Why do people need a cooler room?

[DLD]

At least five inches of hair?  Every year? On every calf?  If you can do that, you could make a fortune selling your secret - five inch long hair is pretty hard to come by no matter what you do... Unless you're measuring the hair in the switch, I guess.

Cool rooms are a tool.  Like any other tool, if you get a good one and use it properly it can make your work easier and your results better.  Have one and don't use it right and at best it's just a waste - at worst it can be a train wreck...

I've never believed we could justify a cool room.  We have a calf in one at a neighbors now and I've gotta say I'm impressed - not just with the hair but the appetite and gain and overall freshness of appearance.  I'm not impressed with driving back and forth, even just a few miles, to take care of him though - it does have me reconsidering a cool room of our own.

Dan, I never thought I could justify an aluminum chute either - we were given our first one by a family that I'd helped alot while their kids were showing,  and I've bought another one since.  Well worth every penny - I'm considering an aluminum fan cage... Kinda like four wheel drive on a pickup or a front end loader on a tractor, you don't realize what it's worth 'til you've had your first one for a little while, but after that you'll never want to be without it.

 

[fed_champions]

We used to run a cooler room back before cool calf started up, and we quit because we had 7 steers side by side, one or two of them had great hair, three had average hair and the last two had horrible hair. The only upside to them is a controlled climate that helps the calves with appetite and growth, and keeps them from being as susceptible to disease. All i can say is to keep them at a reasonable temperature so that when you let them out into the heat or take them to a show, it wont be such a shock to the climate change.

 

[Jive Turkey]

we have atleast 5 inches of hair every yr.  <cowboy>

You're lying.

 

[Jive Turkey]

All i can say is to keep them at a reasonable temperature so that when you let them out into the heat or take them to a show, it wont be such a shock to the climate change.

Agree.

People think you need to freeze the cattle out with 40 degree temps.  That's too extreme.

High 50's and even low 60's is good enough.

 

[petejc72]

For someone reason I found a previous posters claim that they had to have "AMAZING" hair to compete hilarious.  Now I'm no midwest show jock but I'd like to think a calf is competitive because its a damn good steer or heifer not because it has "AMAZING " hair. Maybe I should put a Scottish Highland bull on my cows so I can get some amazing hair 

 

[Garrett]

I live in the midwest and no u dont need AMAZING hair to compete but having hair on the calves helps out alot. even if it isnt alot of hair having some good hair that pops goes a long ways in presenting cattle to the judge.

 

[fordkindagirl]

This is a different direction than what I originally posted, but why is it that people think they have to have hair on a cow to present it to the judge? Someone mentioned that a good calf is a good calf no matter what, so why the hair? Just a fad? From what I've seen it is just used to hide faults, so instead of breeding better calves they just use hair to hide faults  ??? I also understand that no calf is perfect, but I think it makes a calf look kinda "fake".

 

[Jive Turkey]

This is a different direction than what I originally posted, but why is it that people think they have to have hair on a cow to present it to the judge?

Why do women wear make-up?

Why do people re-paint or re-side their houses?

Get the idea?

 

[Bradenh]

good point jive turkey. i like the idea of hair on calves because it makes them look better. i hate slick shows but i think they are required down here and are beter for cattle in the heat but. . . come winter prospect season in texas. its hair country and ford kinda girl- take my advice and dont get a cooler if your showing in a slick sheared destination. but if your going to jackpot on the circut. id get to washing and combing because your in for a rude awakening come fall classic or any other show. and there isnt a written definition of why we have hair in shows even in tx jackpots. but better have hair it if you want to win

 

[farmboy]

it wont shock your calves if you adjust them to the temperature in advance. I keep mine at 65 d3egrees for 80 days too

 

[vc]

fordkindagirl, If you have a good one without hair and one comparable with hair, the haired on is going to win, not that they are hiding anything, the calf with hair will be more eye appealing than the one with out.

I do notice that people with out coolers tend to like to argue their use or the need for one.

We did not have one and  the last two years we showed at county, we would have placed higher or won had the calves had more hair. Are calves where in the final drive but the calves they lost to had hair, they were all good calves if they all had the same hair the judge would have had his work cut out for him. The haired calves just had more of that look, that is what hair does for you.

 

[CAB]

If you get a good calf with good hair in the hands of the right artist, they can carve out a masterpiece. On the other hand, give me a good shade tree and a kid that wants to work & we can have a degree of success. It's just real hard to get around a calf that has had good hair and a great fitter in the bigger shows anymore. It just is!! I think that genetics really has more to do with whether a calf can grow good hair or not than anything else does. JMO.

 

[chambero]

As others have alluded to, the real purpose of a cooler is to keep a naturally heavy haired calf - that is being worked with real hard to maximize that hair -  EATING and feeling good.

 

[aj]

OK.....I'll bite......what do coolers cost and who sells them? Seems like the only people making money on this deal is feed sales men and supply people.

 

[justintime]

OK.....I'll bite......what do coolers cost and who sells them? Seems like the only people making money on this deal is feed sales men and supply people.

aj.... don't tell me you don't have a cooler for your calves!!

 

[Okotoks]

OK.....I'll bite......what do coolers cost and who sells them? Seems like the only people making money on this deal is feed sales men and supply people.

aj.... don't tell me you don't have a cooler for your calves!!

I was at JIT's last Jan.1 and the whole place was a cooler! Everything had hair or they would be froze solid.

 

[Hilltop]

OK.....I'll bite......what do coolers cost and who sells them? Seems like the only people making money on this deal is feed sales men and supply people.

aj.... don't tell me you don't have a cooler for your calves!!

I was at JIT's last Jan.1 and the whole place was a cooler! Everything had hair or they would be froze solid.

It was not that cold. Just a little fresh with a slight breeze! ;D

 

[cmmilc62]

At least five inches of hair?  Every year? On every calf?  If you can do that, you could make a fortune selling your secret - five inch long hair is pretty hard to come by no matter what you do... Unless you're measuring the hair in the switch, I guess.Cool rooms are a tool.  Like any other tool, if you get a good one and use it properly it can make your work easier and your results better.  Have one and don't use it right and at best it's just a waste - at worst it can be a train wreck...I've never believed we could justify a cool room.  We have a calf in one at a neighbors now and I've gotta say I'm impressed - not just with the hair but the appetite and gain and overall freshness of appearance.  I'm not impressed with driving back and forth, even just a few miles, to take care of him though - it does have me reconsidering a cool room of our own.Dan, I never thought I could justify an aluminum chute either - we were given our first one by a family that I'd helped alot while their kids were showing,  and I've bought another one since.  Well worth every penny - I'm considering an aluminum fan cage... Kinda like four wheel drive on a pickup or a front end loader on a tractor, you don't realize what it's worth 'til you've had your first one for a little while, but after that you'll never want to be without it.

I guess not that much. Probably atleast 3 inches though. who knows