Tigerstripe cattle

[la4angus]

I hate hotshots; I think that they are the root of some of the crazy cattle that are seen from time to time.

100$ Agreenent with you on this. IMO a hotshot has no place around cattle. Better used on the people that have them.

 

[cypressfarms]

I hate hotshots; I think that they are the root of some of the crazy cattle that are seen from time to time.

100$ Agreenent with you on this. IMO a hotshot has no place around cattle. Better used on the people that have them.

Yeh La4,

yesterday morning I was at my dad's and we were working his angus bull that had something wrong with his eye (totally blue). Well, the vet's assistant got out and decided to hotshot the 2,500 lb bull while he was in the chute with me behind to make him move down the chute (This bull has never been hit with a hotshot). The bull is very docile but was kind of nervous because of his eye. I lit into the vet. Your gonna hot shot a bull that already is nervous and can't see out of one eye, with me behind him? I don't need that kind of bodily harm.

One case where I wish I could have hit the vet's assistant with the hotshot.

 

[J]

I agree hotshots are over used but I have been in situations where they were needed. Was told a long time ago the fastest way to work cattle is slow, but there are a few out there that need a little extra incentive. (but like I said too many people think they are the answer. Bet it would have made for a pretty good show cypressfarms, you chasing the vet's assistant around busting him with some of that juice) :lol2: :lol2: :lol2:

 

[cypressfarms]

Bet it would have made for a pretty good show cypressfarms, you chasing the vet's assistant around busting him with some of that juice) :lol2: :lol2: :lol2:

Maybe, after I got up though. This is not a small bull. He would have put a serious hurting on me. I was in a corral chute directly behind him. He's the type that all you have to do is pull his tail, and he will move forward. Don't know what he would have done being hit with the hotshot, but I agree with LA, the asst. needed it more than the bull.

I asked the vet later where he got this winner from. The vet said he was still learning. My only reply was that I didn't want him to learn on me.

We have a strict rule on our farm. No hotshots ever. If I need a hotshot, I don't need the cow. We have 6' long pvc sticks with plastic on the end that we use to sort with. A jab or tap with that stick is the worst any of our cattle will get.

 

[Caustic Burno]

I hate hotshots; I think that they are the root of some of the crazy cattle that are seen from time to time.

100$ Agreenent with you on this. IMO a hotshot has no place around cattle. Better used on the people that have them.

Yeh La4,

yesterday morning I was at my dad's and we were working his angus bull that had something wrong with his eye (totally blue). Well, the vet's assistant got out and decided to hotshot the 2,500 lb bull while he was in the chute with me behind to make him move down the chute (This bull has never been hit with a hotshot). The bull is very docile but was kind of nervous because of his eye. I lit into the vet. Your gonna hot shot a bull that already is nervous and can't see out of one eye, with me behind him? I don't need that kind of bodily harm.

One case where I wish I could have hit the vet's assistant with the hotshot.

I would like to see a picture of that boy on the scales it takes one hell of a bull down south to bust 2000 pounds much less 2500 pounds.

 

[DOC HARRIS]

Bet it would have made for a pretty good show cypressfarms, you chasing the vet's assistant around busting him with some of that juice) :lol2: :lol2: :lol2:

Maybe, after I got up though. This is not a small bull. He would have put a serious hurting on me. I was in a corral chute directly behind him. He's the type that all you have to do is pull his tail, and he will move forward. Don't know what he would have done being hit with the hotshot, but I agree with LA, the asst. needed it more than the bull.

I asked the vet later where he got this winner from. The vet said he was still learning. My only reply was that I didn't want him to learn on me.

We have a strict rule on our farm. No hotshots ever. If I need a hotshot, I don't need the cow. We have 6' long pvc sticks with plastic on the end that we use to sort with. A jab or tap with that stick is the worst any of our cattle will get.

Hotshots should be made illegal! Anyone who has worked cattle at all knows that they can be infuriating at times, but a lot of the reasons for that is the way they are handled in the first place. But "Hotshots" are not the answer to intelligent management. So it takes a few extra minutes or so to work a bunch of cattle. So??? It takes a few extra minutes to set a broken leg or a skull fracture - or to repair one of your kids who wasn't expecting some ding-bat to sock a hotshot into a creature who was just a little nervous and reluctant to move! Sometimes a plastic Walmart grocery bag on the end of that PVC pole is all it takes to get their attention. Cheaper, too!

DOC HARRIS

 

[J. T.]

I have attended a sale here in my state several times and the barn hands are "hot shot happy". I've seen cows enter the sale ring and fall to their knees because they've been shocked so many times that they've lost muscular control. I made the mistake of selling a bull there. They hit him so much with the hot shots that he went down in the chute. The employees saw me coming over and began apologizing and said the bull would recover. I told them to lay off the cattle prods and let the bull take his time to scope things out. I'll never do business with this barn again.

 

[DOC HARRIS]

New to the board and the cattle business. Need your help.
Have 50 acres in SW Texas full of native grass. Have well water. I want to raise a few cattle (about 5) (hobby/Pets) Will tigerstrip do well in this area ? If not what do you suggest ? Thanks for the help.

ROCKSPRINGS- Check out the article today on "Miniature Cattle". That might be your answer and probably a lot more apt to be "pets" than Tigers!!

DOC HARRIS

 

[SPRINGER FARMS MURRAY GRE]

Rocksprings, welcome to the boards. You might want to start out slow and with something a lot easier to handle,like some good Murray Greys. ;-) :cboy:

 

[Saltydawg]

I'm fairly new to the cattle business as well and I have Hereford Cows. Wouldnt trade them for any other breed.

The Boss cow of my little herd is as gentle as my dog...I can literally sit on her back and she just stands there wondering what the heck im doing lol. ( i weigh 260+lbs too lol)

I have to be careful feeding them however cause they all know what comes in those white buckets (grain) and they arent afraid of my touch so they can push pretty good going after those buckets.

Its nice not having to chase the cows though.....when i come down to the barn or pasture they all come over to say hi and see if i have any treats....makes working them very easy.

Loaded a 1400lb steer tonight and didn't need anymore than a little time and few pushes of my hand to get him up the ramp.

Not sure how Herefords would do in your area (i'm from upstate New York...plenty of pasture even in dry years) but for a well mannered animal I would recomend them.

 

[msscamp]

We don't use hotshots, either. A sorting stick and a little patience is all that is we have ever needed.

 

[CattleAnnie]

For those folks who don't use stockprods (and yep, guess I'm not much of a hand because I use them if necessary), how do you get a cow to move up the alley into a squeeze or onto a cattle liner when she balks?

Would really like to know more about this, because when we had a couple hundred head to preg, vaccinate, Ivomec and a vet standing there waiting for the next animal to palpatate, we have more than once encountered cows that won't budge for love nor money (they're smart enough to know that going into the squeeze means something not very nice is likely to occur to them).

Same deal when loading them onto the liners. Some cattle just balk at going up the ramp into the truck (can't blame 'em, but unfortunately the truck's still sitting there waiting for them). Can cause a heck of a wreck when you've got a deck three quarters loaded, cow balks half-way up the loading alley, and then the cattle on the liner turn around, come back down the chute and jam up at the balking cow (who inevitably has cattle behind her lined to go up the alley).

And of course, had tried the old 'twist the tail' trick, swatting them, etc. but personally it seems that a little 'zap' is much more humane than someone walloping the bejeezus out of them trying to get them to move.

Any thoughts on this or am I just way off in left field again? Just curious...always like to learn.


Take care.

 

[la4angus]

but personally it seems that a little 'zap' is much more humane than someone walloping the bejeezus out of them trying to get them to move.

IMO the little zap is OK as long as it stops there. What i'm against is the ones that don't know when to use the zapper and don't know when to quit.Probaly not 5% of the cattle that are zapped need to be zapped.

 

[dun]

I persoanlly don;t like them. We just give the tail a crank when they balk in the alleyway. That being said, when we were tagging a hundred plus head of Holsteins for the dairy buy out program I found that a quick short zap would get them to enter the chute when all of the tail cranking and poking didn;t do any good.

dun

 

[Ryder]

Annie, again I have to go along with you. More than once I have gotten so exasperated trying to load a sulled up cow that anything that would work was justified. One thing I never thought of trying was a pitchfork.
Maybe I'm a right winger in left field. :roll:

 

[CattleAnnie]

Thanks for clarifying that. Not trying to be a knot-head here.

As with many aspects of handling stock, moderation and timing are key.


Take care.

 

[msscamp]

For those folks who don't use stockprods (and yep, guess I'm not much of a hand because I use them if necessary), how do you get a cow to move up the alley into a squeeze or onto a cattle liner when she balks?

Take care.

CattleAnnie, in all honesty we haven't had a problem with that. I sincerely doubt that you are 'not much of a hand', I'm thinking maybe it's more the cows? For chute work we use a sweep tub, long alley that will hold 3-4 cows and has a drop down bar to prevent them from backing out once in, and then the chute. The tub-gate puts a little pressure on them and they generally tend to stack up in the alley, but we don't run in groups of more than 4 or 5 at a time to the tub. Same thing as far as loading, run them in according to how many will fit in a trailer or semi-trailer section and they go. We are blessed with a couple of very good lead cows, however, and make sure all of them are not in the same bunch. Of course, now that I've stated all of this, the next time we have to work them it will be a nightmare! :lol: :lol:

 

[Kent]

Same deal when loading them onto the liners. Some cattle just balk at going up the ramp into the truck (can't blame 'em, but unfortunately the truck's still sitting there waiting for them). Can cause a heck of a wreck when you've got a deck three quarters loaded, cow balks half-way up the loading alley, and then the cattle on the liner turn around, come back down the chute and jam up at the balking cow (who inevitably has cattle behind her lined to go up the alley).

And of course, had tried the old 'twist the tail' trick, swatting them, etc. but personally it seems that a little 'zap' is much more humane than someone walloping the bejeezus out of them trying to get them to move.

If the animal is leaving my place forever, I don't mind using a hotstick where appropriate. You have to weigh the options, and as you stated, cattle coming back off the truck are dangerous to everyone involved. What's worse, a few shots of static electricity or a broken leg?

Now if the animal is just being worked on my place, I try not to use the voltage. Don't want any bad memories floatin' around in her head next time I work her. However, you make a good point. If you beat her, yell at her, twist her tail to the point of painfulness, she is still going to have bad memories. Have also seen tails broken from pulling too hard.

My suggestion would be to use the voltage only when she is trying to back up AND her backside is against whatever backstop you have in place. Shock her on her butt close to where it is touching the wood. That way she begins to associate the shock with her action of backing up. Don't let her know you are the one doing it to her. Don't yell. Keep good strong batteries in the stick. If it doesn't work, give her a break. If you don't have time to wait on a slow cow or a few slow cows, work them on a day when you do have time. Your cows and your blood pressure will thank you.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

I hate hotshots; I think that they are the root of some of the crazy cattle that are seen from time to time.

100$ Agreenent with you on this. IMO a hotshot has no place around cattle. Better used on the people that have them.

Yeh La4,

yesterday morning I was at my dad's and we were working his angus bull that had something wrong with his eye (totally blue). Well, the vet's assistant got out and decided to hotshot the 2,500 lb bull while he was in the chute with me behind to make him move down the chute (This bull has never been hit with a hotshot). The bull is very docile but was kind of nervous because of his eye. I lit into the vet. Your gonna hot shot a bull that already is nervous and can't see out of one eye, with me behind him? I don't need that kind of bodily harm.

One case where I wish I could have hit the vet's assistant with the hotshot.

I would like to see a picture of that boy on the scales it takes one be nice of a bull down south to bust 2000 pounds much less 2500 pounds.

That's what i was thinking to the T. a 2500 pound angus in the south is a rare find i know a registerd breeder who has a 2200 pounder he gloats over

 

[DOC HARRIS]

Kent-

You have changed my mind! Your suggestions are the most pragmatic I have heard. Moderation in everything. I concede to your better suggestion!

DOC HARRIS