Steer Question

[Buck]

We have a Sept. calf that is a real stud. I have high hopes for the calf but he seems to posess one disappointing trait. To look at him you would say he is sound as a cat but when you watch him on the move he "pops his rear pasterns" to varying degrees. Sometimes you look at him just moving casually in the pasture and it is not noticeable. Sometimes you look at him and it is ever so slight and when you begin to croud him and walk behind him it seems to amplify the condition. It's almost like a bad habit he has gotten in to and when he is not thinking about it he is fine. He is a Smokin Hottie (Monopoly x Madrid) x Rocky Balboa (Ali x WMW). I suspect that if it is genetic it is coming from the WMW.  I have seen fat steers that have exhibited this trait to some degree at shows and it did not seem to be a major consideration when placing them and most have finished a show at or near the top. Although you would prefer that this condition not exist, if the calf is a Tank and really powerful in all other respects how big of a deal is this? We were going to do some marketing on the steer because we thought he was really good and there would be considerable interest, now our excitement has been tempered considerably! What are your thoughts?

 

[Buck]

So no one has an opinion. I would really appreciate your opinion good, bad or ugly. I am trying to decide if I should offer the calf for sale or not.

 

[Diamond]

It may also have come from the monopoly side, I have had and seen several monopoly's with the same issue as well as his sons calves possessing the same pastern problem, especially the tiger woods calves. I had a flat out awesome steer out of those bloodiness that came from a big name farm. He started out with a slight pop in his  pasterns, as time went on the issue progressively got worse. He made it to one prospect show, then he went to market before the fall shows and after what it took with that steer it left a bitter taste in my mouth in regards to the breeder who, knowingly sold a steer that had this problem (it was noticeable at time of purchase) Personally, when I get calves like that, they go to market, I wont take anyone's hard earned money for a junk calf. Yes, I'm at fault for not viewing said calf in person, but I have bought numerous calves off the word of their breeder and this was the first with an issue. Not to get to far off topic my point is this, Is the calf good enough to risk your reputation over if he continues to decline? If you do sell him it may be worth being honest about the issue. Just my two cents and you can take them with a grain of salt, its just the way I do things.

 

[Rhj]

I would watch him.  We have a lot of steers with the same issue early on, and about 90% seem to grow out of it by spring. 

 

[CAB]

Most of the calves that I see pop their pasterns are really structurally not sound in the fact that there is just not enough flex in their pasterns. The straighter we breed them the worse it gets, but it is the direction that the clubbie steers have gone and all of the genetics are virtually the same. Some say that selenium will help out. It depends on how severe the popping is as to whether or not you can market the calf towards the show ring. In my experience cattle get worse not better as they become heavier. BTW Smokin Hottie is a Heat Wave x Madrid & Heat Wave's IMO are straighter than Monopoly sired calves in general. JMO though.

 

[Tallcool1]

Buck-  You say that by looking at him, he appears to be sound.  I am assuming this to mean that he appears to have plenty of flex in his pastern.  With that in mind, something is causing it.  One thing that I know can cause this condition in feeder calves is a hot ration.  Is there by chance a creep feeder out in the pasture with this little dude?  One thing that makes some of these calves "studs" is that they eat like they are never going to see another meal again.  If there is a creep feeder at his disposal, I am willing to bet that he lives in it.  That could very will be the cause of what you are seeing.

If that is the case, sort him off and regulate his feed for a couple weeks.  See what happens.

And by all means, as Diamond said, if you want to sell him just be honest with your prospective buyer.  Tell them what you saw, and when.  Many times (depending on the family) these things are not that big of a deal if the people that end up with him are aware of it so that they can watch for it and trim his feet to prevent it.

Just my opinion.

 

[Buck]

Your description fits him to a tee! He loves to eat and he is on a pretty hot ration. I will try your suggestion.