Look At All The Cows With The Short Tails

[Henry]

The other night when Maryann and I were riding around, just before we got to Nan's in the pasture on the right were a bunch of cows, all missing about a third of their tails.  First thing Maryann said is, "What happened to those cow's tails?"  I said, "Well, Paul must have cut them off."  Then she asked, "Why?"  Well, that did it, I had no idea, so I told her the next time I saw Paul Langelier I would ask him.

Now, I don't know how many of you know Paul Langelier, but he is a very smart young man and a guy you can always get a straight answer from.  I saw Paul at church Sunday and asked him what the story was with the cows in his pasture with their tails cut off.

First off, the cows don't belong to him.

Secondly, the tails are not cut off, they use a rubber band around the end of the tail and that part dries up and falls off.

Thirdly, it is done for cleanliness as the end of the cows tail is the dirtiest part of her body and swishing it around makes a mess.

Those of you who may have done a little farm work, I am sure have been swished with a cows dirty tail and some way somehow, they manage to get you in the mouth - Not Pleasant.

I thought I would check the Internet and see what they had to say about cows with short tails and here is what I found:

"Dairy producers interested in better farming efficiency and improving herd health may want to consider docking their cows' tails, says a veterinarian in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.

According to Larry Hutchinson, professor of veterinary science, removing two-thirds of a cow's tail -- a practice called "docking" -- is catching on in Pennsylvania as producers with large herds change over to parallel milking parlors. In parallel parlors, milking equipment is attached between the cow's hind legs, and the animal's tail becomes an obstacle to efficient milking.

"The tail is not just a physical obstacle," Hutchinson says. "There also are sanitary considerations during milking. The tail's "switch" -- the long-haired end of the tail -- is not clean, and it can contaminate the milking equipment, the cow's teats and the hands of the person doing the milking."

So you see, I got the right information from Paul, plus just a bit more when he noticed that I didn't seem to think cutting off a cows tail was a humane thing to do, he told me about the rubber band process.

And now, once again, you will leave the forum this morning with just a bit more information in your memory bank and never wonder again what the scoop is when you see a field or pasture of cows with short tails.

[Chris Santee]

I buy "Cow Tails" at Rick's Fairfax Pharmacy and Minor's Country Store.
Is this where they come from ?

[mirjo]

What do they do to shoo away the flies that are always around?? Solve one problem, exacerbate another. Although, the cleanliness issue is more important to us, the cow might not agree.

[dearon]

I grew up on a farm and milked cows along side my brother.  I do agree that the cows tails are dirty and when milking they can feel like a whip.  While I do agree it is cleaner in some respects I find it inhumane as the poor animal has nothing to switch away flies or bees etc.  I guess you can find a reason for everything in this world if you look hard enough.

[Sue W.]

I agree.  I have millked a lot of cows, had the tail through the eyes and mouth but always thought they should have something to swat the flies with. 

[slpott]

What I do not understand is cows were made with tails since long ago, milk has been produced since long ago, why the fad now? It may be easier on the people milking and safer to prevent contamination but going back to the "far side" cartoon, what if the cows were driving by and looking at all the people without arms to swat the flies or wave hello. Woulld that be ok? I guess we should have asked the cow first. Not being but a city girl I certainly appreciate and admire the hard work and dedication of farmers. This was certainly not meant meanly in any way. Have a great day, Shelly

[dearon]

I disagree with the whole concept and I was born and brought up on a farm.  If the cow would swish the tails too much we would take the end and temporarily tie it to the nearest post. 
What if everything with a tail got their tails cut off .....goats, horses, dogs, cats etc etc the whole country would be in an uproar; but because it is something we happen to get milk from no one gives it a second thought.

[Sue W.]

Farming has changed a lot since we had cows.  We milked in an old style tie barn.  I have miilked in a parlor, and it seems like there is less of a chance to get hit with the tail in that situation.  I agree, I like to see the animals with tails.  I feel the same way about dog breeds that the tails and ears are docked etc.  However, I have trimmed beaks on chickens but never debeaked one as I have heard can happen to an unruly hen. 

[klangelier]

Although the cows that Henry and Maryann saw don't belong to us, when we did have a milking herd we did dock their tails.  Believe me, Paul agonized over that decision!   He had one cow that always seemed to hit him right in the face, and one day he'd had enough and put a rubber band on her tail.  The next calf that she had was born without a tail!  We named the calf "Bob" (for bobtail I guess).  As far as swatting flies, well, if you look at the length of a cow's tail and the size of her body, there's only a small part she can actually reach with her tail.  We always sprayed our cows so the flies stayed away.  Making sure your cows are comfortable is a huge part of being a dairy farmer - the happier and more comfortable your cows are, the more milk they give.  And with today's milk prices, that's important!

[Henry]

Now that Karen mentions it, I do remember spraying the cows with flyspray when we brought them in the barn for milking at night - I suspect that the flyspray we used in the sprayers we used like the ones below would not be allowed now.  Back in the 1940s, I think we were still using flyspray with DDT in it.

[mirjo]

I'm a little surprised there isn't an animal rights group protesting the docking of the tails or spraying pesticides on the cows! where are those loons who were trying to push Ben & Jerry's to use breast milk in their ice cream instead of cow's milk?? That may have been have been about nutrition and not cow's rights, I don't recall, but these seem like a causes for them to take up!

While we think it's cruel to physically alter an animal (and in some cases it is), we forget that  We physcally alter ourselves all the time with tatoos and body piercings. Though these are not necessarily permanent alterations, they last long enough to be considered so and there is a degree of discomfort to endure for the pleasure of the end result.

i know the difference is that we have the option to make a choice, where an  animal doesn't, but if a cow isn't suffering any undue pain by having its tail banded, is otherwise comfortable, and it will improve the situation for the farmer, then there is probably no reason not to do it.

Happy cows make the best milk, according to the California Cows!