The 22nd Annual Dakota Feeder Calf Show and Feedout is set to be held on Oct. 17 in Turtle Lake, North Dakota.
The event and program is for producers who are wanting to see how well their calves grow after they have been weaned. Upon arrival, the calves will be exhibited and evaluated.
Following the evaluation, the calves will be transported to the North Dakota State University Carrington Research Extension Center. Here, the calves will be fed out until they hit finished market weight and their progress will be closely monitored. The staff at CRES will record the rate of gain, feeding costs and other data.
“The Dakota Feeder Calf Show is an opportunity for cattle producers throughout North Dakota to consign groups of cattle through a contest and feed out project. Producers get to see how well their calves gain and co-mingle. It’s really a great opportunity for producers to see how their genetics stand up to other producers in the region,” said Karl Hoppe, Extension livestock systems specialist at the CREC.
A number of attributes will be considered when the calves are being evaluated, including overall growth performance in a feedlot, carcass quality and value.
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To be eligible for this event, calves must weigh 500 to 700 pounds. In addition, the calves participating need to be pre-vaccinated for BVD, PI3, IBR and BRSV, Mannheimia, Clostridials and histophilus somni.
Producers are eligible to bring one or two pens of calves, each pen holding three or four calves total. There will be a $20 entry fee per calf to take part of this program. Awards will be given to producers at the conclusion of the trial.
With the program going into its 22nd year, there is no doubt that North Dakota cattle producers find this program beneficial.
“Our cattle guys find real utility in feeding their cattle out to finish and seeing how their genetics and calves perform overall. It has been a very popular program over the years. It’s a great program to see how your cattle will perform, without having to feed all the cattle yourself.” Hoppe said.
For more information, please contact Karl Hoppe by phone at 701‐652‐2951 or by email at karl.hoppe@ndsu.edu.
