Problems getting a heifer to walk

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TXSimmy

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 14, 2010
Messages
160
Location
Redwater, TX
We have had this heifer now for 3 months and it seems she is getting worse everytime we take her to show, she will not walk. She did okay in the beginning but now its like my son has to drag her around the ring and it just isn't getting any better. She will walk fine when following our other show heifer but when she has to go in for her class she just stops and will not move. We have tried everything we know of but nothing seems to work on her. I know she will walk when she wants to because she will walk fine when she is done drinking back to the pen, and like I said when she is following the other heifer. She is now 9 months old and getting bigger every day so the constant trying to push her to get her going is getting harder and harder. If she wasn't so good I would just cut my losses and get rid of her but in 5 shows she has been grand 3 times, reserve once and overall supreme once. Any advice on how to get her walking will be appreciated.  We have not tried putting her on a donkey yet, do you think this would help matters any?
 

vc

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 24, 2007
Messages
1,811
Location
So-Cal
Are the two show heifers penned together, we had a steer that would not lead when his buddy was not around, we had to separate them. Took a little while to wean them from each other but it worked for us.
 

paj315

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 15, 2012
Messages
199
Location
Central Indiana
We had a similar problem with my sons heifer. We tried everything she would do ok following another calf or even being followed but when you got her by herself she would not walk and you cant just tail them everywhere. We tried giving her some medication to take the edge off and loosen her up and that just made it worse. Finally we put the grader blade on the tractor and tied her to it and pulled her around while my son walked beside her and she finally gave in. In the 10 years I showed and the 10 years my brother showed we never had to do that. She wasn't wild or crazy she just would not walk
 

TXSimmy

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 14, 2010
Messages
160
Location
Redwater, TX
Have her separated from the other heifer now, and making her walk to water, hopefully with time she will work her way out of it. Thanks for all the replies. Any other ways that people have keep shooting ideas, thanks!
 

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