Steergal said:
I had a quick question, people recommend to rinse 4 times a day sometimes, especially in the hot weather. I do not have a cooler, and just have fans. I read it is good to keep the calves in the dark, would this not affect their eating habits? I guess my main question is: do you blow after EACH rinse and brush??? if not, when, and if so...yikes!
We rinse AT LEAST twice a day after May 1, and often times three times every day if the weather is 85 degrees or above. You read correctly about keeping the calves in the dark, it promotes the production of Melatonin, the active ingredient in many "hair" supplements. We've never had one go off feed because of it being dark. We LOVE the Roto Brush from Sullivan's, it really gets the hair on the back legs to grow and pop, and we also use a regular Rice Root brush, and also a green plastic scrub brush, they're great for getting hair trained too.
Here's how we do the whole "rinsing" thing.
1. We rinse each calf
2. After each calf is rinsed, it gets combed and brushed out, and all excess water is brushed out.
3. AfterALL the calves have been rinsed and brushed, then we go down the line and blow each calf out dry and work the hair for a good amount of time. This is when our Conditioner/Vinegar is blown into the hair (a Kleen Sheen/Vinegar mixture is popular too).