Tagging calves

[R lazy 7]

My cows know which calf is theirs if a cow needs culled she gets culled.

Both of them?

Easy to improve your herd without tagging or keeping records. A week or two before weaning throw your herd into a small trap. Pair out anything that doesn't fit your program, along with any dry cows. Send those to the sale barn. No buying tags, no getting rolled tagging calves, no spending time going over data, then trying to find the cows you need to cull. Everything taken care of in in a pleasant day or two playing with your cows.

 

[gcreekrch]

I tag, only way I can shed 20 winter lbs in spring before the hay tractor puts them back on.
And a few other obvious reasons.

 

[Brute 23]

My cows know which calf is theirs if a cow needs culled she gets culled.

I was just about to say some thing simular.

What is funny to me is I never even considered that fact that a cow would walk off with out her calf. When I was growing a cow may be grazing 100yds from her calf and you didn't even walk between her line of sight. My dad was always hammering us to pay attention because we would be walking and you could see cows get high headed and goofy and he would be looking... saying... I bet there is a calf in here some where... lets go around.

It wasn't until I went to college and worked for a guy with a reg Angus herd. When you worked cows you had to hold all the cows until the calves were done because they would walk off and not come back. The cows go out of the trap one time and we had to load the calves in a trailer, cube the cows, and take the calves to them.

When they cows were calving we had to ride the pastures every day. He lost quite few calves every year to ridiculous stuff.

I found a calf in a mud hole in and open field. Cows were all out grazing and didn't care. When I started trying to get it out and it was bellering, they never even looked up or came over.

It blew my mind. I had never seen any thing like that.

 

[R lazy 7]

I tag, only way I can shed 20 winter lbs in spring before the hay tractor puts them back on.
And a few other obvious reasons.

I understand every operation is different and there are reasons to tag calves but my on my operation it isn't needed.

 

[gcreekrch]

I understand every operation is different and there are reasons to tag calves but my on my operation it isn't needed.

We calve as late as we can to avoid cold, usually still end up with some nasty, sloppy stuff to deal with. Go down the feed row with 300+ cows to a group and find a couple with full bags. Has the calf just not eaten lately or is he sick. I haven't the time to wait until Mom is full and looking for her calf to match them up. Makes much easier when a heifer is going down the alley at weaning time to make a decision whether she stays or not. Or to write down a dink who we may not have noticed and make sure his mother is on the ship list.
We are banding bulls, giving an intranasal at birth. The tag is just another step while a calf is young and easily handled. Overprotective cows get ironed out with the quad until they respect MY space.

As mentioned, each to his own. Would be nice if we only had to gather and ship the calves but they don't do well on their own anywhere, anymore.

 

[WFfarm]

It's good to have all your cattle with an ear tag, so when one gets out and decides to round around the countryside it's easier to identify it when it gets in with someone else's animals. Or when it gets on the local animal sanctuary's property and they try to keep it.

 

[TCRanch]

It's good to have all your cattle with an ear tag, so when one gets out and decides to round around the countryside it's easier to identify it when it gets in with someone else's animals. Or when it gets on the local animal sanctuary's property and they try to keep it.

Good point!!! Ours rarely get out but on more than one occasion, an oil well pumper has called with calves/cows out (because they always call us first?) and it's so much easier to identify which neighbor they belong to. Not many brand around here, so tagging really helps.

 

[gizmom]

I have a small operation with 15 -20 at different times of Black Angus, Charolais, Herford, Black face Baldees and one Holstein that has the best calves you could ever ask for. My Bull is a full blood (could be registered, but I see no value for me to do so) nice size big boy. My question is do you larger guys tag calves so you know who's mama is who's. What are the advantages of tagging them? Also at what age do you tag if you do so. My problem now is 4 black calves about same age and more to be this month, do I need to know who belongs to who? Also what is your method for doing this as mama cow doesn't think much of me bothering the baby. I have had cows and calves going on 7 years now and I have switched my herd early on from dairy breeds to all beef except for the one Holstein and that's another story. (Great Grands and one named her) as I said she has top notch all black calves that at 7 months will push 600-650 pounds or more. Nice calves. Thanks for your input.

We tag within 12 hours of birth, tag weigh and treat navel.

 

[Kentcal]

I used to tag within the first few hours after birth. Right after mommy finished cleaning it up. As a old guy (now 82) it was the only time I could handle them. Now I can't even do that. Knees and legs are about gone. [had a small registered Black Angus Seed Stock operation] Use to keep the Gator between me and mommy whilst I Tagged and treated calf. Could do it in a couple minutes or less.

 

[Lucky]

Had this discussion at lunch yesterday with a neighbor that is tagging calves everday for the last few weeks. I told him we tagged all newborn calves for about 5 yrs. Wrote the mamas tag # and birthdate on the calves tags. I finally realized that that info wasn't doing me any good so we stopped doing that. Now we tag questionable calves at birth and the rest in the spring.

 

[Allenw]

We tag within 12 hours of birth, tag weigh and treat navel.

I see very few of mine within 12 hours of birth. Sometimes it's as much as 3 days before the cow brings them up.

 

[Muletrack]

I tag when I work 'em all. Easiest when they are tipped on the table. Until then, the moms know full well which calf belongs to each one of them.

 

[tcolvin]

I tag when I work 'em all. Easiest when they are tipped on the table. Until then, the moms know full well which calf belongs to each one of them.

That's my problem, the mom knows but I don't. Most are just all black. I have never tagged any and just wondering if I need to or not.

 

[Silver]

I suppose if one wasn't keeping replacements and had either a small enough herd or a great memory then ear tags would lose a lot of their usefulness.

 

[Josher]

That's my problem, the mom knows but I don't. Most are just all black. I have never tagged any and just wondering if I need to or not.

How many head do you run?
We always tag it's well worth the trouble. They all get tagged same as their mother. Makes sorting pairs a little easier. Also anytime u treat a sick calf mark it down. Don't have to wait for the mom to come barrelling down on you before you know who it is.

 

[Silver]

When processing 10 to 20+ calves every morning during calving and not putting a tag in their ear. How would you know if it was done?

 

[gcreekrch]

When processing 10 to 20+ calves every morning during calving and not putting a tag in their ear. How would you know if it was done?

Process? Most don't I believe.

 

[Dave]

When processing 10 to 20+ calves every morning during calving and not putting a tag in their ear. How would you know if it was done?

That is the other thing. How do you know which ones are new?

 

[Silver]

Process? Most don't I believe.

Oh…. Well then….

 

[TCRanch]

How do you know which ones are new?

Cuz they're slimy.