Holding one early

[pjkjr4]

We have a steer that since we got him, we've had him on a high fat ration to stunt him because he's a bit framy. I think we are to the point now where he will start putting on fat and not grow taller. Right now he is about 50-50 1/2" hip height, and weighs 1050#. We are somewhere in the neighborhood of 150-180 days until market show. I don't have a problem with him being 1430-1450#, as we have a 5% weighback, so I'd be able to write him in at 1360-1370#. He's been gaining consistently 2.5-2.8 pounds per day throuought the summer. I'd like to keep laying the fat to him for the next 60 days or so, but I'd also like to slow him down to about 1 pound per day of gain this fall. The ration he is on is a 12% protein and 5% fat, with 6 oz of Essential Soft Silk liquid fat per day. I am also feeding about 1 pound of Essential Expando per day, as well as free choice bluestem hay. Feed intake is about 25# per day. My question is, could I cut the actual feed back, and replace with more Expando, or beet pulp, and still topdress with the liquid fat? I'm of the opinion that I don't care what he looks like this fall, but would like to push him throughout the winter, into the early spring. Any and all ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

[chambero]

From the way we've done it in the past, you've got the right plan.  Best thing you can do for one like this - drag him to shows pretty regularly.  Seriously, that'll slow one down by itself.

 

[rackranch]

Yea!! set me back about 30 pounds on a steer this weekend..Gonna slick'em this afternoon... hotter than heck!!

quote author=chambero link=topic=21809.msg219792#msg219792 date=1284392345]
From the way we've done it in the past, you've got the right plan.  Best thing you can do for one like this - drag him to shows pretty regularly.  Seriously, that'll slow one down by itself.[/quote]

 

[pjkjr4]

I would love to drag him a bunch, but with work schedules, school schedules, blah, blah, blah, we won't have much of a chance to get him out much until around the middle of Dec.

Yea!! set me back about 30 pounds on a steer this weekend..Gonna slick'em this afternoon... hotter than heck!!

quote author=chambero link=topic=21809.msg219792#msg219792 date=1284392345]
From the way we've done it in the past, you've got the right plan.  Best thing you can do for one like this - drag him to shows pretty regularly.  Seriously, that'll slow one down by itself.

[/quote]

 

[chambero]

Unfortunately, we are in the same boat as far as time to actually show the  lil devils we spend so much time taking care of!

 

[pjkjr4]

Without looking at the steer, what should my ration look like, and how much please.

 

[rackranch]

I'm trying to get some info on a purina feed called Full Control .. I have a couple of contacts made and I'll let you know what they say...

Without looking at the steer, what should my ration look like, and how much please.

 

[pjkjr4]

Thank you.

 

[AAOK]

From the way we've done it in the past, you've got the right plan.  Best thing you can do for one like this - drag him to shows pretty regularly.  Seriously, that'll slow one down by itself.

Just cut everything back at the same ratio, then you're not changing his feed.  Remember, stay consistant.  Have you heard that Jack Ward is coming back again to Judge the 2011 OYE Steer Show?

 

[chambero]

Without looking at the steer, what should my ration look like, and how much please.

This was years ago, but we fed the Champion Maine Steer at Houston in 93 (first year of them being slick).  He was supposedly a May calf, but he was a heavy dude. I think he was around 53 inches tall when done, so not just a ton bigger framed than now. 

His diet from June on consisted of 3 scoops of finisher and 1 scoop of beet pulp.  We never did any other holding except for right at show time.

 

[pjkjr4]

From the way we've done it in the past, you've got the right plan.  Best thing you can do for one like this - drag him to shows pretty regularly.  Seriously, that'll slow one down by itself.

Just cut everything back at the same ratio, then you're not changing his feed.  Remember, stay consistant.  Have you heard that Jack Ward is coming back again to Judge the 2011 OYE Steer Show?

Yes, I had heard that, I just get leary of holding one late, and having him look stale. We showed at our county fair last week, and he didn't eat very well at all, so I thought I would keep him with the same amount of feed as what he was getting then. If he can consistently gain 2.5 when the weather is 100 degrees, I'm scared to think what he could gain now that he's a yearling when the temperature is 85!

 

[pjkjr4]

bump...Any more ideas?

 

[DLD]

Sounds like you've got a pretty good plan to me - we haven't fed one that needed much holding in a long time so I don't have much recent experience to share.  In the old days we'd have just turned 'em out on grass for awhile, but I'd be scared to do it now 'cause you just can't afford to get behind the game anymore.  I still believe you need to get 'em covered early enough to allow for playing with their weight a little in the end - you can do alot with careful filling and that 5% weigh back.

Dan, Ward has been asked to come back next year, but has not officially accepted yet (or at least hadn't as of last week).  Of course that also means that he hasn't turned it down, and there's a very good chance he will do it, but it's not an absolutely done deal just yet.

 

[rackranch]

How big was your scoop??

Without looking at the steer, what should my ration look like, and how much please.

This was years ago, but we fed the Champion Maine Steer at Houston in 93 (first year of them being slick).  He was supposedly a May calf, but he was a heavy dude. I think he was around 53 inches tall when done, so not just a ton bigger framed than now. 

His diet from June on consisted of 3 scoops of finisher and 1 scoop of beet pulp.   We never did any other holding except for right at show time.

 

[chambero]

We used (and still do) the squarer-type plastic scoop you find almost everywhere.  Weight depends on the kind of feed, but generally they hold around 3 lbs of finisher. 

It's kind of funny now, but I wasn't taught to ever weigh feed by the guys that taught me about cattle.  I guess they inherently kind of knew in the back of their mind, but we judged on how much a calf would eat, how they looked, and how they gained.  He's well up in his 70s now, but he just "knew" what to do (and still does). 

I'll weigh my different kinds of feed now and am surprised by just how much variation there is between different kinds of feed (straight corn, finishers, growers, fillers, etc).  My sons do all of their own feed mixing - it's my 8 year old's favorite job and has been since he was 5 helping with big brothers.  So to keep it simple for him we still go by "scoops" of this and that.  Half of the reason I mess with supplements is because he has so much fun mixing.  He's pretty conscientious about it too.

How big was your scoop??

Without looking at the steer, what should my ration look like, and how much please.

This was years ago, but we fed the Champion Maine Steer at Houston in 93 (first year of them being slick).  He was supposedly a May calf, but he was a heavy dude. I think he was around 53 inches tall when done, so not just a ton bigger framed than now. 

His diet from June on consisted of 3 scoops of finisher and 1 scoop of beet pulp.   We never did any other holding except for right at show time.

 

[pjkjr4]

I'm thinking about cutting him back to 8lbs of finisher, and about 3/4 of one of those scoops of beet pulp shreds twice daily along with 3 ounces of liquid fat, and then weigh him in 30 days to see where we are, and then maybe adjust again at that time.

 

[chambero]

If you go that low (which is probably fine), make sure you have plenty of prairie hay or such to keep him full and happy.

 

[pjkjr4]

I always let calves eat all the prarie hay they want.