Steer Planet - Show Steers and Club Calves Forum

Putting a calf in a cooler alone will not grow the hair quickly.  It has to be part of a process......rinsing morning and night; rice brush, rice brush, rice brush, rice brush, rice brush; keeping the calf out of the sun and in the dark.  30 days in simply a cooler won't do a lot for you.  It takes time and work.

If the calf is shed out and you rinse 3 times a day, work the hair each time, and use Shag or something like it. You need to work the hair and when you think you are done do it some more, you need to rinse with cold water for at least 15 minutes and if you all of this, you will have better hair than you have right now, I can guarantee it.

Obie105; yes if you do all that work on the hair and they just put the calf in a cooler, you will have batter hair, but if you do all that and they do the same and have the calf in cooler ,they will have better hair than you (genetics allowing).
I was looking at a calf bound for our county fair just yesterday, he has been in the cooler for 90+ days, he is rinsed, left wet for 30 -60 minutes with the fans blowing on him before they blow him dry, he does this twice a day and then works the hair for another 30 minutes prior to kicking out (after dark). They rinse in the cool box, the calf has winter time thick hair that is at least 2-3 inches long. I know this is all new hair because the last time I had looked at the calf was over 3 months ago when he was slicked out 2 weeks prior to going in the cooler. He has a steer that is bound for state who does not have the same hair, but he did not have the same hair as a calf either. That is where the genetics part kicks in.
The boy is up at 5:30 every morning to start the process and kicks out after 9 to end the process and along with the 2 steers he has 2 hogs he is raising for county fair that he works between rinsing and blowing out the calves. (He can not wait to go to college so he can rest next year )

90-120 days

There is NO substitute to rinsing, blowing and combing your show steers/heifers multiple times daily. The cooler is another valuable tool that I like but it is just another tool as you still need to rinse, blow and comb your animals. I like coolers cause I do the same as what VC said, I rinse them and blow them and then will rinse them again and put them in front of a fan in a cooler that blows the cold air on them, if you do all this you should not have any problem with hair quality. I don't know the days it takes to get a good hair coat back as our show animals and sale animals are treated this way from being worked with as a calf.

I am no way against a cooler room....it is a very useful and helpful part of the whole regimen. It might be a little more work to maintain but it is VERY helpful and will take your hair to another level....as long as you make it only part of what you do.  Don't rely on it.