1. Health and Production Management Practices for Nursing Beef Calves
Floron C. Faries, Jr., DVM, MS
Professor and Extension Program Leader for Veterinary Medicine
Texas AgriLife Extension Service
Texas A&M System

2. Dehorning Why? To improve appearance
To reduce injuries due to fighting
To increase feeder or bunk space
To improve value as a feeder animal
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

3. Dehorning
When?
Preferably perform at birth at birth or before 3 months of age.
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

4. Dehorning How? Chemical paste over horn button to destroy tissue
Electrical or fire hot iron around horn button to destroy blood supply
Cutting spoon or tube to scoop horn button or horn and ¼ inch ring of hair and skin
Cutting scissor-like clipper (Barnes’) to scoop horn button or horn and ¼ inch ring of hair, skin, and skull
Saw to remove tip of horn
Image: NSW Dept. of Primary Ind.
Hot Iron
Image: NSW Dept. of Primary Ind.
Image: NSW Dept. of Primary Ind.
Barnes’ Dehorner

5. Castrating Why? Prevent mating and fighting To improve carcass quality
To gentle
Image: NSW Dept. of Primary Ind.
Image: NSW Dept. of Primary Ind.
Image: NSW Dept. of Primary Ind.
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

6. Castrating
When?
Preferably perform at birth or before 3 months of age.
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

7. Castrating
How?
Bloodless pincher (Burdizzo) to sever cord 2 inches above testicle
Bloodless pliers (elastrator) used to stretch rubber band ring and place 2 inches above testicle to restrict blood flow
Knife used to cut bottom half of scrotum to remove testicle by severing cord with knife, cutting/crushing pliers (emasculator) or pulling.
Image: NSW Dept. of Primary Ind.
Standard Surgical Castration
Image: NSW Dept. of Primary Ind.
Proper Restraint

8. Identifying Why? To claim ownership
To conduct individual record keeping
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

9. Identifying
When?
Ear methods, preferably performed at birth or before 4 months of age
Branding methods, preferably between 3 to 4 months of age
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

10. Identifying
How?
Fire hot iron or freeze cold iron to destroy hair or pigments cells of skin on hip, thigh or shank
Pliers to insert tag or apply tattoo between ribs of ear and to cut notches along lower edge of ear
Image: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Electric Cattle Branding and Ear Marking

11. Implanting Why? To increase feed efficiency
To increase rate of weight gain
Image: Iowa State Extension Service
Implanting Chemical Pellet

12. Implanting When? Over 6 weeks of age, repeating every 100-200 days
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service
Feed Lot Cattle Eating

13. Implanting
How?
Dispensing gun and needle to insert chemical pellets under the skin in middle 1/3 of top side of ear
Dispensing Gun
Image: Iowa State Extension Service
Implanting Diagram

14. Vaccinating
Why?
To stimulate immunity for protection against infectious diseases
To prevent sickness and death
Image: Tumpline Stackyard Agriculture on the Web
Vaccinating Cattle

15. Vaccinating
When?
Over 2 months of age, repeating 3 weeks before weaning
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

16. Vaccinating
How?
Syringe and needle to administer the vaccine subcutaneously, intramuscularly, or intranasally
Multi-dose Syringe
Single-dose Syringe

17. Deworming Why? To reduce worm numbers To prevent tissue damage
To prevent pasture contamination
To break worms’ life cycles
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

18. Deworming When? Over 2 months of age When infected
Following 3 to 6 weeks of moderate temperature; rainfall and wet grass
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

19. Deworming
How?
Syringe and needle to administer a drug subcutaneously; syringe drench gun, hook drench gun, balling gun, or paste gun to administer a drug orally, and liquid dispenser to administer a drug on back (pour-on)
Drench Gun
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service
Hook Gun
Ball Gun

20. Degrubbing, Delicing, and Deflying
Why?
To reduce parasite numbers
To prevent tissue damage and blood loss
To prevent annoyance
To break parasites’ life cycles
Lice
Hornflies
Grubs

21. Degrubbing, Delicing, and Deflying
When?
Over 2 months of age
When infested in summer (flies and grubs)
When infested in winter (lice)
Image: Texas AgriLife Extension Service

22. Degrubbing, Delicing, and Deflying
How?
Syringe and needle to administer a chemical subcutaneously, dispenser to administer topically on back (dust, pour-on, spot-on; and pliers to insert chemical tag between ribs of ear
Insecticide Dust Bags
Insecticide Ear Tags