Pulling calves using a truck or tractor...

[Little Cow]

I've heard of this but never seen it done. Worked for college calving their cows and I can see how the thought would come up. However, while working for a vet, I saw the aftermath. Uterus torn to heck, dying cow, dead calf....

Does anyone really do this still? If so, why?

There must be a 'correct' way, if it's still being done?? :?:

Earlier post on Belgian Blues and their c-section rate got me wondering....

 

[dun]

Interesting you should mention this at this time. The vet was really steamed a couple of days ago. Had to try to put a cow back together and straighten out the mess from some idiot using his truck to pull a calf. Vet was no a happy camper. Said he was so mad that if it hadn;t been for the animal suffering he would have just left the mess for the owner to try to fix.

 

[mnmtranching]

People could avoid so much crap, if they would just use easy calving low birth weight bulls.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

heard a feller pulled a calf with a lincoln continental.had the cow necked to a tree. unfortunitly the owner was the only one that survived i have anchored off too my four wheeler or tractor. and used my puller. but to pull one with a vehicle you got no feel of what is going on. plus the angle need to keep the down ward angle.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

People could avoid so much crap, if they would just use easy calving low birth weight bulls.

maybe,, but it wont fix their stupid

 

[Bez+]

People could avoid so much crap, if they would just use easy calving low birth weight bulls.

Agreed my friend - but schitzen happens even with the set up you mention - best laid plans and so on.

Smallest cow on our place had the biggest calf this year - wife had to help - first time in a long time.

To all:

Be that as it may - can pulling be done with a vehicle? Yes

Should it be done? Never

Why? Too easy to screw it up and do irrepairable damage.

Buy a Doc Frank or similar tool for the time you might need it - or have the number of a veterinarian that you have already contacted and you KNOW will come when you call. Too late to start calling when you are in trouble - do it before the trouble starts.

You have livestock you will have need of a veterinarian sooner or later. And yes, you will have deadstock - so best be over that stage as soon as possible.

But that does not prevent the - "stupid is as stupid does" syndrome.

Someone out there - somewhere is still trying to find a better way to beat the system - some ideas work and some do not.

Regards

Bez+

 

[dyates]

I hate to admit it, but I did it once this year. The cow was down and I could not for the life of me get the pullers in a position to do anything. I pulled by hand until I just couldn't pull anymore. I got the calf out to the hips and cleaned off its face. It was bawling and thrashing trying to tear its own way out and I couldn't stand it. Adrenaline took over and I went to the last resort. I expected the worse and the .30/.30 was on standby for a quick end. I'm not proud of it and hope I never have to do it again. Luckily, both survived and momma will get to be hamburger at a later date. As for the calving ease bulls, I couldn't agree more. However, no matter how you plan, you're gonna have a freak somewhere, sometime.

 

[ToddFarmsInc]

Pull a calf with a vehicle or tractor?????

 

[jt]

yea i have done it a couple of times. all i can tell you is that you would have to be in my shoes at the time. dont blame the bull... the cow puts 50% into it, and that was the case for sure on one of them.

anyway. i have a puller, but when one gets hip locked, it is super tough sometimes. the tractor was the only alternative. just be careful and try to keep the pull in the downward position. dont get in a rush and keep moving your tractor. and i needed something that could pull harder than i could. calf and momma were just fine.

might catch it for this and some might want to call me stupid, but at midnight on a sat night, you do the best you can.

jt

 

[MikeC]

Sometimes you have to make do with what you have on hand.

A few years ago, a neighbor called me from his pasture for calving help. Turned out the calf's head was turned back and we could not get it forward. The cow was almost done for......................she was worn out and had quit.

I hooked my 12,000 lb wench hook to the calf and pulled it out with the head turned wrong. While getting it out you could hear bones breaking but we didn't want to lose both the cow and calf.

Long story short, the calf was dead but the cow got up a couple of hours later and raised an orphan calf.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

yea i have done it a couple of times. all i can tell you is that you would have to be in my shoes at the time. dont blame the bull... the cow puts 50% into it, and that was the case for sure on one of them.

anyway. i have a puller, but when one gets hip locked, it is super tough sometimes. the tractor was the only alternative. just be careful and try to keep the pull in the downward position. dont get in a rush and keep moving your tractor. and i needed something that could pull harder than i could. calf and momma were just fine.

might catch it for this and some might want to call me stupid, but at midnight on a sat night, you do the best you can.

jt

hip lock can be even worse .. you can turn the calf a 1/4 turn when they stop at the hip, most will slip on out..

 

[milkmaid]

I've pulled calves with a calf puller, but never with a truck/tractor and never intend to.

FWIW, if I remember right what one vet told me, a calf puller itself exerts 2300lbs of pressure and can sure cause problems too if you're not careful.

 

[angie1]

I have heard of such things as this. I live in an area with easy access to vets 24/7 so there is no excuse for such a thing. I think people lose patience maybe, or as one said ~ they panic.

Personally there are a lot of things people do to their cows that I would never allow done to mine, but I always figured it was because I had been in that cows shoes. I am more than glad there was not a tractor in the room when I had my second ~ might of gotten ugly! :help:

hip locked is even worse .. you can turn the calf a 1/4 turn when they stop at the hip, most will slip on out..

The second of our twins was hip locked. The vet made the cow stand up, she was still down from the first. That was all it took to turn that calf that 1/4 turn and get it out easy ~ just stand her up.

 

[jt]

if you cant get a vet, what do you do? seems to me you either cut the calf up inside the cow, which most are not capable of doing or you pull it. how hard do you pull?

and it is not always the bull's fault. the cow is 50% and sometimes the cows owner feeds the cow too well growing a bigger calf, etc.

dont get me wrong, i do not advocate using trucks and tractors, but i am not for running someone down who HAS to use one. sometimes you have to make do like mikec said.



jt

 

[grannysoo]

A bad situation can become worse in a hurry when things like this happen. I don't agree with using the vehicle to pull with, but then on the other hand... things happen and at times you do the best you can with what you've got to work with. I don't like it, but I was not in his shoes.

Drastic times can call for drastic measures.

 

[rockridgecattle]

I'm stunned...
When we pull a calf with a calf jack we are 98% sure that we can do it. Otherwise the jack is left where it is and we call the vet. How can you have control with a vehicle when jacking a calf...

by the way...Hello Bez

 

[dyates]

How can you have control with a vehicle when jacking a calf...

You don't. In my case, the calf was already hiplocked. What was a vet going to do? Kill the calf and cut it up to get it out? I could do nothing and both would have died. As it was, both lived. Like I said, not proud of it, but even a broken clock is right twice a day.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

How can you have control with a vehicle when jacking a calf...

You don't. In my case, the calf was already hiplocked. What was a vet going to do? Kill the calf and cut it up to get it out? I could do nothing and both would have died. As it was, both lived. Like I said, not proud of it, but even a broken clock is right twice a day.

the calf will be more than half way out, with a hip lock why would he need to cut it out.

 

[dyates]

How can you have control with a vehicle when jacking a calf...

You don't. In my case, the calf was already hiplocked. What was a vet going to do? Kill the calf and cut it up to get it out? I could do nothing and both would have died. As it was, both lived. Like I said, not proud of it, but even a broken clock is right twice a day.

the calf will be more than half way out, with a hip lock why would he need to cut it out.

Bad bull...another story. This calf was built like an anvil and he wasn't coming without a tremendous amount of pulling. When I say hiplocked, I mean LOCKED. I don't think anyone, vet or otherwise could have pulled this particular calf from this particular cow in this particular position and location with any less trauma to cow or calf than what I did. I know it was luck, but I don't think the vet would have pulled hard enough to get it out. He would have given up on the calf in an effort to save the cow.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Have heard too many horror stories of calves being pulled by a tractor or truck.
We normally start out with the OB chains and handles and we have the puller on standby.
As for the hip lock we do the 1/4 turn and the calf pops out.

Good to see you again Bez.