i have to buy a new halter for my dexter cow and have no clue what size the oen she is wearing is. i have to give this one back to the guy i bought her from. it is old and i can almost guarentee that he doesnt know either lol. she is still pretty wild so i dont want to take it off to compare size. what size and style do you use on a dexter? peace connie in alaska
When I first got my cow...before she had her first calf....she wore a yearling size. She is a Jersey. She has grown into regular size now....so maybe a yearling halter would be right for a dexter?? I don't think a calf halter would be big enough. Maybe you could measure the one she has on her now (without taking it off I mean..like with a sewing measuring tape) and then have the measurements to take with you. I had to guess at it and got a regular cow size first and had to take it back..a big pain since the nearest store that carried cow halters was an hour away!! (CalRanch) I would hate for Mona to be without her halter. Controlling their head when you lead them makes all the difference!!
thanks jen, i ended up buying a small cow halter which hopefully will fit. measuring the halter that she has on now isnt doable as she refuses to be ocught! we are gonna have a time changing the halter when we do get her cought! after we get the hay shed built and filled the next project is a milking stall where we can catch her a bit easier than in the pasture where she can not only run bu thas the cover of trees to hide behind lol. we always do things "bass ackwards" by getting the critter then worrying about how to house it lol. we have the chicken house up but dont ahve the fence aroudn it yet. that has to be done soon as they are gettign too big to all live only in the coop! we got 3 square bales and 4 round bales of hay with nowhere to put them either lol. peace connie in alaska
My husband built my stanchion ( I think it would hold an elephant ..reallY!!!) if you would like to see pictures of it I will post some for ya. It is very simply made and has worked great thru 2 lactations with Mona already...I think it will last forever..haha.
You can also use a neck strap. They are nylon or leather. but if she is not really tame, a halter would be easier. Brushing her and paying her lots of attention may help to make her your friend. I had a strap on Summer at first, but she is so tame that I don't use anything. Also a bucket of grain is a cows downfall. They will follow you anywhere. Good luck
Just remember if you use the bucket of grain...don't call them with it from TOO far away....cows are big..and that is alot of love coming at you FAST if they come running..haha Mona is real tame too...and just walks right into her stanchion. She hasn't ever been milked anywhere but there so I don't know how she would do..it is her place. I did pet and brush her and got her used to being handled alot way before I ever milked her for sure. It helped alot before she ever calved the first time. It is always so funny to hear you say you cow's name Michele..since I have a daughter named Summer!
jen i would love to see a picture of your stanchion. hubby will be building one for me soon so i can start feeding her there which will hopefully calm her down. i guess he has to build some sort of shed/barn/building first lol. right now we only have pasture. i am sure my heifer and steer would be happy to not have bb trying to steal their grain! butter bucket is especially hard on the steer as he is the youngest in the bunch. hubby is out right now building a place for storing the hay we bought. he is using those huge packing crates that movers use. we get them free and have so many uses for them! peace connie in alaska
I thought I had some that showed it better without Mona in it..will take some in the next day or two..maybe this gives you an idea though. My little milking barn is a 10X12 barn shaped shed that my oldest son built for me..I love it and it works perfectly. Mona's stanchion is in the back of the right side and the other side has a line of metal trash cans for different feeds and a big bookshelf for jars, milking stuff and misc vet supplies. I put a rubber mat down on each side to protect the wooden floor. These photos were taken two years ago (on a muddy day apparently) before she had calved the first time yet. I would bring her in and brush and touch her all over each day to get her used to me and the whole idea.
hi jen, thanks much for the pics. she sure is full of milk! i cant wait!! i hope my girl becomes that easy to handle! right now she is so wild but i know she will improve with time and handling. is that bar nearest you attached with a bolt at the bottom? peace connie in alaska
Yes..it is a big bolt that goes through the two runner boards across the floor and the bar that pivots goes between the two with the bolt through all three. At the top there is a chain and clip that you can see better in the second picture.
halter on milk cow?
Posted - Jul 08 2008 : 10:28:50 PM
