Banding is an effective castration technique for very young bull calves.
Castrating bull calves eliminates issues such as aggression and dominance, and banding is one of the simplest, least invasive methods of castration. A large elastic band is wrapped around the top of the testicles, crushing the veins and cutting off blood supply to castrate the calf without the stress of anesthesia and surgery. Banding may sound cruel and inhumane, but properly banded bull calves show few, if any, lasting effects.
Instructions
1. Herd the calf into a cattle chute and close both gates. Set a feed pan on the ground inside the chute, and fill the bottom of the pan with grain to keep the calf distracted during banding. Banding should only be done on calves under three weeks of age, as the blood supply to the testicles is immature and banding is less noticeable by very young calves.
2. Set your elastor tool on the ground with the band hooks facing up, and unlock the handle. Pull the handles apart to bring the hooks closer together, and stretch a band over the hooks.
3. Reach through the opening in the rear gate of the chute and pull downward on each testicle gently to move them into the scrotum. You may feel a little resistance as the muscles inside the scrotum attempt to pull the testicles closer to the body, but it is vital that both testicles are fully inside the scrotum for proper castration.
4. Squeeze the handles of the elastor to open the band, and slip it over the testicles with the prongs facing up towards the body. Set the band just above the testicles, and pull the handles apart to loosen the elastor for removal.
5. Feel the scrotum with your hands again to make sure both testicles are under the band, and release the calf from the chute. If the testicles are not fully contained in the scrotum under the band, cut the elastic and repeat Steps 2-5 to properly band the calf.
Tags: bull calves, blood supply, both testicles, handles apart, inside scrotum, testicles fully
