Dehorning cattle is important because it helps prevent harm to animals as well as farm workers. LVR Livestock Brands offers multiple tool options commonly used to dehorn calves on farms. These tools typically work by burning away the horn material on young calves. In addition to a dehorner, the use of a searing iron cauterizes the blood vessels around the horn that feed its growth, preventing horn growth from occurring. These tools can be heated either by flame or electricity, and the type that works best for your operations depends a lot on your specific needs.

Fire Searing Irons — Manual and Reliable

Fire dehorners and searing irons don’t require a connection to electricity, which makes them a good choice for use in remote locations where there’s no access to the power grid. Farm workers can either heat them up using an open flame or a burner connected to a propane fuel source. Some of the disadvantages of using these tools include the fact that they take longer to heat up to the proper temperature, which can slow down operations. These dehorners for small calves also require careful handling to ensure worker safety and consistent temperatures.

Electric Dehorners — Fast, Consistent Heat

Using an electric dehorner or horn tipper comes with its own advantages over fire heated. These include the fact that they heat up within two minutes and can maintain a consistent temperature, which makes it easier to remove horns with minimal blood loss. Calf dehorners typically are used when horns are relatively small and just beginning to grow, while horn tippers serve to cauterize larger horns that have been cut off. These also heat up hot enough to disinfect the area and prevent illness. Electric dehorning tools cause less pain for the animals, as well.

Why Reliable Cattle Dehorners Matter for Your Operation

Horned cattle can cause injuries to other animals and their handlers, which is why it’s necessary to dehorn livestock. Dehorning helps reduce bruising, damage to hides, and pen aggression — all of which can have a direct impact on animal health and the value of the herd. Removing horns also helps reduce aggressive behaviors at feeding time.

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, animals should be dehorned at the earliest practical age to minimize pain and distress. Horn buds attach to the skull around eight weeks of age, so it’s preferrable to dehorn the calf before that point rather than waiting. The dehorning tools created by LVR Livestock Brands are built by ranchers who know the practical demands of working cattle in chutes and alleys. Every tool we provide is made to deliver quick, clean results.