1. Beef Management Practices
How do we need to take care of our cows?

2. Need a joke to start the day?

3. Objectives Describe the reasons that you would dehorn cattle.
Identify the three methods of dehorning.
Identify the three most common ways to mark cattle.
Identify the methods used to castrate cattle.

4. What does it mean to dehorn?
To remove the horns of cattle an animal

5. Why dehorn? Horned cattle bring less money when sold
Less space in trucks and feedlots
Less damage to facilities
Less chance of animals injuring one another and people

6. Method of Dehorning # 1 Chemical Paste/ Caustic Stick
Calves under 2 weeks of age
Applied to the areas of the head where horns will start growing
Stops the horns from actually starting to grow

7. Where will horns grow?

8. Chemical Paste or Chemical Problem?
Calves nurse and bump their heads on the cows belly
Paste gets on the cow and this kills the hair and can injure the udders.

9. Method of Dehorning #2 Hot Iron Also used when calves are small
Hot iron is used to kill the surrounding tissue around the horn buds and thus, no horns will grow
Popular method because it is fast and almost no blood is lost

10. Hot Iron Dehorning

11. Method of Dehorning #3 Clipping or Sawing
Used on calves that are bigger and have horns too large to use the other methods or on grown cattle
Both of these methods can be stressful because of loss of blood

12. Clipping Make sure animal is restrained.
Dehorning clipper is placed over the bud of the horn and then opened to cut through the tissue

13. How To Dehorn with Clippers

14. Clipper Dehorning

15. Sawing
Sawing is used typically on large animals

16. Which dehorning method do you think is best?

17. Marking Cattle – WHY?? Required in some states Makes management easier
Tell cattle apart
Mark ones with vaccinations

18. Marking Cattle #1 - Branding
Hot Iron
Oldest and most commonly used method

19. Hot Iron – How To
An actual metal brand is heated and burned into the animals hide
This causes the hide to not grow hair back and animal will permanently have the mark.

20. Marking Cattle #1 - Branding
Freeze Brand
Metal brand is prepared using liquid nitrogen and the brand is essentially done the same way as a hot iron.

21. Why Freeze Brand?
Hair comes back white – becoming more popular because it is easy to see and easy to use.

22. Marking Cattle #2 – Tattooing/ Tagging
Numbers are inked into the ears with a hand held apparatus that has needle-like teeth.

23. Marking Cattle #2 – Tattooing/ Tagging
Very common
Tag is made of metal or plastic

24. Taggers – Like ear piercing

25. Marking Cattle #3 – Neck Chains
Not as useful with range herds but more common for purebred herds and dairies.
Technology actually keeps track of animals movements.

26. Why castrate? Bull meat is worth less
Easier to manage steers than bulls
Not as many calves are quality enough for breeding purposes

27. Castration – What is it?
Removing the testicles of a male animal.

28. A little anatomy…
Testicles are the male reproductive organs that produce and store sperm.
The testicles are inside the scrotum.

29. When to castrate The Younger, The Better
At birth is the best time
Going to feedlot? Before 3-4 months of age
After 8 months and they will have a staggy appearance
Staggy – appearance of a mature bull

30. Castration Method #1 - Knife
Most widely used method
Not to be used with calves more than 3-4 months
Danger from bleeding and infection – management is needed

31. “HOW TO”
Basically, you remove the testicles completely with a knife.

32. Castration Method #1 - Burdizzo
Crushes the cords above the testicle
Popular because it is bloodless

33. Burdizzo Problem?? Not totally pinched off or in the right place?
Calf can show signs of “staginess”

34. Castration Method #1 - Banding
Use an Elastrator
Instrument is used to place a tight rubber band around the scrotum above the testicles

35. Banding
Basically, the blood supply is cut off from the testicles and they waste away from lack of blood

36. Calf getting castrated

37. Which method is the best?
Whats your opinion????

38. S – A – F – E – T - Y What is Safety?
What does safety have to do with cattle?

39. Safety and Cattle Protect yourself
Keep safe distances
Know your surroundings
THINK.
Read all medications before administering.
Three types of vaccinations?

40. Safety and Cattle Safety for Cows Make sure animal is restrained
Turn table

41. Safety and Cattle
Squeeze Chute/ Head Catch

42. What is happening/has happened in the following Photos?