Please Help ! Cooler Question regarding when to start

[mk407]

I am wondering when to start my cattle in the cooler. How do the guys up north do it with Jr.Nationals, State Fairs in August and all the way to Denver. Our first big show down here is in October , then Kansas City , Louisville, Denver And Fort Worth. Someone please give me the best advice you can. What About the temp to keep it as well. Do you guys all use hair implants as well? if so when?
Thanks so much

 

[mk407]

So All texas guys....if your taking the same heifers to louisville as you are fort worth then when do you start them in the cooler? when do you implant them?
Thanks

 

[mk407]

:-\

 

[Tallcool1]

Nebraska-

For Denver, we don't have to put them in a cooler.  Mother nature handles it.

For State Fair September 1, we go in May 15th...105 days, or after the shuck their hair.

Then we leave them in the cooler until AkSarBen which is October 1.

If it is cool, we turn them out and just rinse through KC and NAILE.

No we don't implant...the hair cycle is too strict.  We have lots of flexibility on our fat shows up here, and when you implant for hair, they will lose it at 120(ish) regardless...or so I am told.  I have NO first hand experience with implants so that is purely based upon the advice I have been given.  If that is bad advice, I apologize in advance.

 

[mk407]

Any Texas guys please reply? I am so afraid of doing it too early and then loosing my hair

 

[Mainevent]

Well I've never really had experience with a cooler but with the implants if your eyeing Kansas City and Louisville as a show I wouldn't implant they will shuck the hair at that point. We used them on Limousin heifers and they started growing their hair back end of October but still didn't have enough to run with those guys up there.

 

[chambero]

I dont use a cooler - i live in north Tx where I can grow FW hair without it.  But if I had one  they'd already be in it.  Fort Worth steers have been in coolers all summer.  You arent going to lose hair between Nov and Feb.

I do use Melatonin implants on my FW calves. You can lose hair after they wear off.  Pick whichever show is more important and start implants about 60 days out.