Steer is about 1100 lbs. He seems to just nit pick at his food and we limit him to about 2 pads of hay each day. Two days ago I gave him a pretty good dose of PROBIOS to help his appetite but didn't seem to help. We have fed out steers in the past and they all seemed to eat really good but this one has us stumped. Please give us some ideas and suggestions you might have tried if this has happened to you. ??? ??? ??? ??? ???
My Steer has no Appetite
- Thread starter F5CHASER
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dutch pride
Well-known member
Couple of things come to mind, 1.Try to take him off his grain completely for 24 hrs and then ease him back in to it slowly, only what he will clean up in 20 min. 2. Did the feed change or did you just get a new batch? Does it smell any different? 3. Does he have competition when he eats? Sometimes that will help getting them back on feed.
Good luck
DLZ
Good luck
DLZ
DLZ
Thanks for your prompt reply..Here is a little bit more info....we bought him on Tuesday and brought him home...I am positive that our feed is different from what he was used to as he was fed a custom mix. Our feed smells really good. So good in fact I wouldn't mind eating it. It is a good feed as I have used it exclusively for 6 years with no problems.
Thanks for your prompt reply..Here is a little bit more info....we bought him on Tuesday and brought him home...I am positive that our feed is different from what he was used to as he was fed a custom mix. Our feed smells really good. So good in fact I wouldn't mind eating it. It is a good feed as I have used it exclusively for 6 years with no problems.
yousesteers
Well-known member
check and make sure he does not have a runny nose or coughing it is the time for pnuemonia not likely in a Steer that size but can happen might take his temp make sure he is not developing something from the shipping
red
Well-known member
just feed enough that he cleans up what was given. Then up it gradually every couple of day when he cleans up what he had. I try to buy a bag of feed that the calf was used too & blending it in w/ the new.
Red
Red
AAOK
Well-known member
F5CHASER said:
Any time you change feed, it should be done gradually by mixing in the new feed over a week to 10 days. It would be good to have a bag of the feed he is used to, but it's not absolutely necessary. Take Red's advice and only feed him what he will clean up in 15 -20 minutes. He should be eating good in just a few more days.
We had a bull who would also nitpick at his food. We ended up giving him appetite express at every feeding, and we also got some boluses from our vet. I believe he called them rumen blockers, and they were bright pink. The boluses helped a ton, and got him right back on to feed. Good Luck.
This may sound way off the wall and out of left field but it happened to me.
I had a heifer go off feed and did everything I could to get her back on track. I washed her feed tub out really well one day and she ate well for a few days then stopped again. I washed the feed tub and sure enough she ate good for a day or two. Finally caught a tom cat sitting in the feed tub 'marking' the tub with urine.
I wouldn't want the animal rights folks to know how I solved the problem of the spraying cat!
But, my first guess is he doesn't like his new feed as well as his old feed. That is why I always send a calf home with new owners with a bag of my feed for the transition.
Did he resently get vaccinated? Sometimes that will throw them off for a while.
Good luck getting him figured out.
Malinda
I had a heifer go off feed and did everything I could to get her back on track. I washed her feed tub out really well one day and she ate well for a few days then stopped again. I washed the feed tub and sure enough she ate good for a day or two. Finally caught a tom cat sitting in the feed tub 'marking' the tub with urine.
I wouldn't want the animal rights folks to know how I solved the problem of the spraying cat!
But, my first guess is he doesn't like his new feed as well as his old feed. That is why I always send a calf home with new owners with a bag of my feed for the transition.
Did he resently get vaccinated? Sometimes that will throw them off for a while.
Good luck getting him figured out.
Malinda
renegade
Well-known member
At the end of the year last year it was really hot and we had trouble getting the calves to eat. Someone on here was talking about how they used white cake mix and the calves loved it. The last two weeks us and a few other people got to feeding small amounts about 6+ times a day. IDK if this will help you but hope so LOL
renegade said:
<party> Oh my goodness...that was me that suggested that you put the white cake mix in with the feed. I am so glad that it helped you out also! I don't think my daughters steer would have made it last year without the cake mix. People used to laugh at me when I told them what I was doing to get him to eat but I didn't care, as long as it worked. He won his class last year thanks to all of those boxes of white cake mix from HEB!! Lisa
renegade
Well-known member
Haha they did too me too but they didnt laugh too much when my steers ate and looked good and theirs werent! Thank you so much for the advice.
UPDATE....he is still not eating. I contacted the breeder and the steer was on a custom finishing mix and he ate it REAL good. I have tried 3 different kinds of feed and nothing seems to work. I am going to give him a shot of B-12 tomorrow. Does anyone have an idea how much I should give him and how often should I give him a shot?
showstick09
Well-known member
Draw up 2-3cc of B-12, take the needle off, and squirt it under his tongue.
Davis Shorthorns
Well-known member
powdered milk or cooked some beat pulp. If it is cold I found that that really worked feeding it warm.
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