Observations on Animal Husbandry

I had an opportunity to witness a solution to a common problem among farming neighbors in Augusta County. 

Three cows from one farm had come through a breach in a fence onto another farm and joined the neighbor’s herd. That herd happened to be on a piece of farmland that Polyface rents (we call these our "contract farms). There was a failed attempt by the owner of the three animals to lead them back home, and they ended up in the woods instead.

Daniel Salatin arrived on the scene, with one of our summer stewards, and was briefed on the situation. He paused for a moment to consider his options, then announced a plan. 

There were three steps to his plan. The herd was in a paddock bordered by a single electric wire which kept them in. If you’ve had a Polyface tour, you’ve seen this method of containment. On the other side of that wire at one end of the paddock was a creek and the wooded area where the three other cows had escaped during the recovery attempt.

The first step of Daniel’s plan was to open a gate and gather the herd along the fence near the creek, which he said would make the three in the woods want to join them. He waited patiently, and sure enough the three cows jumped over the wire to join the rest of the herd. He then moved the entire herd back into the paddock and closed the gate.

The second step was to drive the herd into a corral where they could be sorted to separate the three neighbor’s cows from the Polyface herd. Daniel and the steward set up parallel electric bluff wire lines leading to the corral (bluff: a strand of tough woven electrical wire that is not electrified, but the cows behave as though it is). He instructed the steward to open the gate and let them come through until he said to stop. After about 15 animals were in the corral, Daniel closed the corral and told the steward to stop the flow and send the rest back to the paddock.

In the corral were the three cows belonging to the neighbor, along with the other ten or twelve wearing Polyface ear tags. Daniel explained that since the cows instinctively stay together as a herd, it’s easier to move them as a group to the corral, and let them in until all three cows that need to be removed are included in the group, then cut off the entrance.

The third and final step was to back the cattle trailer up to the corral gate, open the door, and load the three cows into the trailer to drive back to the neighbor’s property. 

To do this, Daniel stood next to the entrance of the trailer with a sorting stick (a fiberglass stick about the length of a ski pole). He took one step forward toward the herd, and they began to circle the corral. One by one they approached the cattle trailer entrance. Daniel lowered the sorting stick to knee height across the entrance to block it as the Polyface animals walked up to it. They turned away and continued circling. When one of the neighbor’s animals approached, he lifted the sorting stick, and the cow hopped into the trailer.

Daniel continued this process until the three cows that came to visit were safely inside. Then he closed the door. He told the steward to guide the Polyface animals back to the paddock with the rest of the herd. He then pulled away and delivered the three cows back to their home pasture next door. 

I was so impressed with this happy ending that I had to share it. 

The operation was smooth and stress-free for both the animals and the humans, and it showcased the remarkable ease of problem-solving that comes with experience and dedication to our farming practices. This low-stress handling is one of the things that makes Polyface grass-fed beef different.

-Susan