taylor tay
Well-known member
Hey i have showed some sheep and now i want to start dairy, is that the same with beef? Can anyone give me some tips thanks <cowboy> (clapping) (dog)
Showing DAiry
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shortyjock89
Well-known member
Nah, they're really completely different worlds.
LostFarmer
Well-known member
I grew up showing dairy and now my kids are showing beef. Very different but some of the skills will cross over. Clipping is very much the same. You take off hair to enhance the look, just take it from different places and make a different look. Breaking them to lead is similar. The big difference is that you don't have to deal with hair. You feed more like you would replacement heifers than market classes. You show going backwards and as a snails pace. You don't have a show stick and need to use the halter only to get the animal set. So it is different but good showman are good showman regardless of the species.
dcbehle
Well-known member
I grew up showing dairy and hogs, and now my kids show dairy and beef. A few things that I've learned.
Feeding
Calves need plenty of grain and a good quality grass hay. (A low quality alfalfa works too.) They need the protein for growing them, but you have to watch that you don't get too much fat in their diets. Dairy character is second only too udder composition and a fat calf has poor dairy character. A good way to evaluate for dairy character is being clean through the tail head, sharp over the withers (front shoulder), and a flat muscle shape in the rear legs. When feeding yearlings, they need very little grain and a high quality grass hay is preferred.
Clipping
We use a T84 clipper head on our Andis 2 speed clippers at least three days before showing. We clip the entire animal except for the top line and belly. Leave about 4" of hair down both sides of the top line. You can then do a rough blend job on the top line. The final blend is done during the day of the show. The goal with the extra hair on the top line is to give a straight topline look from the profile, and a sharp top line cut when viewed from the back. As stated earlier, you want the animal to look sharp or clean over the top line and especially through the withers. Make sure you blend the cut on the top line so it looks natural. There are several methods to getting the top line hair to stand up, I use methods similar to beef while many dairy fitters use a higher temperature hair drier with Right Guard powder spray antipersperant. Sullivans makes a dairy adhesive that works great. We leave some hair on the belly to add depth. When clipping the head, clip everything, including inside the ears.
Showing
There is some crossover in showing beef as with dairy. You want the topline to look straight and you keep the head up. The big difference is no show stick. This has acutally proved to be valuable for our kids as they have learned how to set up a cow/calf without a show stick which has enabled them to set up their beef animals quicker. When showing calves or heifers, it is important to not let your halter strap hang down. Fold it in your hand (do not wrap it around your hand), and keep a close grip on the halter. Some even grab around the eye on the halter where the chain goes though. You want to have total control of your animal. Some areas differ from others, but in Nebraska, we will lead our calves both forwards and backwards. The key is that you should always be facing the judge with your belt buckle. Walk forwards when the judge is ahead of you, and backwards when he or she is behind you. Finally, it is important to understand how a heifer or cow is set up. In heifers, you want the leg closest to the judge farther back then the other hind leg. In cows it is opposite. The key with cows is that the judge needs to be able to see both the front and hind portion of the udder so that they can evaluate udder attachment.
Our kids have had a lot of fun showing both dairy and beef. Dairy animals are generally very mellow, and this works well with a timid showman. On the flip side, larger breeds like Holsteins cows can be more difficult with young kids or smaller showmen. A mature cow can be very tall and it can be very tiring to hold a cow's head up during the show. Two years ago, during the senior showmanship competition, the judge worked the kids for 55 minutes and there were many tired kids.
Feeding
Calves need plenty of grain and a good quality grass hay. (A low quality alfalfa works too.) They need the protein for growing them, but you have to watch that you don't get too much fat in their diets. Dairy character is second only too udder composition and a fat calf has poor dairy character. A good way to evaluate for dairy character is being clean through the tail head, sharp over the withers (front shoulder), and a flat muscle shape in the rear legs. When feeding yearlings, they need very little grain and a high quality grass hay is preferred.
Clipping
We use a T84 clipper head on our Andis 2 speed clippers at least three days before showing. We clip the entire animal except for the top line and belly. Leave about 4" of hair down both sides of the top line. You can then do a rough blend job on the top line. The final blend is done during the day of the show. The goal with the extra hair on the top line is to give a straight topline look from the profile, and a sharp top line cut when viewed from the back. As stated earlier, you want the animal to look sharp or clean over the top line and especially through the withers. Make sure you blend the cut on the top line so it looks natural. There are several methods to getting the top line hair to stand up, I use methods similar to beef while many dairy fitters use a higher temperature hair drier with Right Guard powder spray antipersperant. Sullivans makes a dairy adhesive that works great. We leave some hair on the belly to add depth. When clipping the head, clip everything, including inside the ears.
Showing
There is some crossover in showing beef as with dairy. You want the topline to look straight and you keep the head up. The big difference is no show stick. This has acutally proved to be valuable for our kids as they have learned how to set up a cow/calf without a show stick which has enabled them to set up their beef animals quicker. When showing calves or heifers, it is important to not let your halter strap hang down. Fold it in your hand (do not wrap it around your hand), and keep a close grip on the halter. Some even grab around the eye on the halter where the chain goes though. You want to have total control of your animal. Some areas differ from others, but in Nebraska, we will lead our calves both forwards and backwards. The key is that you should always be facing the judge with your belt buckle. Walk forwards when the judge is ahead of you, and backwards when he or she is behind you. Finally, it is important to understand how a heifer or cow is set up. In heifers, you want the leg closest to the judge farther back then the other hind leg. In cows it is opposite. The key with cows is that the judge needs to be able to see both the front and hind portion of the udder so that they can evaluate udder attachment.
Our kids have had a lot of fun showing both dairy and beef. Dairy animals are generally very mellow, and this works well with a timid showman. On the flip side, larger breeds like Holsteins cows can be more difficult with young kids or smaller showmen. A mature cow can be very tall and it can be very tiring to hold a cow's head up during the show. Two years ago, during the senior showmanship competition, the judge worked the kids for 55 minutes and there were many tired kids.
