This letter follows one which I emailed on February 22, 2014, under the same title, “PART 1”
If you did not see that letter, you can find it easily on Sarah’s blog. www.sandhillfarmsarah.wordpress.com In the first letter, I wrote briefly about the herd structures formed by the animals we raise. That includes bison, cattle, horses, hogs and sheep. I have changed my writing plan in response to questions and comments from you. Some of you requested more information about livestock. Michelle requested that I include goats. I have raised goats a number of times but I cannot claim to know goats well. Nevertheless, I will include information about goats whenever possible. In this letter, I will write about animal care in winter. Winter feed and keeping warm. Four of the livestock species I am writing about, bison, cattle, sheep and goats are ruminants. Ruminants have complex stomachs that allow them to prosper on roughage. That means grass or grass hay primarily. The digestive process of rumination produces heat as a by-product. Bacteria in the animal’s stomach generate that heat. The bacteria are there to aid indigestion. The bacteria break down complex fiber. The generation of excess heat is terrifically important to ruminants in winter. Technically horses are not in the ruminant family, but horses also have a complex digestive system that produces heat. The ability to produce heat during digestion, coupled with a winter coat of hair allows these animals to be comfortable in the coldest weather. They are not just getting through the winter. In fact, these animals are most comfortable at temperatures much colder than the temperatures at which humans are comfortable. This is in fact one of those areas where treating animals as we would like to be treated is a mistake. Since, this extra heat is a byproduct of ongoing digestion it is important that the animals have palatable hay and freedom of movement available at all times. That is particularly important for horses. Horse stomachs are very small compared to their overall size. Most of horse digestion and especially the portion involving heat generation occurs in their intestines. During extreme cold, horses need to eat frequently, day and night. Cattle and bison have large stomachs. They do not need to eat as often as horses. Nevertheless, in very cold weather our cattle are at the hay bales much of the day. They go back to the bales several times during the night. All of these animals grow excellent winter coats, if properly acclimated. That means they should be outside as the fall turns to winter. If so, their bodies respond naturally to the seasons. Bison grow an especially wonderful winter covering. Their hair count per square inch of hide is significantly higher than other animals. Occasionally, I see horse blankets on horses in cold weather. In general, that is a bad practice. A blanket will prevent the horse from acclimating to the weather. Its body will not know whether to grow winter hair or which parts of its body to cover. On nicer days, the coat may actually cause overheating. Horses grow a coat to keep warm. They sweat to cool off. They roll in the dirt or snow and shake their skin to arrange the space between their hairs for comfort. Interfering with natural functions is seldom helpful to them. I recently read an article that made the claim that bison coats work so well that fallen snow does not melt off. Actually, that is true for properly acclimated horses and cattle too. I will post a couple photos of animals in winter on our facebook page. Link to our Facebook page. Snake River Farm Minnesota on Facebook Winter Shelter With good hay and water continuously available, and with a natural coat, bison, horses and cattle are healthiest and most comfortable outside. It is good to have a wind break for horses and cattle during blizzard-like weather. A shed closed on two or more sides is nice. A thicket of trees and brush may work as well. Bison have no need for a shelter and they will not use it if provided. Sheep and especially goats need better protection. An open shed or well ventilated barn is best. A shed (roof) for cattle or horses is needed only during wet cold weather. Those days generally occur in the fall and spring during the change of the seasons. In fact, the coldest conditions for acclimated animals occurs when it is in the low 30s with rain or wet snow. Then water eventually soaks into their hair and cancels the insulating effect of their coats. Contrary to what you may think, nice warm barns are generally unhealthy places for animals. Closed barns exist primarily for the comfort of the farmer. Pigs cannot acclimate to winter in Minnesota. The simplest proof of that is the fact that feral hogs are a wildlife problem in 40 states but not here. Hogs do not have the heat producing advantage of ruminants. Their digestive systems are much like our own. In addition, hogs have a wiry hair coat that is not adequate for cold weather. There are many pigs in Minnesota during winter but they are in enclosed barns. We do not keep pigs in winter. It is just simpler that way. Water for our herds in winter. Winter pastures have access to the Snake River at all times. The river is spring fed and the water is 43 degrees winter and summer. I take care that winter access does not damage the stream banks. Stream banks are protected by frozen ground. Lori asked about animals eating snow. It is natural for animals to eat snow, particularly horses and bison. Every day the horses casually eat snow while standing only a few feet from running water. They especially enjoy fresh or falling snow. Both bison and horses and to a lesser extent cattle can do well for months or even an entire winter without access to open water. They must be acclimated, they must have unlimited forage and they should be in a low stress situation that is well known to them. I do not recommend it, however. Bison, horses and cattle will graze in winter if possible. Animals prefer to eat the grass that remains in their pastures if they can get to it. Bison and horses are well equipped to dig to grass in winter. Horses use their solid hooves, front feet mainly, to clear snow. In the wild, in conditions of deep snow, horses may actually wear their hooves bloody by winters’ end. American Indians, who did not store winter hay, cut poplar trees so their horses could eat the palatable bark and buds. Not great feed, but no doubt it helped the horses survive. In large part, bison look the way they do because of their strategy for survival on the northern plains. Bison skulls are relatively large for their overall size. To dig for grass under snow, bison drag their heads from side to side. The distinctive bison hump is an anatomical structure required to hold the large skull. Cattle too, are eager to eat grass in winter. Unfortunately, they are not as well equipped as bison or horses for digging through snow. Cattle have cloven hooves. A split hoof is not suited to digging. Snow and ice quickly pack into the delicate space between their toes. Cattle do well if forage is easily reachable. In summary, open water and hay is available to the bison, cattle and horses at all times in winter. Horses and cattle have open sheds available. We keep no hogs through the winter. We keep a flock of poultry, mostly laying hens and a few rabbits through the winter. They are in a closed and heated coop, with heated water and an outside run. The outside run is enclosed for their protection. Predators of all types are desperately hungry in the season. I will try to write the next segment within a week. Your feedback is welcome and helpful. Best regards. Tom
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My purpose is to write about the handling of animals. That includes bison, cattle horses, hogs and sheep.
In order to explain animal handling here, I believe I need to put animal welfare into context. Context means a shared understanding of animal nature. To make this manageable for me and hopefully palatable for you, I will divide this topic into segments of around 1000 words. Actual research or scholarly teaching on the topics of animal behavior, animal social relationships or animal welfare is scarce. Especially sparse relating to farm livestock. The information that exists is mostly about efforts to limit cruel behavior. That information focuses on humane slaughter. Most of the written information is about horses. Probably because horses fill a dual role. In the US, they are both livestock and pets. Good farmers and animal handlers have for thousands of years acquired and used the knowledge necessary for the welfare of their animals. Today, automation and the economies of scale are separating farmers from animals.When that happens, the animals fall to the level of biological units on an asset list. In that situation, only the short term physical needs of the animals are considered. Livestock are different from pets. The definitions of those words, “livestock” and “pets” are somewhat vague and ambiguous. Livestock are farm animals, raised and kept for food or work needs. Pets are animals that provide companionship to humans. In general, livestock satisfy physical needs of humans; pets satisfy psychological needs of humans. Both livestock and pets are “domesticated.” In this article, bison, even though not domesticated are considered livestock. The exceptions to the definitions I have given above are numerous. In the first draft of this section, I wrote, “in the context of this farm all five are livestock.” Gail pointed out that is not correct. I like to think I treat all of our livestock with equal respect. That is not true. Animals die unexpectedly on every farm. When a cow, hog or chicken dies on this farm, I compost the carcass or recycle it to the wildlife. If a horse dies, I dig a deep hole in the savanna. I bury it as I have buried all our dead horses for 40 years. Our horses are treated as livestock when living but pets when they die. Animal Welfare. We all care about animal welfare. On the list of goals for our farm, animal welfare is the top value. There are different viewpoints on how to achieve high animal welfare. I believe people think about the nature of animals incorrectly. We tend to think that animals perceive the world as we experience it, just less so. That is incorrect. Animal senses, animal brains are much different from ours. We think that animal social needs are similar to ours. There are similarities but the differences are vast. We tend to think of “human nature” and “animal nature” as if all animals can be lumped. They cannot. The social structure of pigs is as different from that of horses, as horses are different from us. Each species must be understood and managed according to its nature. Overview of Animal Group Structure. All animals have a social life. Understanding their social needs is crucial to providing a low stress (high welfare) environment for them. There is little research or study into the social needs of farm animals. The five species I will write about, bison, horse, cattle, hogs and sheep are all considered herd animals. The definition for herd is very broad. It is so broad that I think it makes better sense to describe these as “social” animals. Bison form primary groups of 15 to 20. These groups are led by one or several mature cows. The primary group typically consists of cows, calves, yearlings and adolescent females. Males over two years old are driven away. There is a mature bull involved but his involvement with the herd is seasonal. Bison have an extremely strict hierarchy or pecking order. That order requires space between animals. Outside juveniles cannot blend into an existing herd. Unrelated, producing females (cows with calves) may blend in over time. Bison enforce their hierarchy violently and instantly. The enormous bison herds of history were actually collections of family groups. There was little scientific study of bison before their near annihilation. Not much reliable information exists. The better observers reported that the large herds of thousands consisted of many family groups of 20 or so. Cattle form social groups similar to bison. Domestic cattle establish a pecking order. Like bison, senior cows are dominant. Those cows are quite “bossy” in behavior. The pecking rank between lesser members is not sharply defined. Physical space between individuals is not as important to cattle as it is to bison. Rank is expressed primarily regarding access to feed or water. The boss cows and their nursing calves take first access. Texas Longhorns are our best example of feral cattle. Longhorns descended from loose Spanish cattle. They prospered for over 400 years without human involvement. At their peak, in the mid 1800s, they numbered in the millions. Mustang horses, like longhorn cattle, originally descended from Spanish animals. Mustangs form bands of 5 to 15. All domestic horses with enough space to do so form similar bands. The band is assembled and held together by the herding actions of a stallion. The stallion collects breeding age mares and holds the group together by what we would recognize as herding. Horses cannot be gelded, (castrated) until they are over one year old. Because of that, gelded horses retain significant male characteristics. Geldings will frequently express stallion-like behavior. i.e. Dominant geldings form herds. Pigs form family groups that fall short of what most of us think of as a herd. Wild pigs and feral domestic pigs behave similarly. Several reproducing females form a group called a “sounder”. Sounders consist of 20 to 50 animals including piglets. Adult males, boars, perform no social function other than breeding. They join the groups only temporarily and only for that purpose. Sheep form flocks of any size. Sheep may be the most domesticated of livestock. It is difficult imagining domestic sheep surviving in a feral environment. Sheep are basically defenseless prey. A ewe will aggressively defend her lamb but they are not particularly effective in dealing with common predators. Coyotes and dogs can kill many lambs in a short time. Sheep under stress form very tight groups. Each animal pushes into the flock trying to avoid being on the outside. They do so to avoid being the animal most accessible to a predator. That may be their only effective defense. This tight flocking behavior eliminates almost all sense of pecking order or rank. As a corollary to that tight flocking behavior, sheep have a strong inclination to follow each other. Next sections will each concentrate on a single species. In those sections, I will focus on animal handling here at the Snake River Farm. Best regards. Tom |
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