Settling new feeder calves routine

[Bigfoot]

Beside shots, dehorning, and castrating, how do different people here settle down their feeder calves they buy?

1. I put them in my trap first. Nothing can get out of it. It's attached to a 40' X 36' enclosed pole barn. I think the small area, and soon finding out there is no escape cuts out all the walking. Standing and bawling is hard enough on them.
2. Square bales of sudex hay the first 48 hours, no feed. IMHO, that cuts out a lot of the loose stools.
3. Mineral, a bunch of them have never had a bite.
4. After a week, they are released in to 3/4 acre woven wire lot with hot wire on top, and standing out from the wire.
5. When I know the walking and bawling is over, and they are routinely showing up at the feed trough, I will turn them out behind barbed wire. I only do a few a day, until the group is out.

 

[RanchMan90]

I feed them twice before working them. Once when they come off the trailer, then again the next morning. In the fall I was straightening them out on 10 acres. This spring I've been turning them out on 40 acres of grass and pushing them up to feed horseback in the evening. Works fair with a lead animal, although they do test fences. The main reason for turning out in a bigger trap is to have less health issues. It's cut down on respiratory problems tremendously :2cents:

 

[Stocker Steve]

1a) Corral them tight enough that they can not get away and take them for walks as required. Process including mass medication the next day. Thought is you need to get their minds off Mama and gain some trust.

1b) Opposite approach is to dump them into a big trap and wait weeks before processing. Thought is processing is too stressful early on and vaccination may not yet be effective yet when you need it. Vaccine pimps compare different vaccines in their studies - - not with or without. :shock:

2) Four strand fence with lead animal after two rounds of shots.

 

[Stocker Steve]

The main reason for turning out in a bigger trap is to have less health issues. It's cut down on respiratory problems tremendously :2cents:

Why?
How big is bigger?

 

[RanchMan90]

The main reason for turning out in a bigger trap is to have less health issues. It's cut down on respiratory problems tremendously :2cents:

Why?
How big is bigger?

40 acres. No logic in that size particularly, it's just the smallest water pasture I have. Ive put some thought into dividing it but they come to the bunks pretty well in 3 days.