Aggressive 4-H steer

[ranchmom77]

Hi everyone,

I am new here, but not new to cows, and I need some help. My 14 yr old son decided to take a steer for 4-H this year... so we picked out the best one when we weaned last fall and let him alone till around January.
In January we halterbroke him by running him into a chute, getting the halter on, and then tying him up for 6-8 hours a day for 3 or 4 days. After untying him each night, we'd walk him to water and so he came along rather nicely. Jonny, (my son) had been feeding him cake everyday and just spending some quiet time with him as often as he could. The steer will eat out of your hand and isn't afraid in that aspect of things.
Well, then came calving and AI season and the whole steer project got put on the back burner. The steer got moved out of his own personal pen and in with 3 other butcher steers from mid March till late May and wasn't messed with much. Our bad.
We brought him in again in May and he led just fine, but he was bigger this time and he intimidated my son. If the steer didn't like something my son did.. scratched him.. pet him.. etc.. he would put his head down and "threaten". Well that was enough for Jonny and the steer got away with it. Unbeknownst to me that this was going on.. I though they were getting along fine.
Well then comes June and school's out and my son spends 2 weeks away with his grandparents and the steer got put back in with the 3 butcher steers to make way for some sick cows.. (we're short on pens if you couldn't tell.)
Then today.. we went out to get the steer in again. He was acting snorty so I thought it best to run him into the chute again.
I don't know what got into him but he decided he wasn't going. He and I had a stand off with me trying to get him to move by swinging the end of the lead rope at him and that SOB attacked me! He got me pinned up against the gate but my son distracted him enough so I could climb up and out.. ok.. round 1 goes to the steer.
Now before we go any farther you all should know that I am very good with large animals and I train horses for part time income. I always believe the gentle way is the best way for all involved. Gentle does not work with this steer.. if you walk up to him gently he will face you unafraid and ready to fight. The reason I am posting this is because I do not want my son getting hurt with this steer. Seeing as how the steer is not afraid of us and will eat out of our hand is it possible that he has become spoiled and aggressive?
Anyway.. round 2. I got a lariat and ran at him swinging the end so it made a "whishing" noise.. something new to him that he was actually afraid of and he ran into the chute. We got him haltered and tied to the corral post. We let him settle for 10 minutes or so and I slowly tried to approach his shoulder and which point he turned towards me and attacked again. His halter rope stopped him, but I'm just not sure about this animal.
Has anyone else ever had this happen?
I'm thinking that we'll leave him tied for at least a week and walk him to water 2x a day again. We'll also keep touching his body with a stick at a safer distance, but my gut tells me that this guy isn't safe.. Will he come out of it? Any thoughts?
Thanks

 

[M.Magis]

I don't know anything about training cattle, but I know if I were you, I'd now have 4 butcher steers. You and your son are far more important than any cow.

 

[LazyARanch]

I'm sorry, but I'd say he goes back in with the butcher animals and STAYS there! He does NOT have a good disposition and he's going to hurt somebody...

 

[3waycross]

He's gonna hurt someone real bad................eat him!

 

[chippie]

Sorry you all are going through this. Is this your son's first steer project? Cattle are way different from a horse and you can't really treat them the same. We have horses (show 4-H and breed shows plus ranch classes).
Hand feeding and treats do not work with cattle. It can make them worse than a spoiled horse especially feeding by hand. I know this first hand by ruining my first heifer over 35 years ago when I was in my early 20's. She had no respect for me and became dangerous. She was shipped.

One of our daughter's had a bad steer. We knew he was bad when we got him and treated him accordingly. However he was not as bad as yours. He never attacked or actually hurt anyone. He was snorty and would bow up at one. But she used a nose ring when working him and got her licks in on him when he first started acting like he was going to hit with his head. Her main problem is that he would blow up and not stand in the class. She ended up tying him to the fence to show him in her class at the fair. He did make a sale and she made a good profit on him.

Sorry to ramble, but I wouldn't take the risk of him hurting someone. Is it too late to get another steer for the project?

 

[Galloways1]

Sorry to hear this one isn't working out.

I have halterbroke and shown hundreds of steer, heifers and bulls up to 3 yrs of age.

Unfortunately due to him being able to "bluff" your son early on, caused him to get more agressive,. That is part of the learning curve. Don't let him get away with it early on, and you will be fine.

Like what was said before, the butcher is the best place for him, he isn't worth getting hurt over.

 

[Jasmine]

I have done steer every year of 4h and this is my last year so i have gotten comfortable around them even the crazy ones when i see something going wrong i jump in and help...the worse thing to do is give up.... i know you dont want to get hurt or your son but you can not give up one thing that you shouldnt have done was let him in with the others because they reminded him that it is better to be free... but since you did that...what you wanna do is tie him but not short when we got my steers in we tied them with about a four to five foot rope room to move and then he figures out he cant go anywhere...this may take a week dont get too excited and go in there with him! let him be keep feeding by hand through the fence and if you have a spot where he can put his head through like a head squeese use that to feed so when he sticks his head out to eat make sure you or your son sits there while he eats so he is not worried about you being there and knows you are the one who fed them...with a large animals project you should know you just have to take your time! but good luck steers are one of the best animals to show and dont let your son be afraid and give up! i started showing large animals (steers and heifers) when i was 9 and i learned you just have to take control....when you do get to the leading keep his head high and use a halter with a chain so when he tries to get away you yank on it and pull his head up....again good luck

 

[chippie]

I have done steer every year of 4h and this is my last year so i have gotten comfortable around them even the crazy ones when i see something going wrong i jump in and help...the worse thing to do is give up.... i know you dont want to get hurt or your son but you can not give up one thing that you shouldnt have done was let him in with the others because they reminded him that it is better to be free... but since you did that...what you wanna do is tie him but not short when we got my steers in we tied them with about a four to five foot rope room to move and then he figures out he cant go anywhere...this may take a week dont get too excited and go in there with him! let him be keep feeding by hand through the fence and if you have a spot where he can put his head through like a head squeese use that to feed so when he sticks his head out to eat make sure you or your son sits there while he eats so he is not worried about you being there and knows you are the one who fed them...with a large animals project you should know you just have to take your time! but good luck steers are one of the best animals to show and dont let your son be afraid and give up! i started showing large animals (steers and heifers) when i was 9 and i learned you just have to take control....when you do get to the leading keep his head high and use a halter with a chain so when he tries to get away you yank on it and pull his head up....again good luck

Jasmine you are young and apparently have never met a truly dangerous one. As a parent and adult, I believe that having common sense and knowing when it is time to call it quits is more important than risk getting seriously hurt or killed. It is nothing to be ashamed of.

 

[SSGenetics]

That would be the easiest X I'd ever have to draw.... ;-)

 

[Roan]

You also need to consider the other kids in the ring, one nasty steer can cause a lot of trouble for the other kids as well, ex; getting loose, hoping on other steers etc. Not a good idea, keep him home and eat him. Start fresh next year! I have seen other show kids get hurt by someone else's crazy steer and it's not fair to risk other people's kids when you know you/child can't handle your steer!

 

[greatgerts]

I sure hope the OP has logged back on and read these replies. I agree that the steer should stay home and just to to the freezer. I don't know how many times we have cut an animal off of the show string because of attitude problems, and most of those end up going to the sale barn because as a seedstock breeder, I do not want that in my herd or would not want that going to someone else's either.

 

[VCC]

I do not think it is the steers fault, but I do think it is too late to fix the problem. Steer projects require daily work, you can get away with slipping a day here and a day there but not weeks, or months with them, they go back to just being cattle. The calves the steer has been in with, probably push and shove each other around and when they get aggravated they push and shove harder. He is now treating your son just like one of the other steers.
Consistency and a daily routine are key to a successful project. By the second or third month our calves are at the gate when it is time to work them. Like dairy cows at the gate when it is milking time.
I would suggest that if you decide to try again next year that you start early when the calf is small, keep the steer in an area where he has daily contact with your son and your son sets a daily routine with the animal. We run our calves into a small pen and catch and work with them daily, once they are halter broke and are used to getting caught it only take a half hour to an hour a day to keep them that way.
Our Fair is in July we start the calves in October, it is a slow process but if done consistently they are dog gentle by the end, We start by halter breaking them and tying, we work our way to rinsing, brushing, blow drying, and just plain handling the calves. By the end of the first month they are haltered, rinsed, dried, and groomed daily. The rinsing plays a big part in them calming down, even if you do not care about growing hair it really helps settle them down. If you winters are cold and it just doesn't make sense to rinse every day then you still bring them in and groom them, you still need to wash them once a week no matter the weather.
Our shows are haired so the calf is rinsed and groomed 2 to 3 a day from April 1 up to the fair. I think the reason the kids who put in all the work, win in showmanship, besides the calves look good, is they are used to being handled.
Key points in a safe project:
If the calf runs around with his head and his tail up in the air, turns and stands his ground, look at a different calf.
Use rope halters, you actually have more control with a rope halter than the nylon halter with a chain (and the nylon halters break at the chain at the worst times)
Start early and be consistent, if you do not have the time don't start the project
Do not let them get away with attitude early and they won't have one later when their bigger.
I would still say you learned something from this year's project, take what your learned and apply it to next years.

 

[ranchmom77]

Thank you all for your replies.
We went out again the next morning to lead him to water and he attacked again.. only this time it was my husband Brad who had the lead and was armed and ready with a 2x4. They had it out a few times and Brad got him leading without attacking but we decided that there is no way that Jonny is taking this steer to the fair.. not only for his safety but for the safety of the other kids in the ring. The fair is a little under a month away and it's just not going to happen.
It was Jonny's first steer project and I'm happy to say that we all learned something. :clap:
If he decides to try another one in the fall we will be better prepared for the hard, CONSISTENT, work it obviously takes to make it with a steer. We will also teach the calf young that he can't push anyone around BEFORE he turns into a monster.
The steer went back in with the other butcher steers and I'm really hoping that we draw him for our freezer... :lol2:
Thank you again for your replies :wave:

 

[Nite Hawk]

In this case I would say the animal didn't respect humans and was aggressive,
We have had everything from tame bottle calves to range raised calves that were quite wild.
After lots of stress, sweat and prayer,
they can become quite tame, but some you never trust as far as others, even though they enjoy being scratched and brushed and fed.
That all being said they MUST respect you as BOSS, and no nonsense tolerated, and most will at some time "test the waters" to see if they can boss you or not, and it must be "nipped in the bud" immediatley.
Even our milk cow, if she wants to play or push, she get smacked, and told / shown that is NOT allowed, ever. She is simply much larger than us and can potentially hurt somebody without trying even if playing.
I am sure it is a disapointment for Jonny, and hope he has a better year, next year, and hope this experiance hasn't scared him totally off of cattle.
Nite Hawk