Someone recently asked for suggestions on raising livestock. I won’t claim to be an expert, but I’ve had cattle for more than thirty years so I’ll offer some observations.
Think it through before you begin. Don’t get cattle because you think it’s something you should be doing, or because you think they will be a cheap source of meat. Do you have the resources—time, land, money—needed? Are cattle the best use of those resources? Cattle are selling at historic highs right now. Getting started is not going to be cheap.
There’s also a lot of investment in infrastructure before you get your first cow. Fencing, water supply and distribution of winter feed, and perhaps shelter. You’re also going to need some way to handle and doctor the cattle. This means corrals and/or traps, head gates, squeeze chutes, loading areas, etc. Or you could work them with horses and head and heel them if you have those skills. We work our cows horseback, but drive them to the chutes when they need doctoring. We either work the calves (ear tag and castrate) when they’re a day or two old (at that point, you can just walk up to them and catch them) or head and heel them when they’re older.
Keep in mind that if you’re going to work with large animals you are going to get hurt. It’s not a question of if. It’s a question of when and how bad. You’re working with animals that weigh in excess of half a ton. They can hurt you with very little effort and no intent. The better your working facilities the safer you are. One trip to the emergency room will pay for some pretty good facilities and equipment. Where would you rather spend the money?
If you’re going to raise cattle select them for temperament. Gentleness is genetic, and a gentle cow also is a more efficient converter of feed to meat. One wild cow can contaminate an entire herd. If you get a wild one either sell it or put it in the freezer. Be aware that the gentle ones can be even more dangerous than the wild ones. You’re careful around the wild ones because you don’t trust them. You tend to let your guard down and get careless around the gentle ones. Don’t make that mistake. I’ve pulled calves from cows that were dog gentle, brought the calf around to the cow’s head, and had the cow go after me. Be careful.
The way you handle your cattle will also affect their behavior. Learn and use low stress cattle handling methods. You can ruin a gentle cow with poor handling. Keep in mind that cattle are livestock, not pets. I don’t want my cows to run when they see me, but I also don’t want them to come into my space. That keeps me safe. I want them calm enough to be able to approach them, and respectful enough to move off when I ask them to do so.
You’re going to need a bull, but you really only need him for 60 days a year. Do you want to own and feed him for the other 305 days? Can you lend him out, or lease him out, for some of that time? What kind of condition will he be in when you get him back. Can you lease a bull for your breeding season? Do you want to learn how to artificially inseminate your cows and get the equipment and supplies need for that. The bull is half your herd and plays a very important role in determining the quality of your calves. You need a bull with good genetic characteristics or you’re wasting your time and money.
Having said all that raising cattle is not rocket science. They need feed, water, and a mineral supplement. What keeps them inside the fence is the feed (grass or hay) inside the fence, not the fence. If you don’t feed them they will find a way out of just about any enclosure. The acreage you need for a cow/calf pair depends on where you are. It may be 100 acres in New Mexico and one acre elsewhere. Don’t overgraze. Worm your cows periodically.
Herd health problems are going to have to be dealt with as they come up. Whatever you’ve prepared for won’t be the problem you’re faced with. Cows are hardy creatures and will get over most things on their own. But if you’re going to raise cattle you’re going to loose some to accidents (I once had a tree fall on a cow), calving problems, or something completely unforeseen.
This winter I had a cow that couldn’t get up. The vet diagnosed her with grass tetany, which is a magnesium deficiency. That was strange since she had access to a high magnesium mineral supplement. We gave her minerals IV to correct the problem. I was told she should be on her feet within 72 hours, and that there was no point in lifting her to get her up. Five days later she still could not get to her feet. That’s five days of hauling feed and water to her inside an improvised enclosure that kept the other cows away. At that point I lifted her to her feet using a hip bone lifter and a front end loader. Once on her feet she just walked off.
Next time she lay down she could not rise. The vet and I decided it was a nerve issue and three days of IM steroid injections followed. During that time I was lifting her at least once a day. After four days she started getting up on her own. That continued for awhile and then she relapsed and was unable to rise. I went back to lifting her. After about a week I decided it was a lost cause and decided to shoot her. My wife suggested I give her another few days. The next day she got up and has been fine since.
The point of this story is that no one, not even a well trained and very competent vet, knows everything. Sometime you’re going to be guessing and making mistakes. Accept it.
If you have cattle you will eventually have calving problems. You’ll need a set of obstetrical chains and will have to learn to use them. Your best resources for learning what you need to know are neighbors who have cattle. There’s also a lot of information on YouTube.
A lot of calving problems can be avoided by selecting a bull that produces low birth weight calves. This makes for easier deliveries. Even so there will be problems. If you need to do a C-section and no professional help is available you’re going to loose the cow. If the uterus prolapses (comes out with the calf) your chances of replacing it without access to either professional help, or drugs and the knowledge to use them, is slim to none.
You have to decide whether to vaccinate and if so for what. I vaccinate mine only for rabies, and that’s for my protection more than theirs. On rare occasions you may have to use antibiotics to deal with a health issue. If you want to avoid antibiotics be sure any feed you buy is not medicated. This is most common in milk replacer, or calf feeds.
Slaughter. If you can slaughter and dress a rabbit or squirrel you can do the same with a cow. It’s the same process, just a bigger, more difficult job. If you have a choice take it to a slaughter house and pay the fee. You won’t regret it.
If you’re going to slaughter do it humanely. Cows have a big head, but a small brain. Imagine a line extending from each ear to the opposite eye. The brain is behind the spot where the lines intersect. A shot anywhere else will not be effective.
If you do it yourself you’ll need a way to cool the carcass before butchering it (cold meat is easier to cut than warm meat) and before putting it in a refrigerator or freezer. The amount of warm meat in even a small cow carcass will overwhelm home refrigeration equipment. Instead of cooling the meat you’ll warm everything else. Slaughter when the weather is cool enough for you to be able to hang the meat outside.
If you’re looking for a reliable source of antibiotic free meat you may be better off talking to a neighbor who already raises cattle and making arrangements to buy whatever you want. Will that guarantee a meat supply in an emergency? Probably not. But could you protect your cattle in an emergency? Probably not. If you need to buy feed for your cattle could you get it in an emergency? Probably not. But you probably could protect and provide for your chickens or rabbits.
Does that mean I’m getting rid of my cattle, or that you shouldn’t raise your own? No. Just be aware of what you’re getting into, and that there will be a learning curve.
Are there other things you need to know? Of course. The last thing you learn is always the first thing you needed to know. There’s no way around it.