Post by catalytic on Aug 30, 2011 0:21:21 GMT -5
Hello again! Been quiet, but things are going fairly well with our girl (I guess her name is Bessie...darn kids lol!)
Have a couple of questions and a "sob story" about my girlie.
A few nights ago, while we were in the "barn", Bessie decided she wanted to go back out to graze (we've been tethering her to 2 cement blocks and letting her drag them, only when we are home and able to keep a close eye on her of course). We'd left the door open, so she ran through it. Hubby grabbed the lead rope, and she fought him (jerking away, not attacking him). He let the rope go thinking she would calm down...BAD IDEA I think... We ended up hunting for a black cow in a pitch black night...thankfully she didn't go far, and with cookies, DH was able to grab the lead rope again and I used the switch to make her go back to the barn. (Not hard tho, more about this later) I think now, that she thinks she is the boss, because she is fighting or just planting her feet when we try to lead her. Advice? I'm thinking some quality pole time? If so, if I tie her head right by the pole, how long do I leave her? (We already did a few days of her being tied 5-8' from the pole, obviously that didn't work like I wanted it to) Do I need to give her enough slack to lay down and drink, or can I tie her tight and take her to water every few hours? We're in the 100s during the day, and my poles are inside the barn area, so I don't want her to get heatstroke. I do have a box fan in there, but you really only notice it if you are right in front of it.
She is definitely trying to "gore" DH, she still does the head thing, I think she is trying to be boss cow with using her head to enforce that. She can't gore with the Kongs on thankfully, but she can sure put a hurting on you and some bruises! I've started smacking her hard for that.
Since she started planting her feet and refusing to lead after DH let her go, I've started TRYING to make the whip sting. She mostly ignores it, but when she reacts to it, she turns into a bucking bronco LOL. I'm pretty sure she will go through the polywire fencing if we don't hold the rope...will some quality pole time help this?
I did switch from a normal nylon harness to a cow control harness tonight while I had her in the stanchion pulling tail hairs for testing, so I'm hopeful that will help some.
I've been reading all the TOK about naughty cows, but I'm not quite sure how close to the pole I should tie her, or if she should be tied night and day (obviously at night she would need slack to lay down?)
My "sob story"...hubby was supposed to retire from the Army next spring. He got selected for promotion last week, though, and we decided to stay in for 5 more years. I'm thrilled about the promotion, but....I JUST GOT MY COW So, he has to move in a year for a school, and then he will receive an assignment to a new duty station about 10 months later. We haven't decided whether the kids and I will be going to the school with him, but we will most likely have to move (and thus get rid of our livestock) in a little less than 2 years, darn it. I guess I'm hoping for a bull calf, cuz I will be some kinda upset to have to get rid of Bessie AND a heifer! If it's a bull, then I can at least get some beef, or give someone in the family some beef if we get stationed too far away to take it with us lol.
Have a couple of questions and a "sob story" about my girlie.
A few nights ago, while we were in the "barn", Bessie decided she wanted to go back out to graze (we've been tethering her to 2 cement blocks and letting her drag them, only when we are home and able to keep a close eye on her of course). We'd left the door open, so she ran through it. Hubby grabbed the lead rope, and she fought him (jerking away, not attacking him). He let the rope go thinking she would calm down...BAD IDEA I think... We ended up hunting for a black cow in a pitch black night...thankfully she didn't go far, and with cookies, DH was able to grab the lead rope again and I used the switch to make her go back to the barn. (Not hard tho, more about this later) I think now, that she thinks she is the boss, because she is fighting or just planting her feet when we try to lead her. Advice? I'm thinking some quality pole time? If so, if I tie her head right by the pole, how long do I leave her? (We already did a few days of her being tied 5-8' from the pole, obviously that didn't work like I wanted it to) Do I need to give her enough slack to lay down and drink, or can I tie her tight and take her to water every few hours? We're in the 100s during the day, and my poles are inside the barn area, so I don't want her to get heatstroke. I do have a box fan in there, but you really only notice it if you are right in front of it.
She is definitely trying to "gore" DH, she still does the head thing, I think she is trying to be boss cow with using her head to enforce that. She can't gore with the Kongs on thankfully, but she can sure put a hurting on you and some bruises! I've started smacking her hard for that.
Since she started planting her feet and refusing to lead after DH let her go, I've started TRYING to make the whip sting. She mostly ignores it, but when she reacts to it, she turns into a bucking bronco LOL. I'm pretty sure she will go through the polywire fencing if we don't hold the rope...will some quality pole time help this?
I did switch from a normal nylon harness to a cow control harness tonight while I had her in the stanchion pulling tail hairs for testing, so I'm hopeful that will help some.
I've been reading all the TOK about naughty cows, but I'm not quite sure how close to the pole I should tie her, or if she should be tied night and day (obviously at night she would need slack to lay down?)
My "sob story"...hubby was supposed to retire from the Army next spring. He got selected for promotion last week, though, and we decided to stay in for 5 more years. I'm thrilled about the promotion, but....I JUST GOT MY COW So, he has to move in a year for a school, and then he will receive an assignment to a new duty station about 10 months later. We haven't decided whether the kids and I will be going to the school with him, but we will most likely have to move (and thus get rid of our livestock) in a little less than 2 years, darn it. I guess I'm hoping for a bull calf, cuz I will be some kinda upset to have to get rid of Bessie AND a heifer! If it's a bull, then I can at least get some beef, or give someone in the family some beef if we get stationed too far away to take it with us lol.