Where do you keep commercial cattle?

Question

I drive by cattle farms on the road, and they're all out in the stockyards chewing their cud. Where do they go when the ranchers bring them inside, though? Are they kept in barns or stables or something? What are those places called, exactly?

Also, what is meant by the word "head"? Does "one head of cattle" just mean "one cow"?

I'm doing research for a screenplay, and any answers would be much appreciated. =)

Answer 1

nesmith is correct.

What kind of screenplay are you doing?

Answer 2

why worry about the right words. if you know anything about anything you know that T.V and moves use wrong words. like India elephants in Africa. Cattle are either beef or milk breeds. You can eat a milk breed but the meat is not of good quality. Cattle come male "bull",Female " cow" or neutered "steer" every one uses the word cow when they mean Steer Beef, the one you eat. If you make money on your heard it is a commercial operation if not it is as hobby. most beef cattle are left out on the range or or in the east,Pasture, some are borough in to a feed area for feeding and then turn back out. to graze, or to eat all the time. some steer are keep up in pens " stock pen" to Finnish, "to fatten up to go to market, the slaughter houses. Milk cow are borough in twice a day to be milked. "milking parlor, feed and then turn back out

milk cow have to have cafes to make milk, called freshen up

there have been both T.V. and moves about disappearing cattle at night or partly cut up.

Answer 3

the term "commercial cattle" is any cross bred beef cattle.

We operate a 400 head commerical cattle operation..... 400 momma cows w/ their calves.

you count heads, not bodies...lol idk why!!

Cows are not kept in barns or stalls UNLESS it is a sickly one or one that is going to be shown in the fair!

They sleep outside. They PREFER this to barns... ours have access to some open sheds and barns, but don't use them. Ours hang out in the pastures grazing .Cows are not the smartest animal.

Good luck w/ your screenplay!

Answer 4

Only dairy cows generally go inside the barn to be milked. The other cows stay outside most of their lives. Some ranchers have sheds for the cows to get under and some don't. Cows just range around and eat outside and if they need anything medical like worming, shots, etc, they are run thru chutes one at a time in a line and given whatever they need. Sometimes you have to dip cattle for ticks or fleas and then they are walked thru chutes and into a huge dipping tank and out the other side one by one.

A head of cattle is one cow. If you have 50 head of cattle, you have 50 cows. Some ranchers differentiate between cows(females), bulls (males) and steers (males without testicles). So they might say they have 100 head of cattle or 50 cows, 49 steers and one bull.

Hope that helps...

Answer 5

Most herds r not housed in a structure.  Most ranchers do provide shelters (kinda like lean 2's) out in the pastures where the cattle graze.  The only herds that I'm aware of that are housed are Diary Cattle. And ur correct head equals a single cow

Good luck on your research!

Answer 6

on the farm in the barn

Answer 7

You have good answers here!

I'd just like to add a note on the "head of cattle" question.

This usage is a result of the lack of a singular form of the word "cattle" in english. There are singular words such as "cow, bull, steer, heiffer, calf, ox" but none that means "one cattle" without specifying its age and or s*x.

Answer 8

Sounds like a feedlot - they just stay in there unitl its time to go to Mc Donalds!

Answer 9

in your television, like an aquarium

Answer 10

It sounds like what you are seeing is commercial feed lots.  They stay in the feed lots the whole time.  The feed trough is covered with a long narrow roof to protect the feed from the elements and give the cattle some protection as well.

Most commercial cattle operations consist of a cow-calf program.  They are usually kept on pasture.  It is not necessary to bring them to the barn each night because they are not milked every day like the dairy cattle.  Most farmers have barns or sheds that the commercial cattle can use to get out of the weather when they wish to.  The calves from the cow-calf operations are usually  sold to the feed lot operators except for a few heifers which are kept to go into the cow herd.  As to what is called a "head" you are right in that it is one cow.  If a farmer says that he had 100 head of cattle, he means he has 100 cattle.  In a commercial cow herd the calves are not counted as a head.  100 head of cattle in a cow calf operation may mean 100 cattle and 80 or so calves.

The farmer would say that he has 100 head of cattle and 83 calves.