Leaving Cows Unattended?

I am dying to get some animals on my property but since I don't live there I can only be there once every weekend at best. I am curious if cows can be left unattended? I will be putting in a pond (at least 1/2 acre) and can provided whatever hay is necessary. My main concern is predators. Are cows pretty good and fending for themselves? Since my land is small (12 acres), mini cows would be even better. Could they fend off predators?

Anyone else have cows unattended?

Brandon Greer : Sometimes it is possible to find adds in local papers, looking for pastureland for young cattle,Your area may have a stockman's guide,
something given away or sold at Livestock Auctions.

The owner will trucking his cattle to your area to graze,This can be done on shares, however 12 acres are not a lot of land, here we speak of the 'carrying
capacity' of the land. i.e. -too many cattle were put on the land for its ability to 'carry that many'. A near neighbor would certainly be able to help you
determine the carrying capacity of your land. This is something you and the cattle owner both have to be comfortable with! It is not to his advantage to
put too many cattle on your land.

Sometimes, some locations a third party, a young kid old enough to drive is hired to check on the cattle!

If you have not seen it take a few minutes to review the video :::-->

A nice video of Joel Salatin and his paddock system with cattle, chickens, rabbits,and pigs ! (cattle forum at Permies )

Two other thoughts, who is responsible for fence line upkeep, this can very from field to field and neighbor to neighbor! If there are feral pigs in your
area you will not be able to 'keep' a good fence anywhere, they just go right thru them !

A final thought on leaving livestock un-attended !

Did you ever wonder where the insane idea of sand traps on golf courses came from ?! - It all started at St. Andrews in Scotland

The perfectly mow'd golf course was mown by small herds of sheep. The strong winds blowing inland from the Atlantic would push the sheep to form up
in a tight group downwind behind any windbreak that they could find, there the sheep would return to herd grazing, and eat all the grass, roots and all.

Thats right, all golf courses have memorials to the insanity of Mono-croping ! Give one pause for thought! For the good of the Crafts ! Big AL

Cows are about like cats--they don't really need you there until they do... There are always fence issues that pop up.

The two biggest predator problems are roaming pet dogs and people. Dogs want to "play" with the cattle and literally run them to death. And with cattle prices and the economy these days, rustling is a real thing again. Once someone knows your schedule, they will have easy pickings.

Miniatures are worse. They don't get stolen and sold, they get field dressed and put in the bed of a pickup and taken to a freezer.

Even though I do not actually see my cattle except on weekends sometimes due to work, we are on the same property and I or my teenage sons are always available to fix fence or herd them back in.

I totally agree with R Scott. I have mini Belted Galloways and they don't need me till they do. Animal predators aren't a problem at all but minis are harder to contain. I'm off grid and with their extra hair I've not been able to get them to respect electric fencing.

If you could hire a responsible person to check up once a day & maybe a well place web-cam or two might work.

Better might be to rent/lease the pasture to who wants to raise a few cows in exchange for raising yours too.

The term being caught red handed was originally a legal term for Cattle rustling in the wild borderland 'twinst England and Scotts Land,
It refers to the point that it became impossible to use the defense of 'a stray on your field that you were going to return,' During Butchering
the Culprits hands were literally covered in blood !- Caught RED HANDED

I was thinking of this when I read a report of an alleged Prep, who drove his pontiac Vibe that comes complete with a 110 inverter, he was
using a corded Electric Chainsaw and the lights of his car to lift-up his operating room within site of Neighbors, Caught RED HANDED !

I wonder if Dale knows about this!

Big AL

Cj Verde wrote:....but minis are harder to contain. I'm off grid and with their extra hair I've not been able to get them to respect electric fencing.

That's one of the things I've been wondering/assuming - that smaller breeds will need fencing wire closer together to keep them in.
In regards to the "extra hair" - is that a standard thing that minis have extra hair?
Thanks
Mat