# Cows.



## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

So hubs loves me or wants me to shut up because I'm gettin 3 calves. 2 heifers & a bull. I now need names. One heifer is a charolais cross kind of a dusty grey other heifer is black angus cross & the bull is a black & white Holstein. 
I want cute unique names. 
&&&& Go! I can't post pics for some reason


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

I think it may have worked


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Very cute! Are you going to castrate the bull calf?


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Too cute!


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

No we are goin to start raising for meat. I’ve just always wanted a pet cow & they came as a package deal.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Nice.

Names, oh boy, that is the hard part.


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

toth boer goats said:


> Nice.
> 
> Names, oh boy, that is the hard part.


Yes! I am having the hardest time!


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)




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## Nigerian dwarf goat (Sep 25, 2017)

IDK, but that angus x heifer looks like a Darlene to me...


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## happybleats (Sep 12, 2010)

Oh they are lovely..How about 
Bull: Zazoo ( from Lion King)
Angus : Pheobe
Char: Zsa Zsa


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

Goats.galore said:


> I think it may have worked


Charolais.... charley
Bull... skip lol! Brutus. Beefcake.
Angus....megs. Mags


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## MellonFriend (Aug 8, 2017)

Name the grey one Glory B. That just popped into my head when I saw her. 

More suggestions for girls:
Eva
Iris
Mavis
Cleo
Helena
Party
Amelia
Cecilia
Amantha
Raven
Cora
Bonnet
Partridge

For Boys: 
Hedwig
Cyrus
Leonard
Emil
Caspian
Edwin
Harris
Denis
Oliver
Congrats on those cuties! :cow:


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## Karen Kuntz (Apr 25, 2018)

I just love calves! They are adorable! I submit, "June Bug" for a girl.


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

Sfgwife said:


> Charolais.... charley
> Bull... skip lol! Brutus. Beefcake.
> Angus....megs. Mags


I was thinking Charlie for the char x


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

I may have my 2 girls help pick. I'm so indecisive  hubs is gonna think I'm nuts lol


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

Think we have picked names. They may Change lol


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## fivemoremiles (Jan 19, 2010)

i hope the bull will be a steer soon Holstein bulls are dangerous.
I would name him 
Sir loin
or
chuck 
or
T bone
or
stew


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## goathiker (Apr 14, 2011)

I would name him Headcheese and yes, Holstein bulls are extremely dangerous.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

My dads good friend back in the '60's had a Holstein milking herd and a bull raised from a calf. The bull lovingly pushed so hard against the man, pinning him against a fence, crushing his ribs and he drowned on the way to the hospital. He left a young wife and 5 kids and a farm. After Ed was killed, most of the farmers went to AI. Be very cautious around that bull calf. He will grow up before you know it.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Unique and nice? Hmmm.... Dancing Madam? Bouncing Boy?

Sorry, no more names come to me right now!


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

Oh wow thank y’all! He isn’t for sure coming next week. We may rethink after hearing that


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

If you want to breed the cows, there are probably farms/ranches with bulls, she could go there on a date, or pay for AI. Way safer and cheaper. You have a few years to decide on how to breed the heifers.


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

Yea our neighbor down the road actually has a bull I think if we get him we will cut him.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

Steers are much more agreeable than bulls! They taste better, too!:heehee:


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## Little Cow (May 31, 2010)

Cute heifers. If you buy the Holstein, I would band or castrate that bull ASAP and go with AI for your cows. It is not worth it to keep a bull around for two cows. And everything everyone has said about Holsteins is true. Plus, they are dairy. You will spend gobs of money growing him up to maturity and then get a very low yield on him, (30%) or any steers he produces. He won't yield nearly enough to offset the cost of feed. 

I have raised cattle for many years and owned several bulls (registered Dexters). Bulls, even my sweet ones, are hard on fences and will add to your expenses for two days of service per year. AI is MUCH cheaper. We moved to a smaller place and sold most of our cattle. We sold our last bull and use AI for our three remaining cows. We actually had our last two bulls collected. One of them is in high demand and we regularly sell his straws to Dexter breeders. COntact your local AI tech. Most will be able to recommend a good AI bull. Watch that Charolais cross. Charolais do have a higher incidence of calving issues. Go with a bull that throws smaller calves.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Little Cow said:


> (...) We actually had our last two bulls collected.


Can someone explain this to me? Thanks.


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## Iluvlilly! (Apr 6, 2019)

Trollmor said:


> Can someone explain this to me? Thanks.


Hi @Trollmor Collecting means that they collected the bulls semen so farmers can AI there cows with it or they can sell it etc..


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Aha, thanks. Do they store it in a freezer, then? The bull in question is no longer on the farm?

Or was the entire _bull_ collected, and delivers his semen somewhere?

So much I do not yet know!


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## Little Cow (May 31, 2010)

Trollmor said:


> Can someone explain this to me? Thanks.


Straws collected for use in AI. If you have a good quality bull, you can take him to a facility that collects semen in straws for you to keep for yourself, or to sell. We collected our first bull at 2 years of age. He was an easy going bull, so the process was easy on him, and then, he returned to our farm a month later and bred our cows. We received requests from other Dexter breeders to use our bull, but it's a small breed, so AI is much more practical than trying to ship a bull to another state. Plus, safer for him.

For your cows, I would inquire about a standard sized bull known for slightly lower birth weights (to protect your Char cross). You don't need a top of the line bull, but the statistics are important to know. Angus or Limos would cross nicely with your two, unless you live in a hotter climate. then you can look at Brangus. Find out how old the bull was when he was collected and how long the straws have been stored. A bull that was 2-3 years old when collected, not that many years ago, will give you better results than an older bull or one collected a decade ago.


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## Iluvlilly! (Apr 6, 2019)

Trollmor said:


> Do they store it in a freezer, then?


https://extension.psu.edu/storing-and-handling-frozen-semen

This may help you understand a bit more?!


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Thanks! As for @Goats.galore's cows, I thought they were for meat? If for breeding, I would like to ask you people about their knees ...


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## Little Cow (May 31, 2010)

Trollmor said:


> Aha, thanks. Do they store it in a freezer, then? The bull in question is no longer on the farm?
> 
> Or was the entire _bull_ collected, and delivers his semen somewhere?
> 
> So much I do not yet know!


The bulls are collected using a cow in heat and a person interfering with the process via a gate and a collection receptacle. The process is repeated many times to get the number of straws needed. That's why our bull was at the facility for a month. The semen is preserved and stored frozen. He must have been happy with the process because he loaded very easily the next time I put him in a trailer. A few years later, we sold him to a bigger Dexter farm in another state.

When a bull is put into a pasture with the cows, it's called pasture breeding. Nature takes it's course.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Spades said:


> https://extension.psu.edu/storing-and-handling-frozen-semen
> 
> This may help you understand a bit more?!


Thanks, @Spades! I mainly wondered about the meaning of words. Again.


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## Little Cow (May 31, 2010)

Trollmor said:


> Thanks! As for @Goats.galore's cows, I thought they were for meat? If for breeding, I would like to ask you people about their knees ...


Knees? Do you see something concerning? I see gangly baby cow knees. Normal looking for their age.


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## Iluvlilly! (Apr 6, 2019)

Trollmor said:


> Thanks, @Spades! I mainly wondered about the meaning of words. Again.


You're very welcome!


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

Thank you all. The girls will more than likely be lawn ornaments & the bull will be cut & fed out. We want our girls to understand where their food comes from & the circle of life type of ideas. We raise Boer goats currently so they know when goats leave our farm they are possibly goin to be eaten. Our oldest will start 4h next winter so she will be in the middle of everything. I will update with pictures when we get them. The bull is still on the fence.


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

First I am so agreeing with Little Cow after spending 5 hours yesterday fighting with a stupid bull that got out and didn’t want to come home. The whole time I’m screaming “I hate bulls! I hate bulls!” Lol I am happy to hear that you are probably going to cut the bull. With everything that has been said (which o fully agree with) Holsteins also tend to throw larger calf’s then other breeds. Our neighbors Holstein bull got out a few years back and bred quite a few of our fist calf heifers (black angus) but that was a nightmare! We had a lot of rough pulls and ended up having to put down 3 of them. Im sure there are ones that throw smaller calf’s for their breed and if they did breed more larger hipped girls all would be well but I personally wouldn’t chance it. But they are all adorable and I wish you luck on your new adventure!


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

Another "years ago story"! After we sold our dairy herd, my dad bought white face Hereford heifers. (Say that fast!) they were bred to a Holstein X angus bull. (One the neighbor had)., terrible calving season. Our job as kids was to go looking for feet sticking out. Then dad ran the poor cow to the barn, and pulled the calf. 75 young cows, 50 had to be pulled. Lots of calves died. No more Holstein crosses for smaller hipped cows!


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

Oh gosh. If he come he’ll be fed out. & the girls will be pets


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Little Cow said:


> Knees? Do you see something concerning? I see gangly baby cow knees. Normal looking for their age.


Normal? Very good. I saw an angle in more than one front knee. Thank you for answering! 


Goats.galore said:


> lawn ornaments


:funnytech: Wonderful!    :inlove:


Goats.galore said:


> We want our girls to understand where their food comes from & the circle of life type of ideas.


(thumbup)(thumbup)(thumbup)


Jessica84 said:


> The whole time I'm screaming "I hate bulls! I hate bulls!"


I strongly believe that the bull came very close to you, calm and friendly, when he heard all that ... :hide:


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## sewfitting (Feb 20, 2017)

Goats.galore said:


> So hubs loves me or wants me to shut up because I'm gettin 3 calves. 2 heifers & a bull. I now need names. One heifer is a charolais cross kind of a dusty grey other heifer is black angus cross & the bull is a black & white Holstein.
> I want cute unique names.
> &&&& Go! I can't post pics for some reason





Goats.galore said:


> So hubs loves me or wants me to shut up because I'm gettin 3 calves. 2 heifers & a bull. I now need names. One heifer is a charolais cross kind of a dusty grey other heifer is black angus cross & the bull is a black & white Holstein.
> I want cute unique names.
> &&&& Go! I can't post pics for some reason


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## sewfitting (Feb 20, 2017)

I love the name Higgins for the bull.


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Oh no Trollmor he was very mad that we dared to attempt to make him come home. I don’t mess with them when they get ticked off like that. I simply let my dogs show them it’s best to do what the humans ask of them.


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Then, @Jessica84, your dogs free you from the wish to shout anything ... :hide:


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

Well the guy we were gettin them from informed us he wouldn't deliver them now & he has others interested so he's goin to sell to them


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## Trollmor (Aug 19, 2011)

Goats.galore said:


> Well the guy we were gettin them from informed us he wouldn't deliver them now & he has others interested so he's goin to sell to them


:dazed::what::what::dazed:


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

It was not a good day & we planned on lettin our 4 yo (it was her bday yesterday) be the first to feed & love on them


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

That's too bad. But, maybe that is for the best. Something better will come down the pike, just wait!!!


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## Jessica84 (Oct 27, 2011)

Oh what a shame  I’m so sorry. I agree it might be a blessing in disguise and something better is coming your way. Fingers crossed you find some calf’s for your baby soon


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## Little Cow (May 31, 2010)

I'm sorry. The right cows are out there somewhere.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

I am so sorry.


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## Goats.galore (Feb 24, 2019)

Thanks. Just sucks the morning of & he wanted $400 to deliver plus cost of calves when we agreed on $100 delivery  then was quick to inform he had others wanting to but


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## Dwarf Dad (Aug 27, 2017)

Goats.galore said:


> Thanks. Just sucks the morning of & he wanted $400 to deliver plus cost of calves when we agreed on $100 delivery  then was quick to inform he had others wanting to but


Sounds like he was looking for a sucker. Good you didn't bite. I agree that something better will come along.
Hard that it had to be that way for your daughter's birthday.


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## Little Cow (May 31, 2010)

If you like a particular breed or cross, contact ranches in your area and find out if they sell weanlings. Expect to pay the per pound going rate (you can look it up). It's cheaper that way. If you don't mind my advice...do *NOT* get cattle from auction. Way too many diseases out there that can contaminate your pastures for a long time and make cattle owning quite expensive and unpleasant.


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## CBPitts (Jan 29, 2020)

I know this is an old thread but I think you may have dodged a bullet on those calves. They were WAY too thin for beef calves. Even newborns. It’s also very rare for beef heifers time be sold as bottle calves. Be sure to avoid any twin calves (one of the most common beef heifer bottle calves) as if their twin was a bull they’re probably sterile. 

I’d look for weaned heifers around 6 months from an actual breeder.


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