go back in that truck with that bull for a million dollars ". Pa and Grandpa took their money and went home.
 
cowman30":kuotjoce said:
So when I get in the chute behind the sweep gate and sweep them into the head gate I am taking unnecessary risks? What shall I do? Buy one of those Molly chutes with the remote control turrett gate that cost 30 million dollars? I dont think so.
i dont think their trying too pin you down to anything ..... just conversation
 
I don't see what the big deal was. The old man needed his bull to do something and his methods worked today with THAT bull. As comfortable as the bull was around people, he would probably crush somebody who hit him with a shocker or kick the bejavers out of somebody who touched him with a stick. I don't like to work with cattle like that; but he knows his animals and it was him taking the risks and IT WORKED.
 
Brandonm22":1jyuewsu said:
I don't see what the big deal was.
Yes you do. You may not see it as a big deal, but you can recognize the validity of the concern. For example ~ try finding a Mn farmers with all 10 fingers. Its not because they lack brains or experience when working with equipment, its because familiarity and routine breed carelessness, and thats when people get hurt.
 
Well, I have had some training in risk analysis, and I need more information than "there are people getting killed by bulls everywhere".

First, I need to know incidence rates. Of all people who handle bulls, how many were killed? Is it one in a hundred or one in a million. We all take some risks every day based on the likelihood of it affecting us. I hear every night on the news of someone killed in a car accident, yet I'm crazy enough to keep driving because I consider the risk to be low enough.

Secondly, all bulls are not created equal. This old man mentioned these were 4H bulls. If all bulls are killers, why do I go the fair and see ladies leading ton+ bulls around with halters while city slickers with children walk right next to them?
 
I don't agree with his methods but people may not agree with mine either
I am not scared of my bulls and they aren't mean or hard to handle

I would also rather handle a single bull than a group of bulls because I have had a group get in the corrals and a lower pecking order bull will get to close to a dominant bull and the lower bull will run over you to get away from the dom bull not because he is trying to hurt you but because out of self preservation
I can go into a herd of cows and sort my bulls off and drive them away

No problem but I never trust them 100% and always am aware of what is going on and make sure I can get out of they way if needed
I have trained my bulls to a bull whip and I can go crack it and they start paying attention

I had 2 bulls and the neighbors bulls get together because his SIL left a gate open to a pasture so the bulls got in adjacent pastures and then they took the fence out and started fighting
I drove down in the pasture got out of the trk and popped that whip my bulls turned and looked at me and I started towards them popping the whip and they headed back to their pasture because they know when it starts popping they are supposed to move away from me

My advice is have good calm bulls but always be aware and respect them
 

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