Taming Calves

mamatomany8 · #1 12/23/12, 05:22 AM

Any suggestions on videos/books that would be good on how to halter break and train a calf. My dexter cow will calve in the Spring and I am sure she has a heifer brewin in there (she has had 2 bulls) I'm due for a heifer out of her! Anyways, I want to tame her and break her. I have some older children that are willing to work with the calf daily. The cow is quite gentle and we will be sharing her milk with this calf. Thank you.

francismilker · #2 12/23/12, 07:11 AM

If you're milking the cow haltar training the calf will be easy and painless. When you lock the calf away from her for the night slip a small rope haltar on the calf and when you bring the cow in to be milked lead the calf to her. You won't actually be leading you'll be dragging/being dragged. When the calf is finished lead/drag them back to their pen. It only takes a few days with one this small.

Otherwise, if you're not milking the cow: Bring the cow into the lot and catch the calf. Put a small rope haltar on it and tie it up at 18" high with 18" slack. Let it fight until it can't fight anymore. Watch it closely to make sure it doesn't get tangled up in the rope. Once it has stood for an hour or so with you in eye distance let it go. Repeat the next day, and the next day. After about 3-4 days it's nose will be good and sore. Once you get the haltar on it tie it up to a height that it's looking upward. (not at the sky but more angle than looking straight ahead) Tie it up close enough that it has to stand there with it's head up and standing on it's toes. Leave it there 3-4 hours if you have the time to watch it from close by and then go untie it and immediately lead it to water.

This may take some time but usually the younger they are the easier they are. I start mine from day one and by a week or two old they are broke well for life.

REMEMBER: NEVER LEAVE A TIED ANIMAL UNATTENDED. One good tangle up and you could be eating veal.

sammyd · #3 12/23/12, 08:13 AM

We used pens and tie out. Penned overnight and tied out during the day. By working with the animal twice a day they tamed up rather well.
We tied out using heavy duty dog cables and had halters on the calves.
We tied to twist in tie downs, an old tractor tire and rim, handy trees, pieces of machinery, and have used wooden calf hutches with wheels on the back end so we could move them daily once the calves started to graze heavy.

Copperhead · #4 12/23/12, 09:25 AM

We bought a pair of 600lb Angus heifers a few years ago. They hadn't been handled much, but we got them used to us by feeding grain and eventually worked a halter on them.

We short-roped them to a 6' T-post pounded 2' down in the middle of the barnyard. After an hour of struggle, the first cow had twisted the "T" in a complete circle, but she had learned the the halter was her master and was easily led. After an hour of fuss, the 2nd cow likewise learned.

Having them halter broke on our small 6-acre (at the time) homestead was nice and convenient. We would walk up, clip on a 8 ft. leash (or 20 ft rope) and turn them loose to graze the backyard or orchard. When we wanted to collect them, we simply walked up and stepped on the rope. In a few weeks, they didn't even try to get away: not only was resistance futile, but going back to their paddock was going to their evening ration of grain.

Bottle calves were even easier to halterbreak. One red bull in particular was never "broken". He just liked being led around and was happy to go anywhere anybody wanted to lead him.

dkhern · #5 12/23/12, 10:17 AM

like said start when the calf is one day you can manhandle if necessary but gently. is cow is there watch even gentle cows can be protective of new born. tie to post or in the middle of a fence pannel on short lead for longer periods of time a week should be enough may have to refresh from time to time

arnie · #6 12/24/12, 07:13 AM

Breaking a baby calf is the way to go makeing a much more easyer to handle cow a joy to handle .start by leading them where:: they want to go .and correct if tbe mother is in the barn lot watch out .i'v trained bucket calves by leading from the stall to the yard for feeding and after a time or 3 they led like puppys .the main trick is to do it while they are small if you have a helper to give it a push from behind can help to let it get the idea .my over 1000 pound cow was broke to be tied while being milked but not to lead .