Adventist Youth Honors Answer Book/Outdoor Industries/Cattle Husbandry

Cattle Husbandry
Outdoor Industries General Conference	Skill Level 2
	Year of Introduction: 1944

Contents

1. Name at least 25 parts of a steer.

3. What is castration, and what is its purpose?

Castration is the act of removing the testicles of a bull. It is also called steering, as the animal is thenceforth called a steer.

Castration is commonly performed on domestic animals not intended for breeding for the following reasons:

• To reduce or prevent territorial behaviour
• To reduce or prevent aggression
• To reduce other consequences of sexual behaviour that may make animal husbandry more difficult, such as boundary/fence/enclosure destruction when attempting to get to nearby cows.
• To increase growth and weight of the animal.
• To improve the taste of the meat.

4. Why is dehorning done, and what age is best for dehorning?

Cattle with horns can injure themselves, other cattle, and their handlers. They can also bruise the meat which lowers the value of the cattle. It is best done before the age of three months, as they are more easily handled when they are this young, and they also recover from the procedure more quickly. Dehorning cattle over the age of one year is illegal in many localities, as it is considered inhumane. The procedure should be performed in the late afternoon or early morning when flies are less abundant, and thus, infection less likely. It should never be performed in wet weather as it will take much longer for the wounds to heal.

5. What is creep feeding?

Beef cattle are bred to quickly build up their body mass while deemphasizing milk production. A beef cow's milk production will begin to taper off before its calf's need for it decreases, so creep feeding is introduced to fill the gap. A creep feeder is an enclosure that holds feed so that it can be easily accessed by a small calf, but not accessed at all by grown cattle.

Calves born in the early spring or late fall benefit the most from creep feeding because the availability of grass in the pasture is decreased during these times.

6. When is a calf weaned?

The ideal time to wean a calf is when it is six to eight months old, though there are a variety of factors that can affect this. In hard times, such as a drought, a calf could be weaned earlier for the mother to get stronger before calving again. This will allow her secretory tissue to be restored before she calves again. Calves can be weaned as early as one month, when they begin eating grain and hay, optimal time for weaning is six months. The longer a calf is on a cow the healthier it will be and the faster it will grow.

7. What are the housing needs of cattle?

Cold weather will not hurt a cow so much as rain will. Cattle need a shelter they may enter whenever weather becomes too much for them. Such a shelter (like a barn or a simple shed) would provide enough cover. If they are able to be on pasture anytime they want then when they needed the protection of a barn they would go into it.

9. Identify live or from pictures three breeds of beef cattle and three breeds of dairy cattle.

Beef Cattle

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Angus
Description: Angus cattle are naturally polled (meaning they do not grow horns) and solid black, although white may appear on the udder. Black Angus are the most popular beef breed of cattle in the United States.

Brahman
Description: The Brahman has a distinct large hump over the top of the shoulder and neck, and a loose flap of skin (dewlap) hanging from the neck. Their ears are large and floppy. Bulls weigh 800 to 1100 kgs. Despite their huge size, they are known as a docile breed, if handled with kindness from calfhood.

Charolais
Description: This breed has been quite popular in the top end of Australia where they are more adaptable to the harsh weather conditions. The coat is almost pure white.

Hereford
Description: Hereford cattle are a widely-used breed in temperate areas, mainly for beef production. Originally from Herefordshire, England, they are the most common breed of beef cattle in the temperate parts of Australia. The breed also enjoys great popularity among ranchers in the desert American Southwest of the United States and also in the centre and east of Argentina.

Texas Longhorn
Description: The Texas longhorn is a breed of cattle known for its characteristic horns, which can extend to six feet in width and have a slight upward turn at their tips, as well as for their distinctive burnt orange coloring.

Dairy Cattle

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Brown Swiss
Description: Brown Swiss is the breed of dairy cattle that produces the second largest quantity of milk per annum. The milk contains on average 4% butterfat and 3.5% protein, making their milk excellent for production of cheese. The Brown Swiss is known for their immense size, large furry ears, and an extremely docile (though some would say lethargic) temperament.

Guernsey
Description: The Guernsey is a breed of cattle used in dairy farming. It is cream and brown in color and is particularly renowned for the rich flavor of its milk, the very rich yellow color that is richest color of any milk breed, as well as its hardiness and docile disposition.

Holstein
Description: The primary color pattern for this dairy breed is black and white, but a red and white variety, called "Red Holstein", is also maintained. They are the most common breed of milk cow in America, gives the highest amount of milk yet the lowest butterfat.

Jersey

Description: The Jersey cow is quite small, ranging from only 800 to 1200 pounds (360 to 540 kg), but by some measures it produces more milk per unit of body weight than any other breed, and has the highest feed-to-milk conversion efficiency of any dairy breed. The milk is highest of all breeds for butterfat. Milk is known for the high cream and rich taste. Bulls are also small, ranging from 1200 to 1800 pounds (540 to 820 kg), and are notoriously aggressive.

References

• NSW Department of Primary Industries