Quick-Tach Cow Cage A Mobile Maternity Pen

Quick-Tach Cow Cage A Mobile Maternity Pen LIVESTOCK Miscellaneous 27-5-20 Ornery cows who've just calved often don't want to go to the maternity pen, so Tom McConaghy decided the easiest and safest thing to do is to take the maternity pen to them. "One cow got me down and just about finished me a couple of years ago, so I decided it was time to find a safer way to handle calving time," says McConaghy. "A good many cows are just fine, normally, but when they calve, they can get really mean." McConaghy designed the 7 by 10-ft. cow cage using 1 1/4-in. pipe. It mounts on any loader with a quick-tach bucket mounts. It incorporates a calf box on one side, with a maternity pen-style headgate on the other side. One of the pen's 10 ft. side panels is actually a swinging gate. McConaghy uses the tractor to lower the cage over either the calf or the cow. If the cow is captured, he can then safely move the calf by hand into the calf box, where she can see it. The box position makes it a comfortable height for processing such as ear tagging, dehorning and castrating. The calf can be held in the box for transport with tarp straps. If the calf is captured first, the cage still provides protection so he can place it in the box, and then open the gate panel, allowing the cow to enter the pen on her own. "She usually does as soon as you're out of there or start moving the pen with the tractor," he says. "If you need to help the calf get started nursing, you can do it right there in the field because you've got the built-in headgate and crowding gate." McConaghy now builds the cow cages for sale for $1,000 (Canadian) plus shipping. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Tom McConaghy, 9404 û 100 Ave., Westlock, Alberta, Canada T7P 2B6 (ph 780 349-2414).

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.