Instructions
Look underneath the tail and the abdomen of your calf. A female calf presents folds of skin surrounding her vaginal opening under the anus and will have a small, undeveloped udder between her legs. The penile sheath of your little bull shows underneath his belly with a tuft of long hair delineating its location. His scrotum hangs between his back legs under his tail.
Check the size and conformation of your calf's head. A bull calf shows his masculinity with a heavy jaw and burly topline. A smaller jaw with a feminine line and more refined look distinguishes your cow calf.
Discern the shape and muscling of your calf's neck and shoulders. Female calves typically possess long, narrow necks, smooth shoulders and an angular body shape. The neck of your bull calf rounds into a heavier, more muscular shoulder. As he ages, the testosterone produced in his body causes a crest to form at the base of his skull on his neck.
Visually determine the size of your calf's pelvis. Cow calves illustrate their breeding capabilities with a wider, heavier pelvis than bull calves.
Compare the overall size of your two calves. Males tend to be born larger and develop musculature more quickly than females because of testosterone. The differences will become more pronounced as your calves age.
How to Tell the Difference Between a Male Calf & a Female Calf
One young calf nursing its mother looks much the same as another when they are out in the field. Both backyard farmers and big-time cattle ranchers need to determine the sex of their newborn calves for the health and safety of their herds. Working with cattle requires that you visually differentiate between male and female calves from a distance and close at hand.