4-H calves

[randiliana]

Here are our 2 choices for 4-H calves this year
This one is for our 11 year old son. Out of a blue roan cow and Simm/Angus bull.

This is our 6 year old daughter's choice. She is really quiet, which was a big thing for a first calf. She is purebred Shorthorn.

 

[Angus Cattle Girl]

The first one is the better of the two.

The first seems to have a bullish head and short neck. He has quite a bit of hair.

I would like the second to have more muscling in the hindquarter. I don't think that one will hold a lot of hair.

They look nice overall. Good luck with them.

 

[Keren]

They look like good honest calves. The steer certainly looks like he has potential. He would do well here, but he's not a 'pretty' as a lot of the calves I see posted here. Although, a good clip around the head and neck can fix a lot of that.

Will the heifer be shown in breeding stock classes, or in steer classes? She looks like a good honest heifer, nothing flash but certainly not an animal you would be ashamed of. I'm glad she is quiet I know how important that is for the first time round.

I hope your kids both have a great time in the coming show season. Keep us updated.

 

[randiliana]

Well, I finally have a moment to reply. Thank you both for your comments. This is our second year in 4-H so we are still learning.

The steer was mostly picked because of his color, not because we wanted a colored show calf, but because he would be seriously docked at the sale barn. Now, having said that, I think he is a fairly good individual. He has a decent hip, and he carries the muscle down fairly well. He does have a lot of hair, and from what I understand he isn't as clean in the front as the judges would like. I believe he is a better steer than the one our son had last year. And, he is also quiet, and that is a very important part of it for us, as it makes the game a lot more fun for the kid that has to hold the end of the lead ;-)

The heifer is for our daughter to use this year. We gave her a choice of 2 heifers, both being quiet, this one is my purebred(not registered) shorthorn and the other is a double muscled one, that would have made a darn good steer. Anyways, we left the decision as to which she wanted up to her. This one kinda took the decision away, when she allowed Jordan to pet her right off the bat (she isn't tamed at all). The other never had a chance ;-) . Anyways, this one will be going in the breeder classes. She is a 1/2 sister (same dam) as the 4-H steer we had last year. I expect her to make a good cow, and from what I saw of the competition last year we should have a decent go at it with this heifer. I agree she could use a little more hip, but overall she is a good heifer. She should have a fair amount of hair to her in the summer as she is full Shorthorn, and her mama doesn't shed slick.