Banding a Goats Horn?

[blueoval1]

I have heard about this technique and was curious what yall thought about it? And if anyone has any experince with banding a goats horn to remove it.

Thanks,

 

[Epona142]

I've both seen it done and done it. Dangerous, painful, bloody.

It's one way of removing horns but I never recommend it to inexperienced owners. I also prefer to see it not done on does older than a couple of years. And it doesn't really work on bucks. They'll just scur and grow them back. Seen it.

 

[bagendhens]

from what ive been reading and hearing from other farmers, if your goats arnt naturally polled or disbudded when very young they wouldnt touch the horns unless theres a real issue.

banding is quite simply wrapping a tight thick elastic band around the horn (which is sensitive) and the band eventually cuts off all circulation cutting through the horn itself...
most goat keepers ive talked to see it as cruel in an adult/young adult goat.
(and often leads to scours...)

 

[taraann81]

Quote:
Does it actually lead to diarreha??? Just kidding I know you meant scurs! Or maybe you did mean scours...still learning about goats..I suppose the stress...

 

[Haviris]

I've done it, and I'll do it again if I have a goat that wasn't disbudded and I want the horns removed. I did a two month old buck just a few weeks ago. The horns are tender and after you get the band on you don't want to touch them at all, if they are knocked off early they can bleed pretty bad. Generally you go out one morning and the horn will just be gone, or in one case it just hung there for a week or so, no blood or anything. The biggest thing is getting the band low enough.

 

[bagendhens]

did mean scurs, hard to type with a 10 week old macaw trying to eat the keyboard lol.

personally i wouldnt want a rubber band wrapped around any of my extremities till they fall off...
(i also have a bit of an issue with castrating goats and sheep this way too...for OBVIOUS reasons lol)
theres blood flow to the area so its not like its some feelingless area.

some people do it with sucess, but the more people i talk to, the more experienced and new goat keepers are moving away from the practice by encoraging breeders to disbud or breed naturally polled breeds...

 

[cafarmgirl]

I don't attempt to dehorn adult goats, band method or otherwise. At my place if they aren't dehorned as babies they keep their horns as I have yet to see a way to do it that I consider humane.

 

[Haviris]

Just a note, breeding naturally polled goats only gives a 50% chance of polled offspring (that's breeding polled to horned, breeding polled to polled is thought to cause hermorphidites). I do love my polled goats! And prefer to disbud, but banding is the method I use if it wasn't done. NO method is completely painless unfortunately (including disbudding).

 

[resthavenfarms]

I hate horned goats. Mine are always disbudded, of course they are mostly dairy breeds, but I've been known to disbud Boer x's as well.

I've banded horns before, and if they knock them off before they are ready to fall off, they can bleed. It's a much better alternative than "scoop" dehorning or using OB wire to saw them off. Ugh, that's hard to watch and do.

If you do band, make sure to give tetanus shot.

 

[WIChookchick]

I almost came home with a shetland sheep ram lamb that should have been disbudded. They let him be in a petting zoo. He loved people, but his horns
were growing too close to his skull, the breeder/owner had taken a pair of hoof nippers to trim them once. But unless he could be either banded or more nipping..
His horns would have grown into his skull. He was one of many she had to sell at a small animal swap.
I think he went to butcher.. so sad...
I wonder if banding would have worked for him? They were short..