justintime
Well-known member
Guess I am going to open the proverbial can of worms again. While I agree that there are some cattle that can be referred to as " real world " cattle, and some others that are referrred to as " show ring" cattle, I tend to think that there are many in the Shorthorn breed, or any breed for that matter, that can do a good job in both worlds. This is probably even more true in Canada, but I honestly believe there are show cattle in the US that have pretty realistic lives in the real world after the halter comes off for the last time. There are of course, environmental conditions in some areas that demand a specific type of cattle, and this goes for any breed of cattle. If you want cows that will literally fend for themselves for most of the year, or survive in tough environmental conditions, or survive with little management, then you better be pretty selective on what type of cows you are going to own... and that goes for any breed... in any area of the planet. This is not a breed issue, it is a management issue.
In my operation, my cows must live on grass and on hay for almost all of their nutrition. I do not grain farm so every pound of grain that goes into a cow has to be purchased. I raise grass and I have cows to harvest it and turn it into dollars. Have I fed additional supplemental grain or other feeds on occasion? The answer is yes, and there have been times when it made economical sense to feed a couple pounds of grain to stretch out your hay. If I had to choose to have hay custom hauled or grain custom hauled, I expect most times it is most economical to haul some grain. Beef cows can make good use of poorer grain, such as damp, frozen or light barley or oats. I have made good rations from some very different products. A few weeks ago, I mentioned in another thread about how we mixed chopped straw, sunflower screenings and stillage from a local distillery to make a silage product that had very high protein and pretty reasonable energy levels. It took some work, but it did allow us to get out cowherd of over 300 cows through a severe drought, and it cost us less than 1/2 what hay would have cost. That is one of the good things that cattle can do. They are quite adaptable to various feed stuffs. I have a neighbour who feeds grain dust which he gets free from a local grain terminal. It literally looks like dirt, and he gets it hauled to his farm at no cost. His cows love it, and they are usually in better condition than most other herds in the community.
It is up to each person to select the type of cattle that work in their environment, and their management. If some of the cattle that have show careers will not work in your operation, that really is not a negative comment about them. These cattle may work just fine in many other operations around the country. Your " real world" can be very different from someone else's " real world". Unfortunately, no show ring can select cattle that will work everywhere, but I am sure there are some show winners who are more adaptable than they are given credit for.
I have heard this argument for decades that there is virtually no connection between the " show ring " and the " real world". Every year, I look through hundreds of bull sale catalogs from all breeds. Many of these have some of the best commercial and rancher customers in the industry. I always find it interesting how many sons and grandsons of some major show winners and National champions are in these commercially based sales. If there is no connection between the show ring and the real world, why would this be the case?
I think that most of us who raise cattle for our livlihoods, would like to see a closer connection between the show ring and the real world. It is simply impossible for the show ring to meet the needs of every situation in the real world. That said, I do feel that the statement that there is no connection between the show ring and the real world in not correct. The amount of connection there is, may vary from your herd to mine, but there is still some connection there.
In my operation, my cows must live on grass and on hay for almost all of their nutrition. I do not grain farm so every pound of grain that goes into a cow has to be purchased. I raise grass and I have cows to harvest it and turn it into dollars. Have I fed additional supplemental grain or other feeds on occasion? The answer is yes, and there have been times when it made economical sense to feed a couple pounds of grain to stretch out your hay. If I had to choose to have hay custom hauled or grain custom hauled, I expect most times it is most economical to haul some grain. Beef cows can make good use of poorer grain, such as damp, frozen or light barley or oats. I have made good rations from some very different products. A few weeks ago, I mentioned in another thread about how we mixed chopped straw, sunflower screenings and stillage from a local distillery to make a silage product that had very high protein and pretty reasonable energy levels. It took some work, but it did allow us to get out cowherd of over 300 cows through a severe drought, and it cost us less than 1/2 what hay would have cost. That is one of the good things that cattle can do. They are quite adaptable to various feed stuffs. I have a neighbour who feeds grain dust which he gets free from a local grain terminal. It literally looks like dirt, and he gets it hauled to his farm at no cost. His cows love it, and they are usually in better condition than most other herds in the community.
It is up to each person to select the type of cattle that work in their environment, and their management. If some of the cattle that have show careers will not work in your operation, that really is not a negative comment about them. These cattle may work just fine in many other operations around the country. Your " real world" can be very different from someone else's " real world". Unfortunately, no show ring can select cattle that will work everywhere, but I am sure there are some show winners who are more adaptable than they are given credit for.
I have heard this argument for decades that there is virtually no connection between the " show ring " and the " real world". Every year, I look through hundreds of bull sale catalogs from all breeds. Many of these have some of the best commercial and rancher customers in the industry. I always find it interesting how many sons and grandsons of some major show winners and National champions are in these commercially based sales. If there is no connection between the show ring and the real world, why would this be the case?
I think that most of us who raise cattle for our livlihoods, would like to see a closer connection between the show ring and the real world. It is simply impossible for the show ring to meet the needs of every situation in the real world. That said, I do feel that the statement that there is no connection between the show ring and the real world in not correct. The amount of connection there is, may vary from your herd to mine, but there is still some connection there.
