Finally found some Dexters!(Pictures of the New Cattle!)

[TheSheepGirl]

We finally found some Dexter Cattle that we could afford. Two bred Cows that are 2 years old and an 18 month old bull. They are all reds and quite gorgeous! We only paid $2500 for the three of them.

The Cows are due to calve in July, so we a have a while on them.

Just wondering if anyone had any newby advice for us as far as loading, hauling, handling, etc. They are not halter broke, but that's the first item of business since we intend to show them. .

 

[BrownSheep]

People around here tend to halter their cows then tie the up for a couple hours a day to start halter breaking them. No only that but it trains the cows to keep their heads up while showing . If your cows are coming home completely wild you're in for a long road. One friend said they used rakes or show sticks to get the cows used to being touched whil they were un unhaltered and unfriendly. Also remember that just because theyre smaller doesnt mean they're not dangerous. Best of luck to you.

 

[Royd Wood]

Well be careful as a full grown dexter can take you on a bumpy ride. Are they flighty now or can you get to scratch them. I bought a 2 year old Belted Galloway which I wanted to show, I got her really friendly and even got a halter on her but thats as far as it got as she would just drop on her front legs, make funny noises and pretend to be dead. Tractor towing did not work with her, I tried for weeks with her but she won in the end. A year later I popped the halter on and down she went going burrrrrr burrrrrrr burrrrrr.
You will have an easier time with the July calves just get in with them and get them friendly from day one but watch out for a snotty protective mum, oh and pics of the arrival at your farm would be great

 

[Stubbornhillfarm]

Congratulations! Sounds like a great purchase price to me. Can't wait to see pics.

 

[SuburbanFarmChic]

Sounds like a deal. Even if you can't break and show the adults you should get kids that you can work with.

 

[WildRoseBeef]

Don't put them out on pasture right away otherwise they will try to find a hole to crawl through to get back home. You will need to have a sturdy corral to keep them in for the next couple weeks until they settle in to their new home. From that point you can do (or try) whatever you want with them.

Congrats on your purchase, and welcome to the world of CRAP (Cattle Raising Addiction Problem)!

 

[carolinagirl]

Have they been tested for Chondro and pha? If not....hold up on that sale pending the results. If you are not familiar with those diseases, check out the dexter cattle forum.

http://dextercattle.proboards.com/index.cgi

 

[TheSheepGirl]

Thanks for the advice!

They are actually very friendly cattle. They like to be scratched and rubbed and will pretty much go anywhere if you shake a can of grain. I'm not to worried about them being easy to handle.

My plan for halter breaking them is to get them used to following me around without the halters on and to touch their ears and faces and get them used to it. Next is to put the halter on and leave it for a couple of days until they are used to it. Then comes the leading, but only when they follow us around willingly without the lead rope while wearing a halter. That way it should be quite painless and without much ridiculous behavior. The key with any animal is to work with them as much as possible to make these training things painless and to go slow with it and not just jump in with both feet and get completely soaked. It won't be so much Halter "Breaking" as Halter "Training". My hopes anyway.

 

[ThreeBoysChicks]

Thanks for the advice!

They are actually very friendly cattle. They like to be scratched and rubbed and will pretty much go anywhere if you shake a can of grain. I'm not to worried about them being easy to handle.

My plan for halter breaking them is to get them used to following me around without the halters on and to touch their ears and faces and get them used to it. Next is to put the halter on and leave it for a couple of days until they are used to it. Then comes the leading, but only when they follow us around willingly without the lead rope while wearing a halter. That way it should be quite painless and without much ridiculous behavior. The key with any animal is to work with them as much as possible to make these training things painless and to go slow with it and not just jump in with both feet and get completely soaked. It won't be so much Halter "Breaking" as Halter "Training". My hopes anyway.

Sounds like a plan.

 

[TheSheepGirl]

We picked up the cows on Saturday and everything went smoothly. They loaded without a hitch and we didn't have any problems with the fences.

This is Fancy. She is the Mom to the other Cow and is the friendliest of the Dexters. She is 1/4 Highland and her daughter is 1/2 highland.

This is the closest I could get of the other two Dexters. They are both blacks. The bull is full Dexter and the father to the calves due in July.

This is Fancy next to mom. This is her actual size and as big as she will get. she is 5 years old now.

Another picture of Fancy. she tried to eat the camera and even licked it. Gross and Slimy!