Recent content by MargaretClare

Thank you. Yes, I clamped one at a time, but wasn't right away sure is all. I kinda expected the cords to feel sorta severed inside, I guess. If that even makes sense. I think tonight I did notice some shrinkage. I'll take pics from now on. They also seem to have mellowed out and don't do the...

So I tried out the burdizzo method of castration this year on a couple of kids, and now I keep second guessing myself whether I did it right or not. I keep checking them and wondering if they're actually getting smaller or if they don't feel like they're getting harder. I'll have to check the...

Texas A&M does that kind of testing and I think UC Davis and WADDL do as well but you'd have to check on that.

Yes, we're probably gonna bring the bull back in a week or two for the 12 month cycle. Goats are the same way with little to no grain in late gestation. Do you have a preference of grain type if we need to supplement? What exactly are protein tubs supposed to be for? At this point they're just...

Thank you both. :) My grandma and parents are keeping only a couple cows for producing a couple calves for us to butcher every year or so, so no major replacement breeding decisions for now. We live in the AZ desert so we do have to feed hay year round since we don't live on large grazing land...

I realize this question could depend on breed but in beef cattle, when weaning calves at 7 months what body condition is the cow expected to be in. Even if the cow was rebred when calf was 3 months? I'm not very used to cattle and it sounds like they'll be skinny after all that, and I just want...

Same here. I hate when I find an interesting old thread through a search and it ends on a cliffhanger. Or if a thread describes some weird wound or something and they say "I'll get pics later" and the thread ends there forever. :( I like the weird wound pics. Is that weird? :D

Thought I'd update. It's been 22 days and guess who's screaming her head off again. :) Mystery solved.

I get that. I have meat goats and try to stagger kids so I'm not worrying about all of them in a short span of time.

She's 50% Galloway 25% Highland 25% Angus. That makes sense. If we still have her around in January we might run her with the others to get bred. It's hot in AZ and we prefer around October calves.

Thank you, I was wondering if that might actually have been her first heat. I thought they start going into heat at like 8 months. We haven't had cattle for very long (like 3 years) so we're stumped on a lot of beginner stuff.

Thought I'd update that she's acting completely normal again. I guess if she goes bananas again in about 3 weeks we'll know.

She's penned up separate from the other cows right now so she can't actually mount anything. She keeps breaking our waterline to play in the water. :idunno She shares a fenceline with a steer.

No bull around older than a month. I didn't even consider she might be in heat because she's never done this before.

One of my grandma's heifers (about a year and a half old) keeps yelling/mooing/bellowing(?) And I cannot figure out why. She's eating, poop looks regular and normal, belly isn't bloated as far as I can tell. She may be bred but wouldn't put money on it. From what I can see she's just yelling. I...