# growth hormones



## Guest (Apr 29, 2014)

Was wondering what everyones opinons on growth hormones in calves ears. Ive read good and bad. Some say it helps others say itd does nothing. And even some say its unhealthy. What are some opinions from u guys? Good idea?


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## Grateful11 (Apr 5, 2009)

My wife won't touch them, she wants to grow them off as naturally as possible. Personally I think there's too much screwing around with the natural growth process as it is but that's just my opinion.


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## aawhite (Jan 16, 2012)

Your market may dictate, to some extent. If you plan to look at some of the niche markets (all natural, etc.) to market your feeders, you will want to plan ahead.

We saw the same type of thing in the dairy industry with rBST injections. Our co-op buyer said they weren't in favor of producers using it, so we never tried it out. Don't want to turn off your buyers.


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

I do not have enough knowledge to offer an educated opinion. My opinion is that only.

We raise cattle much like I learned from my dad and granddad.

There is a growing stigma attached to growth hormones. We have never used them. I am asked (more accused) by people who see cows grazing in our pastures if we use hormones/steroids or things unnatural. It kind of gets under my skin that people ask this. It seems that unless I grow my own feed that anything I buy as feed is laced with everything ungodly by the public. Even had a Republican ask me.

My general reply is that unlike the chicken they eat and feed their children, my beef is as natural as can be.

I have no problem with the practices of others. I have read where the implants were safe and approved.


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## Grateful11 (Apr 5, 2009)

I guess the one thing that some might consider unnatural that goes into the cows here is the manmade fertilize that goes onto the crops to help produce the food that they eat. A good portion of fertilize here comes from the cows own manure. The hay is grown here, the small grains are grown here and corn is grown here but the pellet protein supplement that goes into the grown feed is produced somewhere else.


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## German Farmer (Apr 14, 2014)

We used the ear ones 20 years ago. Gigantic pain. Large needle, stick it in the calf ear-calf bucks, kicks in head-catch, you polk all the way through, start over in other ear, get half way in and then bucks again, if lucky enough to get in the ear half comes flying back out when you remove the needle. With a squeeze chute and a nose pliers, maybe better but we didn't have them years ago.

I wouldn't use them today if they were easy mainly due to the stigma. 95% of the beef I sell goes direct as 1/4's and 1/2's to people I know and work with and they want natural. I honestly don't treat sick calves much. If I have to give a second shot of medicine, I normally just let mother nature decide. If I do treat, I send to yard normally just so no customer can say I gave them tainted meat.


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## bluefarmer (Oct 10, 2010)

Friend of mine backgrounds calves usually keeps around 500 all the time,had a salesman come by a give him enough to try on about a hundred. He has scales and kept up with it said it wasn't worth the extra time and money it would take


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