Weaned Calf?

[Z&J Cattle]

I have a heifer calf (aprox. 400lbs.) that I recently weaned. I bought her and her momma back in October and the cow was thin. I wanted to go ahead and pull the calf off to help the cow out, so I talked to a cowboy friend of mine who said to seperate them for 4-5 days and just pay attention to them and see when it looks like the cow has dried up and the calf has quit bawling and I could turn them back together. Well, after 8 days of seperation, the cow and the calf both seemed to have forgotten about the whole thing, the cow would walk by the corral and never give the calf a second glance, and the calf acted the same. So I turned the calf out to pasture yesterday afternoon and within two minutes she started trying to nurse and the cow did not object and she was back to nursing today. What's the deal? The friend that told me that 4-5 days should be plenty is one of the most knowlegeable cattlemen that I know, so I'm guessing that this pair is just maybe an exception to the rule? I guess that I will load her up (the calf) and take her to the sale. I wanted to put some more weight on her but her momma needs the relief. What do you folks think?

Zach

 

[milkmaid]

Well, after 8 days of seperation, the cow and the calf both seemed to have forgotten about the whole thing, the cow would walk by the corral and never give the calf a second glance, and the calf acted the same. So I turned the calf out to pasture yesterday afternoon and within two minutes she started trying to nurse and the cow did not object and she was back to nursing today. What's the deal? The friend that told me that 4-5 days should be plenty is one of the most knowlegeable cattlemen that I know, so I'm guessing that this pair is just maybe an exception to the rule?

Nope. You just need to be a little more choosy about who you take your advice from. ;-) Calves don't forget very quickly - you need more like 6 weeks to be safe. I go longer; 4 months plus. Some people won't even turn their heifers back out with the cows until the heifers are ready for their first calf. So that's over a year apart.

The calf's not a lost cause - no need to sell her yet, IMO - just separate them again and then keep them apart for a lot longer. It takes more than 4 days to dry a cow off.

 

[msscamp]

What's the deal? The friend that told me that 4-5 days should be plenty is one of the most knowlegeable cattlemen that I know, so I'm guessing that this pair is just maybe an exception to the rule?Zach

No, this calf is not the exception to the rule. Need a much longer seperation period. No need to sell the calf, just seperate them longer. We generally keep our weaning calves seperated until the heifers are 4-5 months away from calving.

 

[Anonymous]

Milkmaids right takes a lot longer to wean a calf and dry up mom.

 

[TheBullLady]

A lot of that depends on the cow. I had a heifer I sold at 6 months for a show calf. I took her back when she was old enough to breed and ran her with my bull, and the first thing she did when she hit the pasture was try to nurse on mom. Fortunately her mom was having none of it...

 

[msscamp]

A lot of that depends on the cow. I had a heifer I sold at 6 months for a show calf. I took her back when she was old enough to breed and ran her with my bull, and the first thing she did when she hit the pasture was try to nurse on mom. Fortunately her mom was having none of it...

As the accepted norm is to breed heifers at somewhere around 14 months, I'm not sure how this scenario compares to weaning a calf for 8 days and expecting the cow to not allow the calf to nurse. There is a world of difference between roughly 8 months and 8 days.

 

[la4angus]

The friend that told me that 4-5 days should be plenty is one of the most knowlegeable cattlemen that I know, What do you folks think?Zach

I think that the most knowledgable cattleman that you know needs some more knowledge about cattle, and you should find someone with more cattle knowledge to listen too.

 

[MikeC]

The friend that told me that 4-5 days should be plenty is one of the most knowlegeable cattlemen that I know, What do you folks think?Zach

I think that the most knowledgable cattleman that you know needs some more knowledge about cattle, and you should find someone with more cattle knowledge to listen too.

I guess good mentors are hard to find these days. ;-)

 

[msscamp]

The friend that told me that 4-5 days should be plenty is one of the most knowlegeable cattlemen that I know, What do you folks think?Zach

I think that the most knowledgable cattleman that you know needs some more knowledge about cattle, and you should find someone with more cattle knowledge to listen too.

I guess good mentors are hard to find these days. ;-)

Oh, I would have to disagree Mike. I have a couple of excellent ones right here on these boards! ;-)

 

[MikeC]

Oh, I would have to disagree Mike. I have a couple of excellent ones right here on these boards! Wink

I know, and you are SO right. But I was talking bout his "next door neighbor mentor". I am so sorry for offending you that way. You mean all the world to me too!

Your #1 mentor.

Mike ;-) XXXXXXXOOOOOOOOOOXXXXXXXXX

 

[msscamp]

Oh, I would have to disagree Mike. I have a couple of excellent ones right here on these boards! Wink

I know, and you are SO right. But I was talking bout his "next door neighbor mentor". I am so sorry for offending you that way. You mean all the world to me too!

Your #1 mentor.

Mike ;-) XXXXXXXOOOOOOOOOOXXXXXXXXX

Ok, now you're scaring me! :shock: Behave your rotten self! :lol: :lol:

PS No offense taken, but keep it up and there could very well be!

 

[gipper]

I agree with the fact that it takes more than 8 days to wean a calf. As for finding a cow person in the know
to lean on for advice, I recommend looking for a neighbor who has actively raised cows for several
years with success. By "actively" I mean someone who has owned cattle that they have routinely
worked, wormed,observed, assisted, etc. I know some neighbors who have had cattle for forty years
who do nothing but own them: no calving season, no headgate, no alley, no worming. They only
have a make-shift pen to catch calves in to sale. Their idea of weaning is hauling them to the sale barn.
Heifers they can't catch to sell go back into the herd. A load of calves will range from 250 to 750 lbs.
These neighbors are willing to help but just do not possess the knowledge to do so. If you look close you can
tell the differance.

 

[MikeC]

Very well said, gip.

 

[Victoria]

TheBullLady is right, alot depends on the cow. 4-5 days isn't long enough though for the majority of cows though.

 

[Susie David]

Four or five days....that's how long it can take to quit the bawling; the desire and willingness to nurse can take up to four months. We have one eight month old calf that will still try to nurse even though the mama has been dry for months....and she lets him. Keep thoes two sepearted. That calf tried to check out the udder on a big Lim heifer yesterday...that didn't last long. Guess that some have a harder time growing up than others. DMc

 

[DiamondSCattleCo]

I'm with gipper, only I'd change 'actively' to 'successfully' as in successfully raised cattle for many years. I know a few guys in this area who have had livestock for 50 years, have been active with worming, vaccinations, etc etc, but I wouldn't allow a solitary animal on the place due to non-performance. And there are a few old time cowboys who rarely ever work their animals, but I'd bet their herds would fall in the top 90% in Saskatchewan. But they've had closed herds for 40 years and have never had to worry about alot of the disease we see these days.

In my opinion, it takes more than 1 or 2 mentors and it takes a healthy dose of common sense to properly raise animals. Objectively look at what others are doing, try and estimate how their practices would impact your own herd. And don't be afraid to experiment. If you want to try something new, break a few animals out of your herd and run a test on em. If the test doesn't yield the expected results, sit down and figure out why, don't just assume that something doesn't work.

Read alot. Take what you read on the internet with a large grain of salt. There are alot of 'experts' out there who simply don't seem to understand that regional variations not only exist within breeds but in the environment and this will heavily influence your results and practices.

Rod