"Fit to be Shown"

Last week, I was preparing my yearling heifer for an upcoming cattle show. This preparation consisted of clipping and dyeing her hair. And at the show, I would also be fitting her. So if you aren't involved in the cattle business and on the show circuit, you probably have no idea what I am talking about. So today I am going to show you about show day preparation for beef cattle!

Many of my town and city friends are aware that I am in 4-H and show cattle. What they don't know is all of the work that goes into getting an animal ready, starting from weaning day to the show ring.

First off, let's get a little history on the concept of "fitting". Back in the day, fitting was simply called grooming. Back then, showmen didn't have the modern convieniences that we do today. My grandma recalls drying the cattle and doing all hair training simply by brushing. Definitely makes our work nowadays look easy!



Grandma preparing the bulls to be shown, 1970

 Hardly any show products were available at the time. All of the work to make the hair grow and be trained was done by nothing but brushing. Grandma says it was all elbow grease until you wore out the brush. Though it sounds like hard work, it in fact makes a lot of sense!

I mentioned earlier that I had been dyeing my heifer. In the old days, any sort of dyeing was prohibited, as it was considered changing the appearance of cattle. Today, many are doing it, but only to enhance the animal's natural hair colour.

Nowadays, "fitting" refers to grooming of animals. Back then, fitting was a completely different concept. Fitting referred to putting the proper weight gain and condition on an animal, a skill admired and sought after.

In the 1970's, my grandparents operated the Wise Custom Fitting Service. They prepared many cattle for shows and sales by feeding every animal properly and getting the right amount of condition on them.



Haram Cattle Co., an operation that kept their cattle at my
grandparents place. They fit their sale cattle.

 Fitting was difficult as there weren't the convinient feed supplements and finishing feed as there is today (I will talk more about this later). Fitters had to find other things to give them the edge and put condition and finish. Here I have put a diary entry of my great-grandpa's from 1937 about his search for the perfect supplement.

"Apparently I have not the success I have been looking for fitting show cattle on grain alone. This year I have been trying roots with some success. One thing certain you will not burn your beasts out as with barley."

That year, my great-grandpa fed his cattle roots from turnips and sugar beets, as he mentioned that by just feeding grain alone, you could not achieve the condition and finish that was desirable. Plus, the roots kept the animals healthy and walking. Today, many people still feed their cattle beet pulp, as it is a protein and fills up the animal.

As times evolved, those who were skilled at grooming didn't want to be called "groomers", so they began to use the term of fitting when they referred to themselves. And to this day, the term fitter has remained. Fitting has not only changed in terms of its' name, but also by the skills learned and the products used.

In the 80's, the blower, one of the best inventions was making its mark. Basically, it is a powerful hair dryer used to dry a wet animal and blow out dirt. More show products were coming in as well, such as Slick Black pomade and Sweet Georgia Brown pomade.

In modern days, the number of show products is endless, but the goal of grooming an animal has stayed the same. Hair training is number one! Of course, we have products, like grooming adhesives, styling mousse, and oil to aid us. And clipping is the same as well- taking off unneeded hair to enhance the animal and bring out their beauty.



Grooming adhesive, the
product every fitter relies on



We as fitters have been exposed to so many more products that help us while preparing our animals for show. If we didn't have these products, I think a good deal of us would be lost. While the people of the 60's were rinsing their cattle and brushing them to stimulate hair growth, nowadays we are sticking our cattle in cold rooms to grow hair. It seems that work back then was harder, but really, it is far simpler. My grandma continues to tell me that brushing is the way to go if I want well trained hair on my show cattle, and in fact, it has been the best fitting technique I have learned along the way.

Whatever you choose to call it, fitting or grooming, you got to keep those cattle looking their best!