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<blockquote data-quote="pdfangus" data-source="post: 1464441" data-attributes="member: 6543"><p>I like my bulls gentle and calm....</p><p>just like I like my cows....</p><p>I have had numerous bulls I could pet...</p><p>does not mean I did not know they could kill me as easily as I swat flies...</p><p>an animal that weighs a ton can hurt you accidentaly...</p><p>I would still rather have them calm than crazy...</p><p></p><p>oddly just this morning I shared out the below message to my e-mail list</p><p></p><p>Below is a link to a good article on training cattle to come to call.</p><p></p><p>This concept is common in the eastern United States but is generally unheard of in the West. </p><p></p><p>It is something I have done for years….</p><p></p><p>But the food reward is important…it does not have to be a great reward…just a pleasant experience. A few years ago when I first started rotational grazing I had a bull who followed me around whenever I was in the field just hoping I would open a gate….fortunately he was a quiet and calm bull…but he was hungry…</p><p></p><p>Opening a gate to new grazing does wonders…cows accustomed to that will follow you anywhere….some will even run before you trying to be the first to the new grass.</p><p></p><p>I even use a cup of feed every time I put one in the head chute for anything…..my cattle do not fear the head chute and several will go into the chute any time the gate is open and bang on the head gate wanting their cup of feed. </p><p></p><p>Many old time cattlemen think I am crazy but I can easily work my cattle by myself without stress for them or me…I have three fifteen hundred lb cows…I don't want them stressed…...two of them I can walk up to and pet in the pasture…I like calm cattle.</p><p></p><p>It is breeding season at our place and I am trying to Artificially Inseminate a couple of groups. I have bred my few cows this past weekend. But they are in with a group of the neighbors heifers….I get home right at dark…I change clothes and go to the barn and on the way call for the cows….it is dark by then…and they are in a 20 acre pasture out behind my place. I go to the barn and fire up the generator to have lights in the barn and stable and the cows come running…my cows come into the barn and wait for me to open the headlocks…they were fed in headlocks from weaning to first breeding and still all remember coming to the barn to eat. </p><p></p><p>The neighbors heifers now come running with the cows and most often ahead of the cows and stand in the barnyard waiting for a handout…we will start them through the chute next week. By breeding time half of them will auto load into the breeding chute and the rest will be no trouble.</p><p></p><p>No matter where or to whom I relate these events…..I get looked at like I am insane…..</p><p></p><p>I don't care….all I care about is the results….I am too old to fight with cattle and would rather enjoy quiet calm and productive cows. Positive reinforcement works with dogs horses and people….why would it not work with cattle?</p><p></p><p>Conversely I also believe that cattle need to know how to be driven ….but that is another subject…cattle are not born knowing how to behave…they have to be taught and not terrified.</p><p></p><p>Enjoy the article and hopefully I will find part 2 when it is published.</p><p></p><p><a href="https://onpasture.com/2017/11/27/training-cattle-to-follow-part-1/" target="_blank">https://onpasture.com/2017/11/27/traini ... ow-part-1/</a></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="pdfangus, post: 1464441, member: 6543"] I like my bulls gentle and calm.... just like I like my cows.... I have had numerous bulls I could pet... does not mean I did not know they could kill me as easily as I swat flies... an animal that weighs a ton can hurt you accidentaly... I would still rather have them calm than crazy... oddly just this morning I shared out the below message to my e-mail list Below is a link to a good article on training cattle to come to call. This concept is common in the eastern United States but is generally unheard of in the West. It is something I have done for years…. But the food reward is important…it does not have to be a great reward…just a pleasant experience. A few years ago when I first started rotational grazing I had a bull who followed me around whenever I was in the field just hoping I would open a gate….fortunately he was a quiet and calm bull…but he was hungry… Opening a gate to new grazing does wonders…cows accustomed to that will follow you anywhere….some will even run before you trying to be the first to the new grass. I even use a cup of feed every time I put one in the head chute for anything…..my cattle do not fear the head chute and several will go into the chute any time the gate is open and bang on the head gate wanting their cup of feed. Many old time cattlemen think I am crazy but I can easily work my cattle by myself without stress for them or me…I have three fifteen hundred lb cows…I don’t want them stressed…...two of them I can walk up to and pet in the pasture…I like calm cattle. It is breeding season at our place and I am trying to Artificially Inseminate a couple of groups. I have bred my few cows this past weekend. But they are in with a group of the neighbors heifers….I get home right at dark…I change clothes and go to the barn and on the way call for the cows….it is dark by then…and they are in a 20 acre pasture out behind my place. I go to the barn and fire up the generator to have lights in the barn and stable and the cows come running…my cows come into the barn and wait for me to open the headlocks…they were fed in headlocks from weaning to first breeding and still all remember coming to the barn to eat. The neighbors heifers now come running with the cows and most often ahead of the cows and stand in the barnyard waiting for a handout…we will start them through the chute next week. By breeding time half of them will auto load into the breeding chute and the rest will be no trouble. No matter where or to whom I relate these events…..I get looked at like I am insane….. I don’t care….all I care about is the results….I am too old to fight with cattle and would rather enjoy quiet calm and productive cows. Positive reinforcement works with dogs horses and people….why would it not work with cattle? Conversely I also believe that cattle need to know how to be driven ….but that is another subject…cattle are not born knowing how to behave…they have to be taught and not terrified. Enjoy the article and hopefully I will find part 2 when it is published. [url=https://onpasture.com/2017/11/27/training-cattle-to-follow-part-1/]https://onpasture.com/2017/11/27/traini ... ow-part-1/[/url] [/QUOTE]
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