Management Practices

1
Management Practices

• Dehorning, Docking, and Castration

2
Dehorning

• Reasons for dehorning
• less injury to each other
• less injury to equipment
• less space required
• less chance of injury to handler
• eliminates the boss cow
• dehorned cows bring higher prices
• they grow faster
• for show purposes

3
Methods of Dehorning

• Chemical-10 days old uses caustic soda should
  wear gloves clip hair around horn and apply
  petroleum jelly apply 1/16 inch of caustic soda
  scurs are common.
• Hot Iron-calves 1-3 mo. Old hold firmly against
  head for 15 sec. horn will fall off in 4-6 weeks.

4
Dehorning Methods

• Spoon and Tube-1-3 mo. tube is twisted back and
  forth, then turned to cut underneath horn.
• Elastrator-instrument that stretches a special
  made rubber band and then deposits it on the
  hairline at the base of the horn used on cattle
  with 3-6 inch horns poor results

5
Dehorning Methods

• Barnes-4-8 mo. Old place over horns, apply firm
  pressure against the head quickly spread apart.
  A 1/4 in. ring of hair should be removed with
  horn.
• Dehorning Clippers-used on any age
• used for tipping or regular dehorning
• remove 1/2 inch hair

6
Dehorning Method

• Saws (surgical or cosmetic)-most painful need to
  use local anesthetic done on show cattle skin
  back hide, remove horn and part of skull, sew
  hide back, trim off excess hide remove stitches
  in 10 days

7
Preventing Excess Bleeding

• Pull arteries with forceps
• Cauterize it (Burn it)
• Use a commercial blood stopper and gauze
• Apply furox once a day for 3-4 days

8
Docking

• The removal of the tail
• Reasons for docking
• keep manure and urine from sticking to tail
• improves appearance
• eliminates fly problems
• makes breeding easier
• ID sexes easier
• Should be docked before 2 mo. old

9
Docking Methods

• Knife-push skin toward body, twist tail 1/4 turn,
  cut off at appropriate joint.
• Elastrator-takes 1-2 mo. for tail to fall off
  after 10 days tail can be cut off with knife
• Burdizzo-prevents blood loss hit joint

10
Dehorning Methods

• Emasculator-prevents blood loss hit joint
• Hot Iron-looks like a chisel heat until red,
  burn through joint slower to heal

11
Castration

• Reasons for castrating
• improves quality of meat
• prevents unwanted pregnancies
• allows us to have males and females in same pen
• pens and equipment last longer
• improves temperament

12
Castration

• Reasons for NOT castrating
• bulls gain weight faster than steers
• the meat is leaner
• Functions of testicles
• produce sperm
• produce testosterone (male sex hormone)
• Stag-a steer that retains the appearance of a bull

13
Castration Methods

• Should be castrated at 1-3 mo. Old
• Knife-cut off bottom 1/3 of scrotum pull down on
  1 testicle, scrape cord 2-3 inches above testicle
  to cut repeat with other testicle
• Elastrator
• Burdizzo
• Emasculator