1. Overblanketing Too Soon
A chilly morning doesn't necessarily mean your animal needs every blanket you own.
Fall temperatures can change dramatically throughout the day. What feels cold at 6 a.m. may turn into a warm afternoon, especially in September and early October. Pay attention to the actual conditions, your animal, its coat, housing, and how temperatures are expected to change throughout the day.
If you use blankets, check animals regularly and adjust as conditions change. You don't want an animal becoming unnecessarily hot or sweaty underneath a blanket as the day warms up.
2. Assuming They Don't Need as Much Water
Cooler weather may make livestock appear less thirsty than they were during the heat of summer, but access to fresh, clean water remains essential.
Don't let cooler temperatures cause you to get lax about checking buckets, tanks, and waterers. Continue monitoring water consumption and keeping water sources clean.
Fall show season can still involve exercise, hauling, long days at the fairgrounds, and major temperature swings. Make hydration part of your routine regardless of what the thermometer says.
3. Closing the Barn Up Too Tightly
When temperatures drop, your first instinct may be to shut every door and window to keep the cold air out. But airflow still matters.
Closing a barn too tightly can trap moisture, odors, dust, and ammonia from urine and manure. Instead of focusing solely on keeping cold air out, make sure your animals have a dry, clean environment with appropriate ventilation while still being protected from harsh drafts.
This is also where SciZyme can become a valuable part of your fall barn routine. SciZyme is a concentrated enzyme-based product designed to help control organic odors and ammonia associated with animal waste. It can be used in barns, stalls, bedding areas, holding pens, trucks, trailers, and other livestock areas.
For stalls and show cattle cool rooms, Flextran recommends removing urine-soaked bedding and manure, then applying SciZyme on and under the surrounding bedding to help prevent ammonia buildup. Keeping up with both cleaning and ammonia control can help create a fresher, more pleasant environment for you and your show animals.
Don't just close up the barn when temperatures drop—keep it clean, ventilated, and stay ahead of ammonia buildup.
4. Skipping Skin Checks Because Their Coat Is Changing
This is a big one for showmen.
As coats change and animals grow more hair, it can become easier to overlook what's happening underneath. Make hands-on skin checks part of your regular grooming routine.
Pay attention to unusual hair loss, flaky or irritated areas, scabs, lesions, scratches, or other changes. Check commonly overlooked areas and don't rely solely on what you can see from a distance.
This is also a good time to stay consistent with your grooming and cleaning routine. Ring Out Shampoo can be incorporated into your livestock grooming program to help keep animals clean while you regularly inspect their skin and coat.
Fall show season also means animals may be around unfamiliar livestock, stalls, trailers, wash racks, and equipment. Keeping grooming supplies clean and avoiding unnecessary sharing between animals are simple habits worth maintaining.
5. Changing Everything at Once
The weather changed—your entire program doesn't have to.
Suddenly changing feed, exercise, grooming, housing, blanketing, and other parts of your routine at the same time can make it harder to determine what is or isn't working for your animal.
Make adjustments thoughtfully and based on the individual animal and conditions.
Your show animals thrive on consistency. Continue practicing showmanship, monitoring body condition, checking skin and feet, grooming regularly, providing clean water, and paying attention to the little details.
