Pics of my baby cows

[Rammy]

My neighbor is freinds with the guy who now has the runaway cow. Thats one reason I didnt want her back when she escaped twice out of my field, then three more times from two other pastures.
I know it was a fluke that a branch fell on the fence giving her another opportunity, but the fact she took it tells me she is more trouble than she is worth.
Im sure Russ, my neighbor, will compensate the guy who has her now. Since Russ has only paid me for one cow out of the four we got total, the runaway cow is HIS problem.
I do have a mineral tub out there for them but thought about getting the loose mineral another member suggested to make sure they are getting enough.
Right now Im giving them feed from the Amish place we get feed from. The guy there recommended it and they really like it.
I was wondering if these cows were red/ black Angus crosses. In the long run, they are just walking lawnmowers for the pasture and possibly hamburger later on.

Rammy

 

[Alaskan]

I love hamburger!

 

[Jennifer Hinkle]

They are probably angus but the one with the white face has something else in it. Either hereford or maybe simmental. They are known as black white face or "black baldies" but are a composite. They are supposed to grow a little better as a composite breed than most straight bred animals. Think hybrid vigor. Purebred angus do not have white on their face and actually cannot have any white forward of the "belly button" and then only on the underside and perhaps a little on the udder. Unless you are breeding purebred and selling them with papers, it really doesn't matter for raising them for meat.

My grandparents raised holsteins for milking and had beef cows also. We used to call the white faced ones( Molly Face). Don't Know if they were the same as these, but they look the same. I haven't really been around cattle since I was a teenager. They retired the Dairy back in '98. But I used to love living the life with this experience. Not very many people have Dairies any more It is lost in history.

 

[Rammy]

I wish I had more room for more cows. Cant put too many on 3 acres. Would love to have cows year around but the pasture wouldnt sustain cattle longterm unless I was able to rotate or reseed with something that doesnt die off in the winter.

Rammy

 

[Baymule]

I love cows, I miss having cows. But I went with sheep as being more sensible on 8 acres that is mostly wooded. And I have 3 horses as well. Horses are a hole in you pocket that you dump money in.

On the minerals, I keep sheep mineral mix out for my sheep, but noticed my newborn lambs licking up dirt from new gopher mounds. Hmmmm...... I had bought Azomite for the garden, which is rock dust from an ancient lava flow in Utah. So I offered some to the sheep. They ate it with gusto. Then I studied grass tetany and calcium issues with lactating ewes and offered dolomite lime. They chow down on that too. So even though the mineral mix supposedly is complete, my sheep told me different.

My point is, it might not hurt to offer your cows a choice of minerals along with the mix you give them now. Do you have a 3 sided shed or shelter where you could put the minerals out to keep them dry?

 

[Rammy]

I went to TSC and got some loose mineral for cows. I have an overhang they can go under behind the barn where I have thier trough and figured I can put the mineral in a flat feed pan my horse used to eat from and just give them free choice.
They also have a purina mineral tub they can lick on. I do want to make sure they have everything they need even though they will be gone this fall.
Im also giving them a little hay.

Rammy

 

[Wehner Homestead]

They need a high mag mineral to keep them from getting grass tetany until the grass turns brown...we feed it to all of our ruminants March to October usually in Southern Indiana.

 

[Rammy]

What is grass tetany?

Rammy

 

[Rammy]

Nevermind, found it on google. I think between the tub and the loose mineral they should be ok. If its not, will get something better. So far they are doing well. I plan on taking them to vet end of the month for health check and vaccine boosters.

Rammy

 

[greybeard]

We only use himag here just before and during the initial spring greenup. I'll go back to summer blend by June1.

If its not, will get something better.

Know this!! By the time you know "it's not", they'll likely be dead. Grass Tetany/grass staggers works incredibly fast..often, a matter of hours. You won't have much time to correct it, and once it begins, the last thing they are going to be interested in is eating anything. Treatment is usually only successful via IV Mg.
If it doesn't say "High magnesium" or "Hi Mag" on the bag, it isn't.
Most all-season or summer blend cattle mineral is around 3-5% Mg but, Hi Mag will be 10-14- or even 20% Mg.

The up side is, tetany affects older animals more often than younger ones, but the bad thing is, it tends to affect Angus more than some of the other breeds.
(it CAN however, affect all breeds and all ages!!!)