Getting steer to eat!

[txshowmom]

I stopped reading all the post so I don't know what everybody else said but this is what you need to do.
1st- STOP feeding him beet puld, its just a filler and has no nutricianal value.
2nd- Get him on showbloom or some type of probiotics. The Showbloom has brewers yeast and probiotics in it and it WILLL get him eating more.
3rd- Give him a flake of hay everyday. It will help keep him rumen going
4th- Buy some cracked or steam rolled corn and put about 3-4 pounds in the biggest pot you have and fill the pot with water. Put it on the stove covered and cook it till it boils. You may need to add more water. Then once it starts to boil turn off the heat and let it sit overnight. Mix it in his feed the next day. I am assuming that you are feeding him 2 times per day?? I hope you are. If you are not then you need to start ASAP. Hope this helps.

 

[kensfarm]

Give him free choice hay.. is the steer by himself.. if there you had 3 or 4 together.. the competition will make them eat more. I have nine that are eating 200lbs and 2 square bales a day. Add some high protein soymeal to the sweet feed.. what kind of minerals/salt does he have access too? As Txshowmom said.. I feed twice a day.

 

[Arnold Ziffle]

Don't let your boy or girl (or yourself) get too discouraged, and bear in mind that (at least IMHO) you are never going to be able to get a Charolais X Brahman calf to finish like the English calves you see at the barn. Maybe next time around get a nice roan Shorthorn calf if there are any to be had in Florida. And don't lose sight of the real reason you have your son or daughter raising the calf.

 

[4-Her Mom]

Don't let your boy or girl (or yourself) get too discouraged, and bear in mind that (at least IMHO) you are never going to be able to get a Charolais X Brahman calf to finish like the English calves you see at the barn. Maybe next time around get a nice roan Shorthorn calf if there are any to be had in Florida. And don't lose sight of the real reason you have your son or daughter raising the calf.

Okay, thanks....yes she feeds twice a day. She's not discouraged, she doesn't know any better....it's Mr. Resident Expert that is shaking his head. We are trying to prove that we are doing everything we can, it's not us, but the calf. Also, the calf was given to daughter, so we didn't pick him personally, but accepted the gift joyfully! Want to do the best job possible as a thank you to the fella you gave the steer to her. He's also lined up a buyer.....so we want him to get value for dollar and give him the best quality meat we can. We aren't interested in ribbons and money, just being responsible with this gift given us. Don't want anyone to regret their generosity toward us. That's where we stand....that's our reason along with what we are learning about the steer.
Thanks for your attitude check, though!

 

[Texan]

....so we want him to get value for dollar and give him the best quality meat we can. We aren't interested in ribbons and money, just being responsible with this gift given us. ....that's our reason along with what we are learning about the steer.

That's a great attitude, 4-Her Mom! Excellent goals and motivation for all the right reasons. Along with teaching responsibility and learning a little about cattle. I always thought that was what junior shows were all about. Not the winning no matter what it takes "principle." Wish your attitude were more prevalent. You sound like a real winner!

 

[4-Her Mom]

....so we want him to get value for dollar and give him the best quality meat we can. We aren't interested in ribbons and money, just being responsible with this gift given us. ....that's our reason along with what we are learning about the steer.

That's a great attitude, 4-Her Mom! Excellent goals and motivation for all the right reasons. Along with teaching responsibility and learning a little about cattle. I always thought that was what junior shows were all about. Not the winning no matter what it takes "principle." Wish your attitude were more prevalent. You sound like a real winner!

Thank you.....I cringe at these shows,too. My dear friend becomes very competitive this time of year and I have to keep my distance to preserve the friendship.

 

[4-Her Mom]

I thank everyone for their suggestions, advice and comments. We are bugging out before this hurricane gets here....we are right in the path of the eye.......your prayers for all of us in the sights of this storm are appreciated.

 

[PLR]

NEVER FEED A COW BACON GREASE OR HAMBURGER FAT!!!!! EVER!!! THIS IS HOW BSE CAME ABOUT! COWS ARE VEGITARIANS NOT CARNIVORES. NOT ONLY CAN HIS SYSTEM NOT DIGEST IT BUT IT COULD CREATE A NEW DISEASE. IF YOU NEED MORE FAT IN HIS DIET ADD SMALL QUANTITIES OF CALF MILK REPLACER TO HIS DIET.(mix it with molasses water and mix on his grain). Not to mention most fairs and shows make you sign a waiver that says "I certifiy that I have not fed this animal products prohibited in ruminent feeds". This Includes OTHER COWS!!

PLEASE DON'T FEED BEEF TO COWS... WE DON'T NEED ANOTHER DISEASE LIKE BSE.

Thanks,

Shelby

 

[Texan]

NEVER FEED A COW BACON GREASE OR HAMBURGER FAT!!!!! EVER!!! THIS IS HOW BSE CAME ABOUT!

FALSE! Bacon grease contains no ruminant derived material, at all! Hamburger fat wouldn't contain the prions that are believed to cause BSE! Probably a reasonable idea not to feed it. No argument from me there. But, we should try to spread factual information about issues critical to our business. Don't see a need for the scare tactics!

 

[Campground Cattle]

NEVER FEED A COW BACON GREASE OR HAMBURGER FAT!!!!! EVER!!! THIS IS HOW BSE CAME ABOUT!

FALSE! Bacon grease contains no ruminant derived material, at all! Hamburger fat wouldn't contain the prions that are believed to cause BSE! Probably a reasonable idea not to feed it. No argument from me there. But, we should try to spread factual information about issues critical to our business. Don't see a need for the scare tactics!

As usual Texan you are correct again.

BSE is a disease of the central nerverous system of Bovine, early stages can have Rabies like symptoms.

This was taken from the disease board

Bovine Spongioform Encephalopathy (also known as BSE or "mad cow disease") is a progressive degenerative disease that affects to central nervous system of cattle. It belongs to a group of similar but distinct neurological diseases including Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease (CJD) in humans. The cause of BSE is unknown and there is no known treatment for this fatal disease.

Typically, it takes from two to eight years from the time of infection for the clinical signs of BSE to appear. BSE-affected animals may display symptoms such as nervousness or aggressive behavior, abnormal posture, lack of coordination and difficulty in rising. When first noticed, clinical signs may resemble those of rabies. Rabies progresses rapidly over a few days while the symptoms of BSE progress over a period of two to six months. Following the onset of clinical signs, the animal's condition deteriorates until it either dies or is destroyed.

Great Britain's outbreak is believed to have been caused by the inadvertent feeding to cattle of meat and bone meal supplements that were contaminated with an infectious agent. This occurred in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Once cattle became infected, the BSE agent was recycled in the cattle food chain through the feeding of rendered material from slaughtered animals to other cattle. This increased the magnitude of the epidemic. Great Britain banned the feeding of ruminant derived protein (from sheep and cattle) to ruminants in 1988. the use of potentially contaminated bovine tissue was prohibited in the manufacture of all animal feed. this ban has had an effect, as the number of BSE cases has declined since the winter of 1992-93.

 

[cowgirl580]

I vaguely remember 4-H and all the probs with feeding steers. My first steer weighed in at just over a 1000 lbs. I fed him 2 times a day, Purina show mix the starter and then the finisher about a month or month and a half before the fair. The watering him down helps his feeding. if you wash him and comb him out then feed him he is more likely to eat. i also walked my steer everyday for about half an hour. made us both work up an appetite. if you get to fair and he doesn't drink the water, put some gatorade in it. the electrolytes help him adjust to the different water types. hope your daughter does well. and if she decides to do a steer next yr i recommend an angus x. that's my personal opinion. everyone likes something different.

 

[RockenG]

I want to know the outcome,and did anything help?

 

[4-Her Mom]

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions. Some we took very seriously and tried and some, well.....thanks, anyway!
Basically, my daughter did everything that was put in front of her. She fed twice a day, walked, my husband made a misting sprinkler so she could keep the steer cool. She hosed him down every day and brushed him. Did everything possible. We fed inexpensive feed to expensive feed, cracked corn, calf manna, beet pulp, Fast Trac, and even did B-12 injections every other day. You name it, we did it....EXCEPT making him "home-cooked" meals. On June 5, he weighed 901lbs, on November 7th he weighed 1107! That sorry joker would not eat and we are pretty sure it was our hurricane weather. We were not the only ones at the fair with this problem. Most of the livestock was on the light side this year. I understand the whole "Angus Supreme" thing going on out there, but the nice old gentlemen from church GAVE her the steer for free and who were we to say that we want only angus or limosin?
The job in front of our daughter was to take this beautiful gift charolais and do the best possible job. That's what she did! No plans to show next year unless it's a hog. Almost didn't get into the fair because of the "Angus Supreme" attitude running there, they tried like crazy to disqualify her, but he came in with the minimum amount of finish required to enter. He graded out just enough. So then they tried some foolishness about his teeth swearing that this 19 month old steer was 27 months old and they can't be more than 26 to get in the fair. Anyway, we were able to prove age and they had to let her in. They didn't like it and didn't make it easy for her. However, she made the best of a bad situation. Showed that steer to the best of her ability. We knew he didn't have the finish on him he needed, but the judge liked his frame and his only complaint was that he could've used another 300 pounds. We sure would've liked that, too! The grand champion steer that night brought $3.00/lb at auction......so did our daughter's steer! Woo hoo......go charolais!
Just so you know, I don't care what kind of cattle you raise.....the point of the junior show (fair) is to teach the kids something........what did my daughter come away with? Basically, we were stinking disappointed, not in her or the steer, but the "adults" who mess things up with their stupid preconceived notions about what the best is. The best is not a particular breed, but what the kid did with what he/she was given. I saw angus and limosin and simentals that the students did the least they had to to get to the fair.....a sorry job on any animal is sorry period.
Again, thanks for your input over the summer. Most of it was very helpful and some of you used my questions as time to air your opinions that had nothing to do with what I was asking....no need to add anything further, I'm out of here and don't plan to even look at this website again.
Hot dog the fair is over! Goodbye, Mr. Steer!