Weaning and Fly Spray – Results!

As predicted, the plan fell apart when reality came along. Plan: An orderly release of one cow from the gate at a time, fly spraying the cow as it goes. Actual results:

We walked up to the gate, Dan with a bucket of food and me with the fly spray. We opened the gate, I entered with the fly spray, and we offered to the food to Back Talk, the "lead" cow. Back Talk... turned and walked toward the food troughs.

Of course she did. When they're in that front pasture, we walk the food over to the troughs. She did what she knows. The fact that the food was behind her doesn't matter, it always comes to the troughs!

Java, the year old heifer, is pushier (just in general, she pushes her way to the bucket every feeding time). As Dan shook the food to try to attract Back Talk, Java pushed toward the bucket. Macchiato saw this and joined her. Though Back Talk heard the food, the fact that I was chasing other cattle away from it meant Back Talk headed back for the trough. That's where the food belongs. She knows this. Routine, routine, routine. Dan shook the bucket harder, as Back Talk kept looking at the bucket, expecting it to follow her. I kept fighting Java and Macchiato (no actual risk to me, they're used to me being hands on with them and directing them). We're at a stalemate.

I paused and looked around. ... The feed was on the ground. Dan shook the bucket so vigorously the feed came right out! Not great, according to the plan, but the plan wasn't working anyway. Dan went to get more food and I tried to let the cattle reset.

Once the distraction of the bucket was gone the cattle noticed the spilled food. Who got to eat it? The head cow, of course, Back Talk. And where was the spilled food? Under the gate (when in its closed position). Back Talk was not going to let the other cows near it.

I cracked the gate. For a longhorn, that's a 3 to 4 foot opening. Back Talk had everyone else away from the gate. I got behind Back Talk, yelled, and tapped her on her behind with the stick. She went through that "cracked" gate before she quite realized what she'd done, and I snapped it closed behind her. Hah! got her!

Dan returned with the food as I let myself through a (much smaller) opening in the gate. I traded the stick for the fly spray, and Dan led Back Talk (with the food) over to one of the small pens (we call them goat pens, someday we plan to keep goats in them, maybe). Back Talk did not want to leave the other cows (including her young heifer calf, who was still in the front pasture), but I chased behind her yelling. The old girl is not scared of me behind her yelling. She just knows it means she's supposed to move away from me, and she does. Once she's in the pen Dan put down her bucket and I started spraying her.

The cows do not like the fly spray. It stinks and it's something touching them, that the people did, without the cows' wanting it. It's needed, though, as the flies bite them, taking energy, etc. So as I attempted to spray Back Talk she moved away. She wanted that food, though, so she's rotating around the bucket. I follow. She rotated into a tree and stoped. Mwhahahahaha, fly spray for you, my dear! She stood still against the tree while I sprayed her left side.

As I moved to her right side she rotated the other way... until the tree again. One cow down. Yes, that's right, this much time, energy, etc. and only one cow out of 7 (and 2 horses) is done.

I decided that was a lot of effort and confusion for one cow. Not a good plan. But some of these cows... they're used to being touched. They're not halter trained, can't put a halter on them, tie, and spray (like the horses), buuuuuut... What if I just.. go out into the pasture with the spray and spray them? No food, just... "Deal with it!"

I walked out and started trying to spray Java. She moved away, with her sassy head turns to glare at me. As I moved toward Macchiato he headed away, wanting nothing to do with me. I went up to Georgia. Her head was held high. She wanted food. That was all she cared about. I sprayed her horns (a favorite area of the flies). She shook her head and turned away, but didn't actually leave. She just... turned. Her right side was toward me. Oooookaaaaay, I'll spray that! I started spraying her side and she did not care. She knew the food bucket was on the other side of the fence and stared at it intently, ignoring me. She continued that stare as I sprayed both her sides.

Great. Two cows down. Next...

I decided Java is next, like it or not. I followed her around the pasture, as she tried to flee and glared, spraying, running, spraying, running. Did I mention it's summer in Texas and it's hot? Java kept trying to trot away from me, stopping, hoping I'd stop. I kept jogging with her and spraying. I managed to get a decent coating on her.

Through this Macchiato has been nearby, not quite following us, but not quite leaving us. Herd animals. I turend to him next. As I chased him around (same story as Java), Ribeye's hindquarters came into range. He's a quick little calf who will not let us get close, so I sprayed him where I could as I jogged by. Back on Macchiato, with enough chasing I got him.

Four down. Paradise, Ribeye (most of him), and New Baby are left. I raised my head to look for them right as Paradise busted through the gate. It hadn't been properly latched. Paradise and Ribeye fled, Macchiato and Java close behind. Georgia kept standing, watching, waiting for food to go to the troughs. I called out to Dan, who ran for the gate, as I ran to put myself between Georgia and the gate. Georgia saw what was going on and tried to get through, but I got there before her. Gate closed.

Status at that moment: Back Talk was in a goat pen. Georgia was in the front pasture. Both of these cows were fly sprayed and in their destinations. Paradise, Java, Macchiato, Ribeye, and New Baby were milling about the entrance to the goat pens. They needed to be sorted, Macchiato and New Baby staying in this big pasture, while Paradise, Java, and Ribeye needed to be chased back to the front pasture. Dan wasn't sure what to do and didn't want to make things worse, so stayed back. I jogged up toward the animals watching to see what they'll do. As I approached, Paradise and Java left the gates, staying in the big pasture. Macchiato, Ribeye, and New Baby went into the 2nd goat pen, the one with the open gate.

This is looking not bad. If I can get Macchiato and New Baby closed into that goat pen, we can herd the other three back to the front pasture and everyone will be split up. I called Dan over to close the goat pen gate. He did. I moved toward the calves, trying to get between Macchiato and Ribeye. I managed that, and Ribeye moved toward the gate. New Baby started to follow and was not going to let me separate her from her friend! But Dan opened the gate just long enough for Ribeye to get through, cutting off New Baby. With that, the cows were sorted. Back Talk was in the first goat pen, Macchiato and New Baby in the 2nd. The loose cows were all meant to go into the front pasture, so we could tempt them over there with food and not worry about any more sorting. Great!

Dan tempted them with the food. At first they went, but Ribeye and Paradise decided something suspicious was going on and they'd rather stay by the goat pens. I got behind them, chasing them, yelling. If you've never tried to chase a cow who isn't actually scared of you, let me tell you, it does not go well. But I had the fly spray. Don't want to follow the food? Fine, I'll fly spray you! Carrot? Or stick? Carrot? Or stick? It didn't take long.

With those four cows secured in the front pasture Dan dumped their food into the troughs. I then did my best to spray Paradise. She knew what was up, though, and kept fleeing. I did my best, but the poor girl will be fly bitten. Ribeye was so convinced doom was coming for him he didn't even approach the food until I left, so he just got one quick hindquarter spray.

Fly spray coverage was thin and imperfect this time. But the cows were sorted. Macchiato will learn to live without mother's milk and Georgia will stop putting energy into making milk. She needs to put some weight back on, so this'll be very good for her in the long term.