Steer care is an every day, day- long responsbility
For a family who loves to show, being between shows can be pretty boring and that’s where we are now. October used to be our favorite month to show but almost all of our usual spots have cancelled so we have our sights sets on just one show this month. Whether we show or not there is still a lot of daily care that goes into raising show steers. Here is what our daily routine looks like in the fall.
We start out the day waking up at 6 a. m. and heading to the barn. Our steers run loose all night in the pasture so the first thing we have to do is catch them and put their halters on. Some days this goes easier than others but most of the time they just stand there like big babies. Once we have them haltered, we lead them all out to the wash rack. This gets pretty funny sometimes because they each have their own spot and as soon as one steer leaves the pen, the rest will follow all by themselves and just walk to where we tie them. At the rack, we use our big hair dryers to blow all of the barn dust, sweat and manure out of their hair and then brush in a leave- in conditioner to soften and strengthen their hair coat before we tie them in their pens to eat.
We always tie our steers when they eat and we do it for two reasons. The first reason is because they all eat the same thing but they don’t eat the same amount and if they are tied we can see how much each steer is eating. The other reason is because, at shows they are tied when they eat and we want them to be used to eating with the halter on. But we don’t leave them tied all day, so before we leave for the school bus, we take turns untying cattle and pulling out feed pans. It’s usually in a rush so if there’s ever a time when a gate might get left open, this would be it. Not that I would ever be guilty of something like that.
On the weekends, my sisters and I go back to the barn around the middle of the morning and work hair again. We blow out all of the dust, brush in more conditioner and this time use my favorite tools, the rotobrush. This is just a brush that fits on a cordless drill that goes in a circle. We use this to train the hair on their legs to stand up. After we use it, we fluff them again with the blower which really makes their hair pop and we tie their heads up for a couple of hours. The reason we do this is because at shows our steers have to stand a really long time. They have to stand when they are being fit and then in the show ring and if you do well, they have to stand some more. We tie them for long stretches at home to get them used to standing for the shows. During the week , while we’re at school, we can’t do our midmorning routine but our Dad, who is a Saint, does this for us. ( He made me write the Saint part!)
After school, I’m at football practice but my wonderful sisters ( dad’s words again) do the same thing to the steers that we do in the morning. They get brushed and blowed out and tied back in their pens to eat.
After we eat our supper is when the fun of the day really starts. We take our steers out into the pasture and practice showmanship. I don’t know if it is because my dad always wants us to do it right or because my sisters and I usually get into a fight but if you ask our neighbors, it is never quiet between 6: 30 and 7: 30 in the evening! We walk them around and set them up just like we do in the real show ring and my mom acts like the judge. Because I’m showing two steers, I have to split my time with each of them but they know the drill. I can actually drop Rip’s halter and he will just stand there while I go get my other steer Lloyd. They are really tame!
The last thing we do every day is rinse our steers with cold water and blow them dry. Twice a week we will use shampoo on their hair but the other days it’s just cold water. By rinsing them we train their hair and keep them clean. At the wash rack, it’s usually one part work and one part dance party. We turn up the music and take our time while mom and dad enjoy the show. There’s really nothing as fun as busting out Total Eclipse Of The Heart while using a steer’s tail as a microphone. My mom has the video.
When the concert and rinsing is over, we let them go lay down and eat hay in the pasture until the next morning when we do it all over gain. Our schedule keeps us busy and we never seem to go anywhere but it sure breaks up the boredom until we can get out and go to our next show.