Wild heifer on the run

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ashcass2

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I bought a few heifers, about 6 months old, a few months ago. I had one that went crazy and broke out of the corral and took off. She ran out the back pasture and jumped through the fence. The other day I seen her outside of my back pasture. Yesterday my wife called me and told me that the heifer came back to the pasture with my other cows. When I got home I went out to feed the cows, she got nervous and after a few minutes she jumped the fence and went out through the woods again. I believe she will come back and I am thinking I should shoot her. That is all I know to do but not sure if her meat would be good to eat. Any suggestions?
Thanks
 
I've heard wild and crazy cows don't taste as good, but that could just be an old wives' (or old processor's) tale. Know anybody with a tranq gun?
 
farmwriter":nghms39b said:
I've heard wild and crazy cows don't taste as good, but that could just be an old wives' (or old processor's) tale. Know anybody with a tranq gun?
If she's that wild he probably isn;t going to be able to get close enough for a dart
 
dun":2ez7vv2p said:
farmwriter":2ez7vv2p said:
I've heard wild and crazy cows don't taste as good, but that could just be an old wives' (or old processor's) tale. Know anybody with a tranq gun?
If she's that wild he probably isn;t going to be able to get close enough for a dart
I know you've been at this a lot longer than I have, Dun, but we had a friend dart one for us that ALWAYS had that far away look in her eyes. The only reason we had her was because she kept tearing in w/our cows. Cheaper to buy her and leave her be until she got her dart than keep trying to move her home and fixing all the dang fence behind her. Could I dart her? No, but there are lots of people with quicker, steadier aim. Just seems less messy than dragging her after her lead injection...
 
Contact you local auction market. They may know of some day worker cowboys who have a good set of catch dogs and are handy with a rope. It may cost you some money to get her caught, but any salvage value beats just shooting them.
 
I had a nutz cow like that once, she lived in the woods and I would see her sometimes on the other side of the fence. I shot her with the 270.
Getting her to the sale will be a lot of work and expense. When there she won't bring much, making trouble and spooking all through the process. Not many bids on her.
Contact your local butcher tell him your bringing in a dead one. If you can get her while she is relaxed, say laying around with the other cattle and not aware of you. The wild cow I shot made decent burger.
 
A guy down the road had one get out and it would visit ours every night. I would turn the lights on and see it but couldn't get close enough to get it. He didn't want to put it down and make burger out of her. He hired a guy with a tranq. gun and he couldn't get it and didn't want to spend the time. The guy let me borrow the gun and I put a dart in it. I didn't get in real good and it turned out to be an ordeal.

After a couple of hours, we put it in a trailer. He took it to the auction and got $.50/lb. He had to pay the guy with the gun. I didn't take any money from him.

What I learned: He should have put a bullet in its head and butchered it. I also learned that you can't butcher the animal until 14 days (from memory) after it has been hit with a tranq gun.
 
Dang, you've got me wanting to go to the farm and see if the Daughter of Satan has got out and went to your place........

Took me almost 2 weeks to get mine contained, but I've got her now and she's fattening up. Check my posts and you'll see the problems I've had.
 
farmwriter":2bhv7m8a said:
but we had a friend dart one for us that ALWAYS had that far away look in her eyes.
The far away look isn;t the problem, the far away distance is. You have to get within around 30 yards or most of the dart guns run out of poop to puncture the skin and put the drugs in.
 
after 4 yrs of raising beefmasters (all tame as kittens) I too have a heifer with that far away look and gait. Just got some yonder about 2 months ago. Could not find her anywhere till a man down the road about three miles called and said she was in his horse pasture. Any one can stand outside the fence and look but don't try and climb over or open the gate or she is gone. Had a neighbor with a trang gun shoot her, she jumped the fence and took off, found her an hour later in the bottom of the deepest gully in the state. No way to even get an atv close. Come deer season am thinking about doing one of those guided hunts for her I hear they pay pretty good.
 
Get you a butcher lined up, and shoot her....He can dress her out on the spot then hang the meat... She may taste a little strong for city slickers but she will eat just fine....Keep the stakes for sure.
 
Where do you live? In Tn. you HAVE to bring an animal into the slaughter house ALIVE and WALKING. Check out your state rules. If I were you I wouldn't dart her because to many things can go wrong and you do have to wait to process them. I would find someone that can field dress her and then shoot her. Maybe you could share the meat instead of paying the dresser? She won't taste as good as she should because of all circumstances but you could at least have the meat and grind it up and keep the steaks. Best of luck to you.
 
Put a bullet behind her ear when she is relaxed and she will taste just fine. I am guessing that without any finish on her all she is good for is burger anyway.

Either that or get her captured and put her in a very secure corral and start graining her till she is finished. By then she will have calmed down just fine.
 
3waycross":3gc7ft8a said:
Put a bullet behind her ear when she is relaxed and she will taste just fine. I am guessing that without any finish on her all she is good for is burger anyway.

Either that or get her captured and put her in a very secure corral and start graining her till she is finished. By then she will have calmed down just fine.
Great Advice !! :tiphat:
 

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