Get Cow Production History Card

Various numbering systems have been developed for use with cattle. The numbering system must provide unique and positive identification for each animal in the herd. Several common systems in use will be discussed. This system utilizes a three- or four-digit number for each animal.

Cow: A cow is a female bovine who has given birth to a calf. Heifer: A heifer is a female bovine who has not given birth to a calf. Steer: A steer is a male bovine who cannot reproduce. (He's been snipped.)

An adult female that has had a calf (or two, depending on regional usage) is a cow. A young female before she has had a calf of her own and is under three years of age is called a heifer.

Heifers are mature female cattle that have not given birth to any calves (baby cows). The term cow specifically refers to adult female cattle that have had calves at some point in their lives.

Adult females are referred to as cows and adult males are referred to as bulls. Cattle are commonly raised as livestock for meat (beef or veal, see beef cattle), for milk (see dairy cattle), and for hides, which are used to make leather.

If you are going to record information about individual animals, you need to be able to identify each animal in the herd over a number of years. The easiest way to achieve this at present is to use National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) electronic devices (ear tags / rumen bolus), or plastic ear tags.

baby cow is called a calf. A female calf is sometimes called a heifer calf and a male a bull calf. A heifer is a female that has not had any offspring. The term usually refers to immature females; after giving birth to her first calf, however, a heifer becomes…

Cows were first domesticated between 8,000 and 10,000 years ago from the aurochs (B. taurus primigenius), a wild species of cattle that once ranged across Eurasia. The wild aurochs became extinct in the early 1600s, the result of overhunting and loss of habitat due to the spread of agriculture (and domestic herds).