?'S ABOUT CASTRATION

[Anonymous]

I'M WANTING TO TAKE A POLL ON WHAT EVERYONE THINKS THE BEST WAY TO CASTRATE A CALF IS. I'VE CUT THEM, BANDED THEM AND JUST RECENTLY CLAMPED. I LIKE THE BANDING WHEN THE CALVES ARE JUST A FEW WEEKS OLD, IT SEEMS TO WORK PRETTY GOOD. I'VE HAD GOOD LUCK WITH CUTTING A CALF WHEN THE SIGNS ARE RIGHT BUT I'M LOOKING FOR OTHER ALTERNATIVES. I DONT LIKE THE IDEA OF THE BLOOD AND THE POSSIBILITY OF HAVING A BLEEDER. I JUST TRIED CLAMPING ABOUT 3 WEEKS AGO AND DONT KNOW IF I'M SOLD ON IT YET, I'M WAITING TO SEE IF IT WORKS. ANY OTHER METHODS OR SUGGESTIONS ARE WELCOME, THANKS!



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[Anonymous]

I use an emasculator on my bull calves when they're 500 to 600 lbs. I like it because there's no blood loss and I get the extra growth by leaving them intact when they're born. You have to be careful that the testicular cord doesn't slip out while your pinching it though. If you want to sell them as feeders you have to wait until the testicles are pretty well dried up or they may think they're still bulls.<br> <br>The feeder cattle buyers don't like this method they prefer the bulls to be castrated with a knife because then they know they're not getting a bull. I usually feed out my steers so by the time they're ready for market it's obvious they're not bulls. <br>
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[Anonymous]

: <br>THANKS FOR THE INFO. I'M WAITING TO SEE IF THE EMASCULATOR IS THE THING FOR ME. I TOO FEED MY CATTLE OUT BUT WHEN CUTTING THE "NUT" OUT I KNOW ITS GONE. WITH THE EMASCULATOR I'M JUST NOT SURE IF THE JOB IS DONE. I KNOW I GOT BOTH CORDS WHEN I DID IT ABOUT 3 WEEKS AGO, BUT IS THERE STILL A POSSIBILITY THAT IT WONT TAKE? I'VE SEEN A BANDER ON THE MARKET THAT I CALLED ABOUT TODAY THAT YOU CAN BAND A 5OO TO 600 LB. CALF WITH. THEY TOLD ME THEY EVEN BANDED A 1600 LB. BULL WITH IT WITH GREAT SUCCESS! (HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE TAILING THAT ONE?) THIS BANDER WAS PRETTY PRICEY! ANY ONE KNOW OF ANY OTHER BANDERS THAT ARE RESONABLE THAT YOU CAN BAND A 500 TO 600 LB. CALF WITH? I HAVE THE SMALL BANDER BUT WONDERED ABOUT A BIGGER ONE? I WONDERED ABOUT ONE OF THOSE ZIP TIES THAT ARE USED FOR ELECTRICAL USES. WOULD ONE OF THOSE WORK WITH ANY LUCK? OR ARE THERE SPECIAL BANDS SOLD FOR BIGGER CALVES?<br>

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[Anonymous]

We've used an EZE bander on our 500 lb. calves for the past 2 years and have had good success. We used to band when they were a few days old, but like the extra muscle we get by waiting. The buyers don't seem to mind.<p>Ed Hug<br>Scranton, KS
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[Anonymous]

I looked into those banders for the bigger calves also, I asked my vet about them and he wasn't too excited about them. If you use them you should give the animal a tetanus shot so they don't get lockjaw. And your right the banders are expensive plus the cost of the bands too. About 20 years ago I banded some Holstein steers with one of those small banders and they got tetanus, I ended up losing 3 out of 8 them 5 never got it, once they get tetanous they're as good as dead. <p>I'm sure the emasculator will do its job. At first the testicles should swell up about double the size that they normally were and then the swelling will gradually go down and the testicles will just shrink up. It takes longer than three weeks just be patient, in 15 years of using an emasculator I've only had one that I didn't get right the first time and all I had to do was get him back in the chute and redo it and it was only one side that I missed. I always implant my steers also at the same time that I pinch them. I've done bulls as big as 800 lbs. with an emasculator and it works it just takes a long time for them to shrink up. <p>You can band a pretty good size bull with even one of those small banders. All you have to do is first pull the scrotum through the opened band and then squeeze each testicle through individually and if the band doesn't break you're in luck.<br>
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[Anonymous]

>I have been using an Eze bander for the past 15 years and beleive there is no other way! The tetnus problem is farm specific. The feedyard in Ok. that I worked at had a tetnus problem so we kept antitoxin on hand. If caught soon enough and also treated with high doses of pen you should not lose any.The Iowa lot that I now manage health care has never seen a tetnus case,so we just band and turn em lose. Have not lost one and also not lost any performace.

 

[Anonymous]

Treat tetanus with penicillin?? What's an antibiotic going to do for a neurologically problem? You obviously don't know what you're talking about, 30% of people who contract tetanus usually die and they're being treated in a hospital. Click on the link below and go down to tetanus and see what it says, it will say the prognosis for cattle that contract tetanus is death. The possibility of tetanus in cattle from the use of banders should NEVER be taken lightly.



Animal Health Issuses

 

[Anonymous]

I am not going to argue with you but you are mistaken or I am having extremely good luck for the past 10 years. You must read the whole message. I said to use tetnus antitoxin and penicillin at large doses (100 cc). That is what our vet recomended and it has worked extremely well. For those that the nerves are shakey use some ace to keep them from hurting themselves. But you are very right when you say it should not be taken lightly and with this I agree wholeheartedly.

 

[Anonymous]

With fertilizer prices so high why don't you use your BS on your pastures instead of spreading it on here!!!!!!!!!! I suggest you go back and look at the link I included in my post.

 

[Anonymous]

Your posts made some good points, too bad your attitude will turn many off to its use!

> With fertilizer prices so high why
> don't you use your BS on your
> pastures instead of spreading it
> on here!!!!!!!!!! I suggest you go
> back and look at the link I
> included in my post.

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[justin27549]

I see this is a old subject. But i am new here.I work a lot of stocker calves from sale barns. Many of these are bull calves weighing over 500. We band calves with a banderer similar to the eze bander. After banding calf you can take a scalpel and make one incision between both testicles right below the band. Just go straight in and then down close to bottom of sac. Then squeeze and cause one testicle to pop out spray if you want to. Sac will fall off within 7 days. I have seen them carry sacs around for over a month if you don't make this incision.

 

[bball]

EZE BANDER at 2-3 months for years without any problems thus far.

 

[Silver]

Band or knife cut in first day or two of life. No stress, no worries. I went from knife cutting at birth to banding at birth a couple of years ago, only because I wanted to see if the banded calves would move out better to the feed grounds right after castration. So far I like it.

 

[3waycross]

I see this is a old subject. But i am new here.I work a lot of stocker calves from sale barns. Many of these are bull calves weighing over 500. We band calves with a banderer similar to the eze bander. After banding calf you can take a scalpel and make one incision between both testicles right below the band. Just go straight in and then down close to bottom of sac. Then squeeze and cause one testicle to pop out spray if you want to. Sac will fall off within 7 days. I have seen them carry sacs around for over a month if you don't make this incision.

Thanks for the info Justin and welcome to cattle today

 

[Lazy M]

I see this is a old subject. But i am new here.I work a lot of stocker calves from sale barns. Many of these are bull calves weighing over 500. We band calves with a banderer similar to the eze bander. After banding calf you can take a scalpel and make one incision between both testicles right below the band. Just go straight in and then down close to bottom of sac. Then squeeze and cause one testicle to pop out spray if you want to. Sac will fall off within 7 days. I have seen them carry sacs around for over a month if you don't make this incision.

Doesn't make sense to me. Instead of banding or knife cutting, you're doing both...

 

[kenny thomas]

I see this is a old subject. But i am new here.I work a lot of stocker calves from sale barns. Many of these are bull calves weighing over 500. We band calves with a banderer similar to the eze bander. After banding calf you can take a scalpel and make one incision between both testicles right below the band. Just go straight in and then down close to bottom of sac. Then squeeze and cause one testicle to pop out spray if you want to. Sac will fall off within 7 days. I have seen them carry sacs around for over a month if you don't make this incision.

Doesn't make sense to me. Instead of banding or knife cutting, you're doing both...

Didn't make sense to me either until I tried it. It works just as he says. I cant say its any better than cutting them though but it seems to be easier on the calf. Not sure why.

 

[3waycross]

The mitigating factor would seem to be that it is being done to calves that are larger than the norm.

 

[Ojp6]

I see this is a old subject. But i am new here.I work a lot of stocker calves from sale barns. Many of these are bull calves weighing over 500. We band calves with a banderer similar to the eze bander. After banding calf you can take a scalpel and make one incision between both testicles right below the band. Just go straight in and then down close to bottom of sac. Then squeeze and cause one testicle to pop out spray if you want to. Sac will fall off within 7 days. I have seen them carry sacs around for over a month if you don't make this incision.

Doesn't make sense to me. Instead of banding or knife cutting, you're doing both...

Didn't make sense to me either until I tried it. It works just as he says. I cant say its any better than cutting them though but it seems to be easier on the calf. Not sure why.

We did it on some 5 to 7 weight bulls. I think cutting is to hard on them at that size and cutting the sack after you band keeps the swelling down and seems to help the sack dry out faster.

 

[justin27549]

I realize that this is not perfect situation if i had cattle earlier they would already be steers these are cutting bulls. The benefit by doing this is it is bloodless and it is much faster then banding alone. Not sure why just know it works

 

[talltimber]

Does it increase the chance of infection at all?