2015 4-H Steer

[KNERSIE]

Had one person tell me to not feed him so much but I will listen to both you Knersie and VCC.
Daughter says he is leaving a few crumbs in the feed pan. She feeds him both morning and night. Have a good stemy grass hay for him.
Will get the protein content off the feed bag and bucket.
He is looking much better.

That's the whole point, you don't want good hay, the less pallatible teh better, the stemmier the better, all you need it for is the scratching of the rumen.

Feeding less than the maximum he can finish in a day will eventually get you there as well, but it will take much much longer and in the end you'll end up feeeding more bought food than you would have by feeding him to get it done.

 

[VCC]

You will need to increase it slowly, add a half pound to a pound a feed of feed per feeding every 4 or 5 days. If you went straight to free feed you could run into problems, if she has the time you could feed 3 times a day, 6, 12 and 6 you can get them to eat a little more this way, since they are getting less per feeding, they tend to clean it up better.

 

[KNERSIE]

You will need to increase it slowly, add a half pound to a pound a feed of feed per feeding every 4 or 5 days. If you went straight to free feed you could run into problems, if she has the time you could feed 3 times a day, 6, 12 and 6 you can get them to eat a little more this way, since they are getting less per feeding, they tend to clean it up better.

The steer is already on that a hottish ration, there shouldn't be any problems as long as he has something to nibble on during the day.

 

[I luv herfrds]

The show feed is 32% protein and the other is 14% protein. He is getting 1 pound of the show feed and 4 oz. of the extra feed on top of the 3 way feed.

Getting high temps here now so daughter has been told to rinse him off 2-3 times a day to help keep him cool.

 

[VCC]

When rinsing you want to get a chill to him, so you want to rinse for at least 15 minutes with cool (cold if you have it) and then blow him out and get him in the shade with fans if you have them. The theory is if you put him away wet, the body heat will heat the water on him and they are actually hotter when left wet then when dry. If he is stalled with a fan blowing on him you can put him with a little moisture on him the fans will cause it to evaporate and cool him some.

The rinsing helps but the combing and brushing is what will stimulate the hair to grow. I would rinse him and then take a rice root brush to him while wet, with the fan blowing on him from behind to head, and brush him forward at a 45* until he starts to dry, then blow the hair at the same angle. If he has wild spots where the hair wants to go its own way, when he is wet is the time to start getting it to go the right way. Brush everything forward, then go back to the spots that do not want to cooperate, and brush down then up, sometimes down and back then up at the 45. It takes a while to get them worked out but if you work at them you can get it trained. The old story goes "When using the rice root brush, use your right hand on the left side and brush until your arm feels like it is going to fall off, now go to right side of the animal and use your left hand until your arm feels like it is going to fall off, now start over".

If you can get the hair to go the right direction and get it trained, it will definitely help give him a younger fresh appearance. Calves with trained hair even if they don't have a lot of it will have a softer, youthful look to them.

Just curious, have you figured out your protein and fat percentages with your feed and additives, he should be getting about 14% protein and 4.5% fat. I really like what the Stabilized Rice Bran does for their cover, as well as the hair, you get your hands on one finished with the SRB and the finish is smooth and even over the ribs.

I think if you can get your calf finished, some belly to him, and get the hair trained he will look the part.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Hot as Hades! Coolest we have been lately; below 100.

He has been getting rinsed twice a day. Daughter makes sure the water is cold before she starts spraying him. Makes sure the empty lick tub she is using has water in it also.

Have 6 bags of finisher on order, just waiting for it to come in.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Picked up the finisher yesterday. Started adding a small amount into his current feed to get him used to it. Then going to start weaning him off the 3 way and just have him on the finisher and power fuel alone.
He sure jumped into eating it last night.

 

[Chris H]

What is his weight now and how many pounds of feed is he eating a day?

 

[I luv herfrds]

Wish I knew his weight Chris. Going to meet our friends on Sunday and see if we can use the scales at the fair grounds. Need to call the brand inspector; he has the keys.

Daughter took our calf scale up there and he is getting 30#'s a day in feed. He was leaving a little bit while it was so hot but now that it has cooled off he is licking his feed bunk clean. Told her to bump it up a bit while it is so cool but to be ready for him to start leaving more once it heats up again.
Still has free choice grass hay.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Went to my friends house to help their son with his steer and what I was told made my blood boil!!!!

Turns out that when their son was deciding on doing market beef last fall only 2 4-H kids would talk to him about it. My daughter and another young lady.
They have one neighbor girl who has come over and told him his steer looks terrible and that he shouldn't show him. That steer is almost finished and looks awesome!!! This girl is in horse and NOT beef.
They have asked members of their club for information and help on this steer but no one has helped them except us. I have been passing along the same info that I have been given here to them.
VCC they are picking up a rice brush to work with his hair. Washed the steer yesterday and since they have no power at their new house we just took turns brushing him dry with the rice brush.

They had other breeders tell them last fall to come to them and they would sell him a steer. But when they contacted the breeders they were told that they had to feed them a certain way and only that way. These people do not have a lot of money!
So when we offered their son our deal he took it.

It was great watching my daughter show this young man where to clip the steer and why. Since we spent the day at their place instead of the fair grounds we did not weigh the steer. Much better to be surrounded by trees and cool then roasting at a barren fair grounds with no shade!
Guessing the steer was over 1100. Needs a little filling out behind his shoulder but he looks awesome!

 

[VCC]

Never quite understood how people can be so petty. We would help every kid in our club, if they beat you because of it, then your advice or direction must have been solid. As long as a kid was willing to listen and follow through on the advice, it made me feel good about helping them.
There was a family in our club who would win or at least make the final drive every year, is if you asked them for advice they would readily give it, did not matter to them, most kids would not put in the time they did with their animals, the kids who took the advice to heart would see the results at the fair, the ones that did not did not do as well.

It is for the kids and about the kids, winning should come second. Helping a kid learn and raise an animal that they are proud of, is reward enough. You are helping and he is learning and enjoying his project, well done.

 

[I luv herfrds]

This young man wanted to pay my daughter for helping him but we both refused. Told him we were glad to do it and she told him she had fun showing him and enjoyed visiting with him.

He was having trouble leading his steer. So we watched him and daughter saw what was wrong right away. He was trying to have the steer start walking before he even moved. So she showed him how to do it. He was getting the hang of it. Told him to just keep practicing and he will do fine.

Had a chat with my daughter and she was not happy with no one helping him. She was asking why. Told her if I had an answer I would tell her. Loved her response. "We are here to learn about raising animals not trying to win trophies."
Told her the place to win is the rail.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Steer is looking great! Only spot on him not filling out is behind his shoulders but other then there he is doing well.
Weight in is August 12th.

He was leaving some feed behind for awhile then he got to licking his bunk clean. He was getting 15# twice a day bumped him up though. He is getting around 35# for the whole day. Still eating everything even with a bunk full of grass hay.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Leaving on Wednesday for the fair. Going to be a long week!

 

[VCC]

Good luck to your daughter.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

Let us know how it goes. Post pictures.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Fair is done. Sinister weight was 1125 so not too bad. Judge said he could have weighed more and he would been great and in the call back round. He was a head of a couple other steers and the steer we sold to our friends son beat him in market! :clap:
Daughter had fun even though he did knock her down after the show. She was leading him into the barn and he got happy and she hit the ground and had the wind knocked out of her and scratched up her arm.
Bred heifer was disqualified due to not being 100percent sure she was bred by ultrasound. But she was put in the beef breeding class. Judge really liked her frame and everything but like we all know they like them fat. She had only been out of the pasture for a week.
It all went well even though had one person try to start some crap about my daughter but it got nipped in the butt by the beef barn head and a few others. It was the guy who is always a jerk. I was asked to stay away from him because they knew it would get ugly. Too bad I was so ready to tell him wha I really think of him.
Was so hot on Wednesday had to run home and get our livestock fan for the heifers then realized we didn't have a stand for it. One of my co-workers had to go to town and picked one up. A couple of girls had their pig whips broken so she picked those up too.
I will try to post some pictures either tonight or tomorrow. I am at the coffee shop on my lunch break.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

Sounds like it was a busy time at the fair! I bet your daughter and her animals do even better next year. Sounds like this year was a good opportunity for learning and having a good time while doing it.

I bet it felt nice, being the "breeder" of the steer that placed well.

Pictures!

 

[VCC]

Sounds like things went well, doing better each year, don't let bad people ruin for you, how did she do in showmanship?
Not sure what your plans are for future as far as a beef project but if your daughter plans to continue showing a beef project you might think about selecting a few of your stouter cleaner necked cows and breed them to a Hereford with a little more show in them. There are several listed on Top Sires and SEK Genetics that would still give you a pure bred Hereford but add a little show to the calves.
Not implying that there is anything wrong with your calves, just that extra little showiness might help move her up in the class.
There are several crossbred bulls that have the look of Hereford and throw show type calves but most also have TH so not worth it if you get heifers.
If you bred a handful of cows, you could keep one and sell a few to the other local kids.
For an August fair you need calves born March early April, you want to get them heavy early before the summer heat hits because they really seem slowdown in the heat. By July first calf should be close to 1200 pounds so they hit the fair at around 1300-1350, that's the problem with fair calves you are not shooting for just a finished calf you're shooting for a finished calf at a certain date.

Glad to hear both claves did well, it is always a good feeling when your cattle do well.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Still learning VCC. She is more interested in the product breeding rather then the showiness of an animal.

Last place in showmanship. I wish she would smile more and look at the Judge, but I cannot tell her that enough to where she will listen to me!