Supplements to help weight gain

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ldkgates

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Jun 27, 2012
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I posted early about daughter's steer. We are looking at Purina supplements to help with weight gain. I am not sure if we need champion drive,heavyweight or power fuel. The steer is eating southern states bull test now but slowly switching over to finishing touch. He does not seem to like the finishing touch. His current feed as a lot of cotton seed hulls which he seems to prefer. Current weight is 772 needs to be 800 by October but hoping to get him over 1000.
 

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RyanChandler

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Jul 6, 2011
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Pottsboro, TX
This is why I always suggest using a finisher from day 1.  You feed that calf 3% of his body weight of a finisher and only give him hay AFTER he's eatin the 3% and I guarantee you that calf will be well over 1100 by October. 

Save your money on those bs supplements. The overwhelming majority of the time when a calf is not gaining adequately it is because the energy level of the ration is too low-- as it is with starters and growers.  When a calf is on a full-feed finishing ration and still not gaining adequately (which would be an anomaly) mix his ration half finisher / half corn.  You'll get many people comment below me on the benefits of these supplements.  Keep in mind many of them have a financial incentive to tell you this. 
 

DSC

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May 3, 2007
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285
I agree a lot of these supplements are just a waste of time and money. I good feeding program will go a lot further than adding all these different supplements. We also always just start everything on finisher. If one is getting too fat you can always adjust but we have had better luck starting out on finishers.
 

chambero

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Feb 12, 2007
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Texas
I'm not sure who on here has a financial incentive on recommending supplements, but.....

A bull ration is not what you want to feed a steer - at any point in his life.  For good reason, they are the opposite of what you want to use.

We feed a lot of show steers and have for a long time.  I don't necessarily disagree with XBAR, but I can't get most of ours (especially black calves who are at a similar stage to yours) to eat a true finishing ration in the summer without having issues - diarhea, low intake, etc.  I just tried to push two onto one and had to back off.  I always was taught the 3% rule also, but in reality you are doing fine if they'll actually eat around 2.5% of body weight per day.

I have my own feed mixed - my "grower ration" is slightly lower fat% and higher fiber% than most commercial show steer finishers (i.e. Purina).

A lot of steers won't eat the extra corn XBAR is talking about late in life when they are almost "done".  That's where the supplements come in.  I've dabbled with quite a few but all I really use anymore during the summer are Surechamp (on all of them) and sometimes the old trusted Calf Manna (usually on ones I'm holding).

In the fall or winter when you are trying to get one really fat (you ain't there yet), that's where fat supplements come in.  Most of the ones on the market aren't the snake oil that supplements that are supposed to help with other "stuff" are.  Purina's are great.  "Who" makes them often tell the tale on where there is any validity to them.  If most of this stuff made by small companies really worked, one of the big guys would have bought them up.

I can't envision needing one other than Power Fuel, especially if you can't get one to eat quite enough finisher.  It is what I always use unless I have one with a tendency to bloat in which case I'll use an oil.

If you have access to Purina products, go buy their finisher - but you may need to give them a little prairie hay or low quality coastal at night to keep their belly working right this time of year. 

"Look" is more important than pure rate of gain in most show steer scenarios.  Most of us that feed lots of them turn calves out on round bales at night to keep the belly and roundness in them that you need.  Personally, I use my own feed + either round bales of wheat or coastal hay and cruise right on where they need to be with real gains between 2 and 2.5 pounds a day over the course of a year.

One other word of advice.  I let a calf grown into what he's meant to be - I don't try to force a medium wt to be a heavy wt, etc.  It's splitting hairs somewhat, but if you have a smaller framed calf let him finish at the weight where he needs to be. 

 

goodnight

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Jun 21, 2010
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101
Calf looks like he has some good to him. He needs to be eating about 25 pounds a day of a finishing feed. I would look at what AAOK has posted on his ration. It will work for steers. Get some stabilized rice bran and start them on it, building up to about a pound per day after 10 days, or so. I like sure champ, and it will help keep him on feed. Finally, you might consider explosion, or something with optaflexx for the last 20-40 days. I would only use optaflexx if the calf needs it and is still growing. But, I have seen that it will increase ADG, REA, and weight in the last 20-40 days. There are a lot of opinions on optaflexx, so you need to use your own judgment.

 

SlickTxMaine

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Feb 11, 2009
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641
Location
Texas
I would pull him off pasture - I think you mentioned that in another post, get him eating all the finisher you can, in at least 2 feedings/ day, if not three and good grass hay.  I would also add Stabilized Rice Bran to the feed.  Start slowly with this till you can get him up to a pound per feeding.  Add this slowly and if he gets the runs, back off for a few days and then increase slowly.  The SRB will help put the finish on him.  I also feed Sure Champ from start to finish. 

For next year, start off with a good finisher from the beginning and you shouldn't have this panic at the end.  Good luck and keep up posted. 
 
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