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HOT BRANDING HORSES VERSUS
COLD BRANDING
We all
know what horses and cattle go through getting branded with
an iron heated to a high temperature with an open flame.
Yup, it hurts like hell and horses especially fight the
pain. Many people incorrectly apply to much pressure
while branding with a hot iron or sometimes not enough
pressure. Or for to long or sometimes for not long
enough. All these things result in a messy hard to read
scarred brand or one that fades out.
Cold branding
on the other hand is a fairly simple technique that causes a
great deal less pain and results in an easier to read brand
in the long run. In cold branding, (FREEZE BRANDING),
the branding iron is fully chilled in a container of Liquid
Nitrogen. You know it is ready to apply when the
bubbles stop coming from the Liquid Nitrogen. It is a
fussier process than hot branding because the area to be
branded has to be clipped and given a liberal coat of
Alcohol. Current literature suggests Rubbing Alcohol,
but Methyl Hydrate is cheaper and appears to work just as
well. Taking care to remove all the hair by clipping
and using plenty of Alcohol or Methyl Hydrate are the
two most important steps.
When the cold
iron is applied to the skin, it sticks securely. In
about a minute the iron warms up enough to lose its
adhesion. At first it looks like the brand has
failed but in six to eight weeks the results are clearly
visible. A paper thin layer of skin where the brand
touched will fall off and the hair follicles are destroyed.
The hair grows back in white. If the original hair
coat was white, then it grows back in darker so white
animals can easily be done also.
Less pain to
the animal and often a far easier to read brand.
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