Update on my new Brangus Heifer-& a Question

[spinandslide]

Things are going well with my new Heifer. I feed every each night abit of feed and cubes, trying to get her abit friendly. She comes a running when I shake the feed tub and this AM, she actually responded to her name.

But now...the question...I debated weather to ask this, as I spoke with my husband a friend about this..both said the same thing, but knowing others felt this way would put my mind at ease.

I took my dear friend over to see her last night. This friend has been around cattle her whole life, she showed as ayoungster and still helps her family with their cattle. I called Jam and poured her feed. I backed up about 3 feet from her and she settled to eat...seemed relaxed..I have been taking everything super slow with her..as shes been out in a pasture her whole life and isnt terriably accustomed to people yet. I was happy with her last night, me being close and her being relaxed. Spoke to her abit, then walked back to my friend. My friend came into the pasture with me at that time and proceeded to walk towards Jam's hip, her intent was to get a closer look at her and make a circle around her to see her from all angles. Jam turned her head, snorted and blew snot, then charged my friend. She got about 3 leaps in, then stopped. My friend ran back to the gate. I stepped towards Jam, yelled at her to KNOCK IT OFF. She had her head raised at this time, she just stared at me, took a step or two backwards when I yelled at her, then went back to her feed. I did not move from where I was for a minute or two then turned and walked back to the gate. Jam kept eating like nothing had happened.

Needless to say, my friend was petrified. I felt awful for her, while Jam had been alittle snorty when she first got home, she seemed to be settling in well. Like I said, Ive taken things real slow with her and wouldnt have brought a stranger if I thought she'd act that way. I wont ever be able to get my friend over there again, I promise you that.

My question is...was this due to a new person, Jam not being settled yet, my friend entering her personal space,ect,ect? I dont want to get charged I stood 3 feet from her and she was fine.

My friend says its the Brahma in her...
I like my cow, I dont like her charging people though,granted it was one time, but still...what should I be thinking here? Should I bring my stock pole when I feed and if she charges, give her a swift wack across the head?

Any thoughts on this would be great....

 

[ALACOWMAN]

Things are going well with my new Heifer. I feed every each night abit of feed and cubes, trying to get her abit friendly. She comes a running when I shake the feed tub and this AM, she actually responded to her name.

But now...the question...I debated weather to ask this, as I spoke with my husband a friend about this..both said the same thing, but knowing others felt this way would put my mind at ease.

I took my dear friend over to see her last night. This friend has been around cattle her whole life, she showed as ayoungster and still helps her family with their cattle. I called Jam and poured her feed. I backed up about 3 feet from her and she settled to eat...seemed relaxed..I have been taking everything super slow with her..as shes been out in a pasture her whole life and isnt terriably accustomed to people yet. I was happy with her last night, me being close and her being relaxed. Spoke to her abit, then walked back to my friend. My friend came into the pasture with me at that time and proceeded to walk towards Jam's hip, her intent was to get a closer look at her and make a circle around her to see her from all angles. Jam turned her head, snorted and blew snot, then charged my friend. She got about 3 leaps in, then stopped. My friend ran back to the gate. I stepped towards Jam, yelled at her to KNOCK IT OFF. She had her head raised at this time, she just stared at me, took a step or two backwards when I yelled at her, then went back to her feed. I did not move from where I was for a minute or two then turned and walked back to the gate. Jam kept eating like nothing had happened.

Needless to say, my friend was petrified. I felt awful for her, while Jam had been alittle snorty when she first got home, she seemed to be settling in well. Like I said, Ive taken things real slow with her and wouldnt have brought a stranger if I thought she'd act that way. I wont ever be able to get my friend over there again, I promise you that.

My question is...was this due to a new person, Jam not being settled yet, my friend entering her personal space,ect,ect? I dont want to get charged I stood 3 feet from her and she was fine.

My friend says its the Brahma in her...
I like my cow, I dont like her charging people though,granted it was one time, but still...what should I be thinking here? Should I bring my stock pole when I feed and if she charges, give her a swift wack across the head?

Any thoughts on this would be great....

welcome to the world of brangus.. wait till she calves. they are protective . but you need a stick anytime your around her.

 

[bigbull338]

Things are going well with my new Heifer. I feed every each night abit of feed and cubes, trying to get her abit friendly. She comes a running when I shake the feed tub and this AM, she actually responded to her name.

But now...the question...I debated weather to ask this, as I spoke with my husband a friend about this..both said the same thing, but knowing others felt this way would put my mind at ease.

I took my dear friend over to see her last night. This friend has been around cattle her whole life, she showed as ayoungster and still helps her family with their cattle. I called Jam and poured her feed. I backed up about 3 feet from her and she settled to eat...seemed relaxed..I have been taking everything super slow with her..as shes been out in a pasture her whole life and isnt terriably accustomed to people yet. I was happy with her last night, me being close and her being relaxed. Spoke to her abit, then walked back to my friend. My friend came into the pasture with me at that time and proceeded to walk towards Jam's hip, her intent was to get a closer look at her and make a circle around her to see her from all angles. Jam turned her head, snorted and blew snot, then charged my friend. She got about 3 leaps in, then stopped. My friend ran back to the gate. I stepped towards Jam, yelled at her to KNOCK IT OFF. She had her head raised at this time, she just stared at me, took a step or two backwards when I yelled at her, then went back to her feed. I did not move from where I was for a minute or two then turned and walked back to the gate. Jam kept eating like nothing had happened.

Needless to say, my friend was petrified. I felt awful for her, while Jam had been alittle snorty when she first got home, she seemed to be settling in well. Like I said, Ive taken things real slow with her and wouldnt have brought a stranger if I thought she'd act that way. I wont ever be able to get my friend over there again, I promise you that.

My question is...was this due to a new person, Jam not being settled yet, my friend entering her personal space,ect,ect? I dont want to get charged I stood 3 feet from her and she was fine.

My friend says its the Brahma in her...
I like my cow, I dont like her charging people though,granted it was one time, but still...what should I be thinking here? Should I bring my stock pole when I feed and if she charges, give her a swift wack across the head?

Any thoughts on this would be great....

1.do not panic.your heifer is getting used to you.an yes branguses are a tad hot tempered.2 she will most likely charge an blow snott at them.that just means that new people dont need to walk in her pen/pasture.im around my beefmasters on foot.an i have my nehews or brother help me work them if need be.but none blow snott.just work with her slow an easy.an get her to know your hubby.that will make her easier to work an handle.

 

[TexasBred]

Spin...seems you tried to do too much too quickly. The cow is just being a cow. Give her time and then begin slowly introducing her to new situations. Probably best not to ever mess with her much when she's eating. Even your pet dog will sometimes bite you if he thinks you're trying to get his food. ;-)

 

[bandit80]

I have been taking everything super slow with her..as shes been out in a pasture her whole life and isnt terriably accustomed to people yet.

This is probably the biggest answer to your question. She is just not accustomed to people. She sounds like what I would call a range cow. That is, she has been left out on the "range", and only handled when it was weaning, vaccinating, preg check time, etc. I would say she will calm more and more as she is around people, but she will never be totally "calm". My opinion is at some point in her life she has had to fend for herself and developed an attitude to survive. This attitude may diminish, but I doubt it will completely go away.

My friend came into the pasture with me at that time and proceeded to walk towards Jam's hip, her intent was to get a closer look at her and make a circle around her to see her from all angles. Jam turned her head, snorted and blew snot, then charged my friend. She got about 3 leaps in, then stopped. My friend ran back to the gate. I stepped towards Jam, yelled at her to KNOCK IT OFF. She had her head raised at this time, she just stared at me, took a step or two backwards when I yelled at her, then went back to her feed. I did not move from where I was for a minute or two then turned and walked back to the gate. Jam kept eating like nothing had happened.

You heifer might have been alarmed by someone/something approaching her from the rear. At least she stopped the charge and didn't "go for the kill".

My question is...was this due to a new person, Jam not being settled yet, my friend entering her personal space,ect,ect? I dont want to get charged I stood 3 feet from her and she was fine.

It was probably a combination of everything, and also Jam being a range cow.

My friend says its the Brahma in her...
I like my cow, I dont like her charging people though,granted it was one time, but still...what should I be thinking here? Should I bring my stock pole when I feed and if she charges, give her a swift wack across the head?

Any thoughts on this would be great....

Brahma's have that rep as the average is hostile than other breeds. I think if she charges you better look for the nearest gate to jump over rather than standing your ground and giving her a wack. No animal is worth bodily harm that could cause serious long term health problems. I think I told you the story of the brangus cow my brother had, and how she was a little different than the rest of our herd. I would just be extremely careful around her, but don't show fear. Animals can sense that. If she is fine around you, I wouldn't do anything further. If she shows agression to you, I know what I would do. Agression when they have a new calf is one thing, but agression just to be agressive is a whole nuther thing.

 

[spinandslide]

[/quote] welcome to the world of brangus.. wait till she calves. they are protective . but you need a stick anytime your around her.[/quote]

So Ive been told...my husband says both the Angus and Brahma are "hot" breeds...I expected her to act this way with her calf. Im not wanting a 1100 dog, But dont want to worry to much about getting plowed over when I feed her either...Shes not done anything to me, nor did she try to charge me yesterday, but that might have been due to the fact I was still holding the feed bucket, although empty, it might have reminded her who it is who feeds her....

 

[ALACOWMAN]

they are great moma's . you just got to learn them ,

 

[spinandslide]

Spin...seems you tried to do too much too quickly. The cow is just being a cow. Give her time and then begin slowly introducing her to new situations. Probably best not to ever mess with her much when she's eating. Even your pet dog will sometimes bite you if he thinks you're trying to get his food. ;-)

Thank you Bigbull and TXBred for your input. My husband and cattleman friend sai something along the same lines...that shes a Brangus, and just getting used to a new situation...and then she had a new person get in her "space" at feed time..which prob put her over the edge.

I dont like to mess with animals when they are eating...although my dogs dont bite me if I take their food..they know better But I will let her be when shes eating..Ive never approached her, just sat at the gate and watched her..

 

[baxter78-2]

She will calm down alot if you put a friend in with her. Then she can fight with the friend and be boss. Some cattle dont like being approached from behind especially when eating.

 

[spinandslide]

I have been taking everything super slow with her..as shes been out in a pasture her whole life and isnt terriably accustomed to people yet.

This is probably the biggest answer to your question. She is just not accustomed to people. She sounds like what I would call a range cow. That is, she has been left out on the "range", and only handled when it was weaning, vaccinating, preg check time, etc. I would say she will calm more and more as she is around people, but she will never be totally "calm". My opinion is at some point in her life she has had to fend for herself and developed an attitude to survive. This attitude may diminish, but I doubt it will completely go away.

My friend came into the pasture with me at that time and proceeded to walk towards Jam's hip, her intent was to get a closer look at her and make a circle around her to see her from all angles. Jam turned her head, snorted and blew snot, then charged my friend. She got about 3 leaps in, then stopped. My friend ran back to the gate. I stepped towards Jam, yelled at her to KNOCK IT OFF. She had her head raised at this time, she just stared at me, took a step or two backwards when I yelled at her, then went back to her feed. I did not move from where I was for a minute or two then turned and walked back to the gate. Jam kept eating like nothing had happened.

You heifer might have been alarmed by someone/something approaching her from the rear. At least she stopped the charge and didn't "go for the kill".

My question is...was this due to a new person, Jam not being settled yet, my friend entering her personal space,ect,ect? I dont want to get charged I stood 3 feet from her and she was fine.

It was probably a combination of everything, and also Jam being a range cow.

My friend says its the Brahma in her...
I like my cow, I dont like her charging people though,granted it was one time, but still...what should I be thinking here? Should I bring my stock pole when I feed and if she charges, give her a swift wack across the head?

Any thoughts on this would be great....

Brahma's have that rep as the average is hostile than other breeds. I think if she charges you better look for the nearest gate to jump over rather than standing your ground and giving her a wack. No animal is worth bodily harm that could cause serious long term health problems. I think I told you the story of the brangus cow my brother had, and how she was a little different than the rest of our herd. I would just be extremely careful around her, but don't show fear. Animals can sense that. If she is fine around you, I wouldn't do anything further. If she shows agression to you, I know what I would do. Agression when they have a new calf is one thing, but agression just to be agressive is a whole nuther thing.

Thanks Bandit...I tread very lightly with her and will do so even more after yesterday. She is what you would call a range cow, definantly...has only seen folks up close just recently. the general concensus is that my friend walking to her hip and into her space, espc being a range cow caused the charge. I was also told, since she didnt "finish" it, that she was just annoyed with someone strange in her space and once she got that person out of her space, she was fine.
I will heed the advice and jump the gate should she come after me. And you echo-ed my thoughts regarding agression...I wont tolerate an aggressive animal..if this happens again, with no prompting, I can tell you where she'll be going...no matter how much I like her. However, I think there were to many variables and "triggers" that could have caused this incident, so she gets another shot.

Im glad to here most people are echoing what my husband told me. He feels, that while she wont ever be a "pet", she will mellow out some as she gets used to people. He told me stories of his 4-h days and some of the steers they had...he said even the wild ones, after afew weeks of feeding, calmed down.

 

[dun]

She will calm down alot if you put a friend in with her. Then she can fight with the friend and be boss. Some cattle dont like being approached from behind especially when eating.

I dont like being approached from the rear when I'm eating.
New circumstances, new face, unexpected visitor on her flank, I wouldn;t expect much different to have happened.

 

[spinandslide]

She will calm down alot if you put a friend in with her. Then she can fight with the friend and be boss. Some cattle dont like being approached from behind especially when eating.

Im working on getting her a buddy definantly.

I can understand a cow not wanting to be approached from behind, thats where a predator would come from.

 

[CattleHand]

She will calm down alot if you put a friend in with her. Then she can fight with the friend and be boss. Some cattle dont like being approached from behind especially when eating.

I dont like being approached from the rear when I'm eating.
New circumstances, new face, unexpected visitor on her flank, I wouldn;t expect much different to have happened.

Thats about it.. New people will always tend to spook cattle. They are use to you and no one else.

 

[spinandslide]

She will calm down alot if you put a friend in with her. Then she can fight with the friend and be boss. Some cattle dont like being approached from behind especially when eating.

I dont like being approached from the rear when I'm eating.
New circumstances, new face, unexpected visitor on her flank, I wouldn;t expect much different to have happened.

I dont know many living creatures who would! It was more of a diagnol towards her flank..but, I can understand Jam's annoyance with it I guess!

I guess I didnt realize that cows were so sensitive to having new people around them...I know my horses are and dogs are..makes sense a cow would, just never really put it togther

 

[ALACOWMAN]

when i had a few purebred brahman. one was real protective of me . someone could be standing by me and she would run them clean out. no bluff to her, i mean you had better be scatching dirt.... only brahman i had i could pasture load. one man only cow

 

[spinandslide]

when i had a few purebred brahman. one was real protective of me . someone could be standing by me and she would run them clean out. no bluff to her, i mean you had better be scatching dirt.... only brahman i had i could pasture load. one man only cow

So, they arent all evil?

 

[ALACOWMAN]

when i had a few purebred brahman. one was real protective of me . someone could be standing by me and she would run them clean out. no bluff to her, i mean you had better be scatching dirt.... only brahman i had i could pasture load. one man only cow

So, they arent all evil?

nope just can't be cowboyed. but you can lead them off a bluff.

 

[Anonymous]

when i had a few purebred brahman. one was real protective of me . someone could be standing by me and she would run them clean out. no bluff to her, i mean you had better be scatching dirt.... only brahman i had i could pasture load. one man only cow

My son has a brahman cow the same way he is the only one that can deal with her. Better watch that brangus though I had one that was 6 months old when I bought her and she never did calm down. She just might charge then she just might not. Never could figure her out.I never could get to where I could even get to worm her. 2 years old and never calmed down just had to sell her.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Spin you need to get rid of that cow before she hurts someone.

How many nickels do you want for her??

Brangus are my favorite breed for this climate. When its 110 degrees, she'll have plenty of milk for her calf.

 

[TexasBred]

Boogie...now that ain't fair...I was gonna make the gentleman a proposal about taking that "wild thang" off his hands before he got hurt. :lol2: I'll take those Brangus ladies anyday. But with any cow...always try to leave yourself a way out of any situation.

In all seriousness....that young lady will make you proud someday. May never be a socialite but that ain't always bad either.