Keeping cattle on feed at shows

[Endless Meadows]

Hi everyone,

I wanted to see If I could get some advice from all of you about keeping cattle on feed while traveling from home to a show.  I run into the problem every year.  The bulls get to the farmshow in the evening and will not eat or drink anything from after noon on Tuesday until after the show on Thursday.  We have tried adding jello and koolaide to the water a few weeks before at home and doing the same at the show.  Those results were mixed at best.  We included extra salt in the feed without success,  We've kept the calves tied and fed in the barn and let loose inside the trailer and fed there.  I do know that the water has a BUNCH of chlorine in it where we go so that does not help much.  What works best for all of you.  Has anyone tried the chlorine filter that Sullivan's sells?  Thank you,

 

[TJ]

Use a probiotic... before & while at the show.  I love Fastrack, but Probios will work. 

Filter will help.  Feed them dry beet pulp & if all else fails, try salt. 

 

[cowzrus]

We have found that full tank from sun glo helps alot.  The cattle eat it better than straight beet pulp, and it really helps to fill.  Also we take all the hay they will eat to keep them full as well.

 

[RSC]

Hi everyone,

I wanted to see If I could get some advice from all of you about keeping cattle on feed while traveling from home to a show.  I run into the problem every year.  The bulls get to the farmshow in the evening and will not eat or drink anything from after noon on Tuesday until after the show on Thursday.  We have tried adding jello and koolaide to the water a few weeks before at home and doing the same at the show.  Those results were mixed at best.  We included extra salt in the feed without success,  We've kept the calves tied and fed in the barn and let loose inside the trailer and fed there.  I do know that the water has a BUNCH of chlorine in it where we go so that does not help much.  What works best for all of you.  Has anyone tried the chlorine filter that Sullivan's sells?  Thank you,

  I have had great luck with Winning Fill from Kent.  Used it last Summer and was very happy with the way the cattle stayed on feed at the County Fair.  They say start a couple days prior to the show,  I started about 8 days prior.

Tony

 

[Davis Shorthorns]

dried milk re placer as a top dress.  I have never tried it but a good friend of mine swears by it. 

 

[OH Breeder]

We get the calves use to being tied and fed at home. With hold water and bucket them when feeding. We also clean all the tanks and buckets with bleach. You can also add a tablespoon of bleach to a 100 gallon tank of water. That also gets them use to the smell and taste. The cleaning of the equipment feed pans and water buckets helps acclimate them to the smell of chlorine.
If you start them at home like you are the show they get use to it. If you know you have a show coming up in a week try tying them a week prior like you are at the show.

 

[clifflem]

This is what I do.  You will have better luck getting them to eat, drink and fill up if they are hungry and thirsty when you get there.  The day before we haul, we cut the morning feeding to about 2/3 of a normal feeding.  That evening we cut it to 1/2 feeding and cut them off water.  If we are hauling in the morning, we don't feed or water that morning.  If we aren't leaving till afternoon, we will give them a flake or 2 of grass hay.  When we get there, we start filling back up.  Give 1/2 feeding and about 2-4 gallons of water the first feeding.  Give 2/3 feeding and 4-6 gallons water the second feeding.  Keep working them up till you are back on a regular feeding.  The key is not to fill them too fast.  I also don't like hauling them full of feed and water.  It's kind of like eating a big meal and going to ride a roller coaster.  Use hay to get them full.  I always put a good feeding of hay in front of them in the tie outs.

 

[renegade]

Go to wal mart or an rv store and get a charcol water filter (pretty sure thats what its called - just ask for a filter) and it works wonders!!!!!!!!!!!! Everyone around here has that problem except if you have a filter

 

[braunvieh]

We do like Clifflem, we don't give water the night before we leave or the next day until we arrive. When they are good and thirsty and take a big drink of that new water, they seem to accept it more. Those that we haven't done this with and just seem to sip at the water seem to never really take a big drink and fill up.

 

[klintdog]

If you were to send them on a long haul, when would you cut the water and feed? For instance, Denver is a 10 hour drive for us. If we leave at 6AM, would you still cut feed and water the evening before?

 

[clifflem]

Klint,
We are about 10 hours from Denver also.  Yes we would cut feed and water the night before the haul.  We are in OKlahoma and it seems like cattle are harder to get a fill on in Denver than anywhere else we have shown.  I don't know if its the altitude, ice cold water or what, but I can never get them all filled in Denver like I can anywhere else.

 

[Rocky Hill Simmental]

I have a Sullivan's water filter and it works well except my cattle won't drink the water when it's still cool so I fill the buckets about an hour before I actually give them the water.

Before we had the filter, we tried the kool-aid. Some of the calves little it better than others though. Orange seemed to be their favorite flavor. The problem was that the white faced heifers would accidently dye their chins orange while drinking.  (lol) Also, some just liked the of smell it instead of the taste.

 

[Endless Meadows]

A couple other things I heard or know that some people do are:

Give Vit B injections
Add sugar to the water
Use jello instead of Koolaide
Heat the water

 

[shortyjock89]

1. Cut feed like clifflem and others have said.
2. Get a filter
3. Gatorade mix.
4. Salt feed or actually put salt in their mouths.


It also helps if you can get them in a routine at home that's similar to a show situation. Our calves are used to being at shows because they get tied in stalls just like at shows, get fed in pans and watered in buckets during the day and get treated like we're on a non showing day at a show.....that is...when it's not 6 degrees out.

We're gonna try that Winning Fill stuff this year and see how it works.  I'm actually gonna feed some to my heifer tomorrow to see how she likes it before we try and get her picture...just hope it's not too awful icy....

 

[Endless Meadows]

Just had an off the wall thought.  Has anyone ever poured/mixed beer in feed.  If so how much, did calves eat more, what benefits did you gain, did it help? 

 

[BCCC]

Just had an off the wall thought.  Has anyone ever poured/mixed beer in feed.  If so how much, did calves eat more, what benefits did you gain, did it help? 

I have gave beer to a steer I was pusing pretty hard. He seemed to have a better appetie even when feeding 5% of his body weight.

 

[stangs13]

You can try feeding in a feed pan, and when you go to shows take the same pan with you and feed with it.

 

[AAOK]

Had the same problem the first few years of showing.  Once we really got going, our routine at home was exactly the same as at the shows.  We fed and watered at the same time each day, using the same buckets and pails.  The calves always drank only city water, and feed never varied.  Washing, grooming, and walking was standard routine.  Repitition, repitition, repitition; that's the secret to pretty much everything about show cattle.

 

[LazyGLowlines]

What about shows that take 2-3 days travel time? We're about 22 hours from Denver and it takes us a little over 2 days to get there.