Keeping my steer on feed

I have a 550lb crossbred steer which is eating 8lbs of corn and oats per day.  He eats 4lbs in the morning and 4lbs in the evening . He also gets one flake of hay when I turn him out at night.  He will not increase his feed intake at all.  When I turn him out he will go straight for that flake of hay even though he left 2 lbs of feed in his feed pan.  Can anyone give me some advice to make my steer more agressive at the feed bunk?  Any help will be appreciated.

Is there any molasses or oil in his feed? It can make it more palatable for sure.  Also, maybe his belly gets upset by grain, I'd give him a probiotic and maybe put a little yeast in his feed.

If I were you I'd try and go to a CO-OP and get a good calf grower mixture. We have many more ingredients in ours than corn and oats. We have soybeans, cotton seed hulls, calf manna, calf grower, molasses, and I'm not sure what else my husband throws in there. The rule of thumb we operate off of to get calves to grow they should be eating 2% of their weight per day.

The feed has wet molasses, cracked corn, and whole oats.  When I tie him up to feed him he will not eat until I leave the barn .  I have gave him medication for a possible cold two weeks ago. He seems to be okay.  When he moves it is in slow motion and he never holds his head up. At this rate he will never see 1000 lbs.

I would get a temp on him to make sure he is not running a fever, if all is OK there I would try different feed brands to see if he just doesent like the feed. I have had feed come through that had oil that was bad, changed lot numbers all was good.
Just start him out with a couple pounds of the new feed, you will know if he likes it or not.
If you have other calves feed him with one, some times the competition for feed does wonders for their appetite.
Good luck.

I'd make sure he isn't sick because that's what he sounds like..  a sick calf.   

Water..  does he have access to as much good clean water as he wants?  Are your feed pans clean? 

Is he alone?  Does he need a feeding buddy?  We weaned a calf this summer who wouldn't eat grain until we put her with another calf.  Now she eats what is put down before her - alone or not. 

One of you suggested that I check his temperature.  His temperature is 104.  I called the Vet, he will be here tomorrow.  I'd like to thank everyone for their advice.

Blood in the stool ?
Excessive hacking ?
Always easier to stay ahead of problems than try to play catch up.

Sure wouldn't hurt to treat him for coccidiosis.  It affects a lot more cattle than people realize.  Also, is he always tied up when you feed him?  You may want to try feeding him loose in his pen.  Also sounds like a ration adjustment after he gets  <cowboy> <cowboy> may be a good idea.

Good Luck!
<cowboy>

Well your fever could be a big problem, along with him not liking his feed, but how much excerise does he get? Do you leave him tied up all day and then just turn him out? I would walk him AT LEAST 15 minutes, I normally walk mine for 30 minutes while working with the show stick.

The first thing we do when a calf is acting sluggish, off feed, basically just looking off, is take the temperature. If they are running a fever even a low grade fever, you know you are working with something beyond appetite.
You did the right thing by calling the vet.
There are tons of things that can cause a fever, and a different treatment for each one to cure it.
My only suggestion is in the future don't wait so long, before reacting, cattle projects are expensive and it is to risky to just wait and see if they get better.
Good luck and I hope it is something simple.