changes in the showring

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pigguy

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what does every one think the judges will be looking for this fall and next summer. it seems like color is coming back kinda. what kinda of heifers and steers are they gona be looking for. seems ike steery heifers arent doing real grea any more. what do you think??
 

garybob

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maine12 said:
what does every one think the judges will be looking for this fall and next summer. it seems like color is coming back kinda. what kinda of heifers and steers are they gona be looking for. seems ike steery heifers arent doing real grea any more. what do you think??
It's about time! I also look forward to the day when bull shows, at least in my breed start paying attention to masculinity and sexual characteristics. Same goes for the heifers.
 

justme

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I know at the MO state fair this past week during the Maine show they went with real "cowy" types.  A refreshing change.
 

Show Heifer

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IMO, Iowa is still leaning toward FAT heifers that are steers with ovaries and two holes.  I didn't think either were to femimine.....not even in the breed shows.
Steers have to be tables with square post. The champion steer was nice, although his shoulders would not fit through a typical working chute...they were way too wide for me!

In a few breed shows I did hear judges mention testicle developement, althougt it was never important enough to lower the placing of the bull, as in "I would like to see this bull have more testicle development for his age, but...."

Kudos to the shortie judge when he said "I am not telling fitters how to do their job, but in a heifer show, I WANT TO SEE THE UDDER, not a bunch of pulled down glued hair."  Good for him!!! (clapping)
 

Telos

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Just got back from the North Texas State fair... Too many bunchy, short muscled steers and heifers for my taste.
Can anyone tell me how long it will be before we get away from this trend.
Many of the cattle looked liked they were bred by Pit Bull dog breeders.
Shoulders were far too massive for the most part.
Many exhibitors seemed real proud if they were fortunate enough to have one of those real hairy, fuzzy-wonder-busters, but had concerns of overheating.
Saw hundreds of fan and water cooler set ups. Wonder what their electric bill looks like. Asked the young lady showing the calf out of my one and only cow if she had a cooler room. Her reply; " No...We're not rich".
 

AAOK

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afhm said:
Who was the Shortie judge in Iowa?

I would bet it was Jim Williams; outspoken, to say the least.  I remember him at the 1994 Maine-Anjou Jr. National Show, stopping the show in the middle of the 1st class.  He demanded a barn microphone to tell the fitters that if the best heifer in the country walked into the ring, and he couldn't see her udder, she would stand last in the class.
 

sjcattleco

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Telos said:
Just got back from the North Texas State fair... Too many bunchy, short muscled steers and heifers for my taste.
Can anyone tell me how long it will be before we get away from this trend.
Many of the cattle looked liked they were bred by Pit Bull dog breeders.
Shoulders were far too massive for the most part.
Many exhibitors seemed real proud if they were fortunate enough to have one of those real hairy, fuzzy-wonder-busters, but had concerns of overheating.
Saw hundreds of fan and water cooler set ups. Wonder what their electric bill looks like. Asked the young lady showing the calf out of my one and only cow if she had a cooler room. Her reply; " No...We're not rich".

LOL well you can't have thick cattle with out a big front end in them... as long as they are not crippled who really cares.... further more.. Narrow fronted steers come from piss poor cows and I have had my share of both of them!!!
 

afhm

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Yet you can hardly see an udder on all those v8 shorthorns at shows.  Its about time people quit using him to judge shows, he is way too political and very rude on the mic.  It was just last year or the year before he called a kid in Ohio big and ugly over the mic during the show.
 

ROAD WARRIOR

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I'm starting to hear the "softer look" used in a lot of judges comments when judging females - they're starting to talk the talk.... we'll see if they walk the walk!
 

Show Heifer

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Can't find the name on my tongue of the shortie judge, but he was from IL, and I want to say Frazier, or something like that. He was not rude or mean on the mic at all.  Gave very nice and complete reasons clear down to the last pair. I think his comment was directed at the fact that the shorties in the show were plenty deep and didn't need 5 inches of hair pulled down and glued.  He also made comments of femininity, capacity to carry a calf, over conditioned (fat in udder) etc. so I think he had future cow production in mind. He was a younger guy (mid-upper 30's) and seemed to know what he was doing.
 

cattlejunky

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I think Jared Shipman did a good job at the Indiana State Fair.  He was picking feminine heifers.  I loved the heifer on Tomsons.  Jack Ward and Shaake picked more feminine heifers also
 

justme

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The open maine judge at the missouri state fair also commented that some of the maintainers had way to much "gunk" on there underline.  Distracted from the heifer.  I agreed with him...the one he was commenting on would have looked better without it
 

knabe

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just got back from the state fair in CA.  only saw AOB and maines, herefords.  judge commented contiually on freshness.  i have some pictures i'll post tomorrow or so.  a kadabra heifer won maine overall.  great loose, smooth walking heifer, still didn't walk in her tracks, had some flex in her pasterns and great flex in her knees and hocks.  i'm thinking she looked a little big fronted.  i took some pictures of a class winner in AOB who never took one step with any flex in her pastern.  there was also a cow judge commented on on being extremely sound.  i took a pic of her front feet and one digit was larger than the other on both front feet, she walked on one of them more than the other and they pointed out, but she didn't walk in and out.  one other one he said was "correct", the calf's hocks were rubbing.  i was getting a little disappointed with the show, until the maines came in.  first class had 9 females and they looked great.  judge placed the ones with no flex in their pasterns for the most part on the bottom.  there were at least 4 that walked in their tracks, had great thickness and spring in their ribs from the top down compared to the AOB classes and herefords.  showmen were all great and very professional.  lot of people congratulated the winner, which i think was a kadabra out of a daughter of the pannell 4072 cow or maybe even 4072 herself, don't know.  results will have that.  there were at least two jakes proud jazz females i got pics of.  one said he wasn't used to them yet and had her way overfed, the other looked in better condition.  both looked sound as well.  a few shorties with trump as the MGS.  lots of shorties, a few red angus.  the size of classes were down from when i was in college and were more like at the county fair when i was a kid and in college.  i missed the steer show which was a day earlier, wish i could have seen that.  judge didn't comment too much on what he would like to change in the cattle.  found out a college friend publishes pacific showcase, and caught up alittle bit on long lost college friends with her.  have to agree with the comments on udders, they are to be seen.
 
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