Yarram Herd Services Incorporated

Although calf-disbudding is often painted in a dark light, thought of too be incredibly cruel and unecessary in the farming setting, it is still a service that many dairy farmers find essential.

In the perfect world, all our cows would be bred polled- eliminating the need to dehorn calves. Until that day arrives, we will continue to incorporate this into our daily practice.

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Doing our best to eliminate and limit the amount of pain that may be inflicted for this necessary evil.

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It is better to complete calf dehorning between the age of 2 weeks to 8 weeks, any older then 8 weeks and the calf becomes to big to handle in the calf crush, making it harder not only on the technician but also the calf.

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If calves are left to grow their horns they present a danger- not only to farmers & their staff, but towards other animals that they are housed with.

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They use their horns as weapons, often attacking other cows leaving massive scars- some often requiring stitches to repair- or using their horns against farmers/staff often resulting in hospitalisation.

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In line with worksafe, farmers are required to maintain a a safe environment for their workers & themselves. When completed properly & humanly calf disbudding adds to this safe environment, protecting workers from future harm when cows attack.

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Yarram Herd Services continues to monitor their calf disbudding practice, ensuring that we follow the strict guidelines set out in handling animals humanly, continuing to evolve our services as new technology becomes available.