steer not gaining like i would like..

[cowgirlup11]

i have a black angus show steer who is not gaining near to what i would like. he does not eat as much as my steers in the past. he weighs about 1127lbs right now, he NEEDS to be finished by july 1st or sooner! he will finish out bigger than 1300 probably. would triticale do anything for him? i know barley is good but i dont have any...

any advice greatly apprecaited

thanks

 

[branson.m.]

Rolled corn, and pro bios to keep his gutz movin(Optizime).

 

[Boot Jack Bulls]

Some exercise might help. I know it sounds counter- productive, but it may help increase his appetite.  (dog)

 

[bart]

I am with bootjack. If they dont eat like they should  kick them out in the trap for a day or two... let them run and play. SureChamp will help them convert more and keep that gut working.

 

[rackranch]

Can you give us a little more info?

What is his daily feeding schedule?

What are you feeding him and how much including additives?

What are his average daily gains now and have they declined?

Is he in open, shade, rinsed daily, weekly, fans, misters?

What is his frame score?

How much cover does he have at this time?

 

[vc]

Great questions Rackranch, was goint to ask the same things.
I would try the hay, it won't hurt him. Add Stabilized Rice Bran to his feed, 2 pounds a day (they like the taste), we use the pellets but it also comes in a granule form.
The SRB is high in fat and helps add cover as well as adding more calories to his intake.
You have about 85 days left even if you can get 2 pounds a day he should gain 170 pounds witch would put him right around 1300
You may also want to try feeding him 3 to 4 times a day, split up your ration so his intake is the same just spread it out more.
We have also used chopped oat hay and molasses (oat-mo) to get them eating, you may see if they have anything like that at your feed dealer.

 

[cowgirlup11]

he is getting 25 puonds of finish ration in the morning and about 30 in the evening but he is with a real little runt hiefer so its not ALL going to him, most of it though. he is a corral type deal he has pleanty of room to walk and play, he also has a huge 3 ans half wall shed. his frame score is deffienlty large. he was 794 at weaning time wich was november 12 about. he is only gaining like 2.22 pounds a day! he gets rinsed daily. he has free choice water mineral and salt.
thanks for the help so far guys

 

[vc]

Even if he was eating half of that he should be gaining more, are you sure your scale is right and do you weigh him often. When we weigh we like to do it at the same time every day, usually after they have been tied for the day, this way you get a true weight on them. If you weigh at different times it is hard to get a true weight, one time they may be full of water the next time they may be empty, you may only see a 2 pound average but the 40 pounds of water and feed you weighed in him the first time can really put a panic in you.

Has he been wormed? We only feed a total of 25 pounds of grain a day, with free choice hay and averaged over 3 pounds a day. If you do not mind what is the feed mix you are feeding?

 

[CAB]

Look like by your figures that he is right on target. 86 days x 2.22lbs per day puts him @ 1317.92lbs on 7/1. Sounds to me that between the 2 calves in the pen that they are probably eating about all that they possibly can. I would not free choice hay to them myself. I would try to get them 2lbs/head/day of long stem grass hay for a belly scratcher. If they have free choice hay it will cut down on the consumption of the higher energy ration therefore lowering daily average weight gain.

 

[cowgirlup11]

thanks guys! i have not actually wieghed him in a while i have bin doing the measure his heart girth thing. i have a sheet that sais what thier heart girth is and then what the wieght should be. (not that acurate i know). he is eating pound maker right now only because i ran out of the good stuff(bad on my part i know) but the finish ration he should be on is called Elite(sp) breeder show ration. he has bin wormed we ivromec in spring and fall so he should not have any paracites(sp). and yes he would weigh about the right wieght for a show animal by show time but he will not be finished, i think his frame size is too big to finish out between the 1200-1300 pound mark.