cow horn question

[Kristin]

We keep the horns on our Jerseys and this year we have an aggressive heifer who is making trouble in the herd, bruising bags, etc. Does anyone have a suggestion, short of removing her horns? Do some people put caps on the ends of horns to blunt them, or am I crazy?
Thanks,
Kristin

[Rod]

I would take them off. We have a Dexter cow that does the same thing and I now have a small heifer calf with a hernia which I think is the result of being jabbed while her head was in the feeder. The cow is going otherwise it would be off with them.

[Crabapple Farm]

I know there are others with more cow horn modification experience out there, but yes, you can get horn knobs, they are often used on oxen. Basically they are fancy lug nuts that screw onto the tips of the horns (I reckon regular lug nuts would work fine). You need to trim down the horn tips to a size and shape that they will thread onto.
They will lessen the possibility of punctures but won’t do much about bruising.
You can trim the horns back further – I think (hopefully someone will correct me) that the blood and nerves only reach about 2/3 of the way up the horn, so the outer third can be cut back without blood. Being connected to the skull, it won’t be pleasant for the girl, but not actually painful. A hacksaw works, and a hoof rasp to round it off (she won’t like it – tie her well). Even if you do nick the ends of the living tissue, there will be a lot less blood than if you take the horns all the way off.
Alternatively, can you keep her tied in the barn for the next month until you’ve got pasture? She won’t like that either, but it may be the less stressful option. I’m assuming that they are in tight winter quarters, bored and getting cabin fever, just like the rest of us (except for all you southrons who’ve been out plowing already while we’re still looking at snow – though today I was in the greenhouse all day where the weather is tropical). With age and maturity she may settle down a bit before next winter.
-Tevis

[Author]

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