Which is better?

[flyintale]

I have been pulling calves since I was 13. I was always told to put the strings high on the leg. I had a really hard pull a couple of days ago, a monster of a bull calf out of a heifer! Well....I broke one of his legs    Was I taught wrong? Is it really better to pull from a lower point?  God knows at some point in time I will be pulling another calf and I would prefer not breaking anymore legs!  It breaks my heart to see the baby hobble around with his leg splinted

 

[OH Breeder]

The older I get the harder this stuff gets. I invested in a calf jack after years of using twine. The calf jack believe it or not is easier on the calf. It applies steady pressure and if you get an alternating jack it pulls more natural while keeping constant pressure. Its a thought. I also use OB chains in stead of twine with handles so I don't cut the crap out of my hands.

 

[kfacres]

double loop your chains, and loop them around both feet if you can...

I have seen vets loop the chains both high and low.

or breed to easier calving bulls...

 

[shortii]

I have always wrapped the chains just above the dew claw, pull when she pushes and keep a constant pressure when she isn't (enough so you don't lose any progress). If the calf is hip locked try to spin the calf sideways and pull. That is what I have always done. 

 

[OH Breeder]

double loop your chains, and loop them around both feet if you can...

I have seen vets loop the chains both high and low.

or breed to easier calving bulls...

Malpresentation and Dystocia can happen with calving ease bulls as well. As many of us know size is not always the issue with calving. Many times it is shape. You could use a bull with 15 CE and -7 BW EPD and be the unlucky one that has one folded in half, breach and stuck etc. Easier calving bulls are not always the answer. It sure helps us mentally but in all reality that's part of calving heifers. What occurred is very unfortunate. I would invest in equipment that will make it both easier on you and the animal.
If you ever watch discovery or national geographic they did a spot on the cattle in the desert. They found a couple cows that were dead due to dystocia. Do you think those fellas running cows on hundreds of acres sage brush used clubby bulls or hard calving bulls? But they had dead cows with calves hanging out or partially out? NO.

 

[lightnin4]

I always try to double loop the chains above the dewclaws. 

 

[flyintale]

We have a jack, which is what I had to use....but it doesn't have chains. Sounds like they would be a good investment!  Thank you all!

 

[CAB]

Someone posted a thread pre calving season refresher webanar about pulling calves here a short while ago. Very good info in the thread. Showed exactly how to put OB chains on and how to make a half hitch to spread out the pressure. You may want to have your calf's leg cast. If it was broke above the bottom joints in the the first long bone, they can heal very well, but watch very closely. The hair can be a big problem.

 

[kfacres]

double loop your chains, and loop them around both feet if you can...

I have seen vets loop the chains both high and low.

or breed to easier calving bulls...

Malpresentation and Dystocia can happen with calving ease bulls as well. As many of us know size is not always the issue with calving. Many times it is shape. You could use a bull with 15 CE and -7 BW EPD and be the unlucky one that has one folded in half, breach and stuck etc. Easier calving bulls are not always the answer. It sure helps us mentally but in all reality that's part of calving heifers. What occurred is very unfortunate. I would invest in equipment that will make it both easier on you and the animal.
If you ever watch discovery or national geographic they did a spot on the cattle in the desert. They found a couple cows that were dead due to dystocia. Do you think those fellas running cows on hundreds of acres sage brush used clubby bulls or hard calving bulls? But they had dead cows with calves hanging out or partially out? NO.

The hardest- most tiring pull I have ever been involved with-- ended up being a 43# Red Angus heifer calf.  Wore two people out, and 4 arms. 

The best way to pull calves, is to throw the cow- and get her to lay down.  The shape of the pelvis- is shaped different when that cow is lying down, than when standing up.  You can wrap a rope around her, in a monor which will cause her to lie down. 

 

[willow]

We always use OB chains and put one loop above the fetlock joint and a second half-hitch loop  below it.  We have had good luck with this method.

 

[kfacres]

I have seen vets loop the chains both high and low.

put one loop above the fetlock joint and a second half-hitch loop  below it.  We have had good luck with this method.

same thing- could not remember my knot names from the days of tree climbing...

 

[firesweepranch]

We have a jack, which is what I had to use....but it doesn't have chains. Sounds like they would be a good investment!  Thank you all!

We used OB chains when we pulled the breech calf a few days ago. Vet did the double loop as described by willow. Our jack has two hooks, so one chain went on one hook and the other chain attached to the second hook. They pull the calf more naturally like OH Breeder stated (who, by the way, gave me the advice on which jack to get). Worked like a charm, and no broken legs.

AFA calving ease bulls, we had a calf a few years ago by one of the top calving ease bulls in the breed, but the calf was still 120 pounds (can't remember the exact weight, but too big), a purebred, and out of a heifer that had great numbers and no history of calving ease problems on dam side. She was on hay (calf was born in December), so feed was not the cause. It just happens some times.

 

[Pleasant Grove Farms]

need to use chains not twine
double hitch the chains, one hitch above the pastern/ankle, the other below or just above the hoof; this spreads out the pressure of the pull
need to use a puller
work with the cow/don't be in a hurry; tighten the pull just a few clicks each time the cow strains; but don't click it up everytime; about every other time, when the cow strains, just drop the puller down to the ground, put it back up, then the next time take up the slack a few clicks
slow and easy helps alot
you can go really slow until you get the calf about halfway out then the navel cord becomes compressed on the pelvis but the calf is not out far enough to breath on his own, and you need the to get the calf out quickly until that point is past or when the hips are left in the cow; then the calf is out far enough to breathe and you can give the cow/calf a rest again.

I can't say that it is any harder or easier to pull a calf with the cow standing up or laying down; just a bit different.
If the cow is laying down, then you have to be sure that she is FLAT down; doesn't have a leg tucked underneath her as they most often do when they lay down to rest....and very important for both cow/calf is that you go straight down with the puller once you get the calf about half way out; that is a much more natural position for the calf rather than pulling it straight out in a parallel line which puts alot more stress on the calf's back, more chance of injuring the cow also.

I hope you can understand what I have tried to convey; in many, many, many pulls over many years of raising cattle, I have never broke a leg.....I am thankful to the amazing cattle vets that have taught me over the years how to correctly pull a calf....any more questions, pm me or post.

 

[flyintale]

Thank you all for your advice!  I may only be 22, but growing up on a dairy/beef/hogs/grain farm has taught me sooo much already! I know I have a lot more to learn!  This forum has been so helpful just in the months I have been on here!  Again...thank you all!  I look forward to getting on here daily and learning everything I can!  I love being a full time farmer! Though trying at times....it is so rewarding to see the outcome of all my hard work!