OG's Egg Drench

[Honey Tree]

Show season is starting up and people will be looking for OG's Egg Drench.  Below is a reply to a post on MyLamb by Gail Christian on his egg drench. 


Sheep1..I will be happy to give the mixing and feeding instructions of the "original egg and honey" drench as given to me by Prater Gibbs about 25 years ago..As I have mentioned on this forum and BW forum several times, Prater stated the original drench was formulated by a football coach at a school where he was teaching..seems the coach had his players drink it as an energy drench..I know my coach had us drink raw eggs and honey before track meets as an energy drink..this would be "old school" today due to the multitude of "power drinks" and supplements that are out there...Here again, this drench can be changed up to fit individual needs and there are many varations of it I'm sure...I added the b-12 to the drench after having used the original formula for several years..B-12 does make it bitter and several shows have now eliminated the use of drench guns, so I have stated that if that be the case to leave the B-12 out of it..The reason I added B-12 to it was I noticed from using B-12 as a vaccine and orally, we got an immediate increase in appetite and a lot of energy, therefore, 2-3 days before shows, we would add it to the drench for added energy...Here is the original list of ingredients and then I will list changes at the end and the reason for the changes...30 eggs, one 12 oz. can of Pet milk,24 oz. of water, 4 oz of Mazzola Brand Corn oil, 4 oz. of honey, 4 oz of chocolate flavored ovaltine. mix ingredients with blender,mixer, or ladle..if using the old original backpack drench gun, you have to mix with blender or the egg whites will stop up the gun..if using the commercial hand held drench gun that you just draw the product up into, you can just mix with mixer or with a ladle..Now for the important information and read this close...Due to the fact that raw egg might possess salamonella bacteria,you should keep the product under refigeration or in an ice chest with ice or extremely cold water..if ice melts, water warms up, then discard the product..Also, because of extensive drug testing on the part of some shows, if you use chocolate flavored ovaltine, it could show up because of the caffeine in chocolate and caffeine is a stimulant..if your show drug test, then we recommend using the decafinated brand..if you cannot find decaf. then use vanilla, strawberry ,etc.but use common sense and read the label to see if it has any caffeine in it.These products are like aspirin, some aspirin has caffeine in it, some does not..you have to read the label...I have recently been telling people to be on the safe side, just leave out the ovaltine and add 2-3 more ounces of honey..The purpose of the chocolate was to give it flavor..the purpose of caffeine was to stimulate or give energy..some people have to have the morning cup of coffee to get their day started...personally, I don't drink coffee, because I am diabetic and caffeine turns other things that I consume into sugar, but sugar equals energy...Feeding instructions..This can really vary due to the frame type and body condition of the animal you are feeding it to(we didn't just feed it to lambs, but to our show barrows and gilts, beef steers and heifers, and meat goats)..on lambs we normally would start it about 7 days before the show, however, it might be longer, or in some cases, only start 3-4 days before the show..again, body type and condition would enter into this..We fed our grain wet to lambs and we used 10 oz. of water, therefore we use 10 oz as a bench mark for the egg mix and instead of putting 10 oz of water on our ration twice per day, we would put 10 oz. of the egg and honey...if lambs needed more than this to retore their tops over the rack and loin, then we simply would drench the mixture..again, using up to 10 oz. per drenching...might use only 3-4 oz. if top and loin was not a problem..On lambs that had some middle, or if we wanted to lower weight classification without wrecking the lamb, we would cut grain ration,usually in half, about 5-7 days before the show, then give the lamb 10 oz of the drench, usually 3-5 times in a 24 hr. period..When you cut grain ration, the first thing you loze is muscle, therefore, you have to compensate this loss with something to restore or maintain the muscle...that is why it sure helped on medium framed, heavily muscle lambs that had a middle..we just cut ration, added egg and honey, hand watered using water with electrolytes in it and middle was no longer a problem..In rare instances, if we gave too much, the lambs might scour, we simply just gave 36 cc of Pepto Bismol or Kaopetec..we used a 12 cc syringe with needle removed to drench with..Now, if their is anyting in Pepto Bismol or Kaopetec that could cause your animal to fail a drug test, I'm not aware of it..But, here agin, I always caution you to use common sense, in this case, contact your veterinarian..A good vet to contact and I'm sure Purple Circle readers would agree would be Dr. Bo Knowles, who writes the "In the know with Dr. Bo" articles for that magazine...I do know this, Pepto and Kao. will dry them up in a hurry..sometimes they might bloat if given large amounts of themixture..again, we would dissolve 3-4 alkaselter tablets in about 2 oz of water, drench and they would go down in about 15 minutes...again, not for sure if alka-seltzer could get you kicked out, therefore, contact your vet....More on usage...if we were jackpotting certain animals frequently, we would give them 10 oz. twice per day over their feed, throughout the feeding period or jackpot season...When I added B-12 to the mixture, I put 35 cc in it..the ingredients will make about one gallon..we stored it in plastic jugs such as milk or juice jugs..and hauled it to shows, usually in 5 gallon plastic containers..we or I should say my FFA moms usually did this mixing while we were clipping lambs...Now to my feelings about this product as compared to other products, especially commercial products...The only commercial product I ever used was a product formulated for human consumption and that being Ensure..We did buy a jug or two of the original showshake that was sold comercially..did not see any added benefits and it was a lot more expensive...Now I want to EMPHASISE, I have nothing against the use of Commercial products..There are many out there and I'm sure some of them are excellent products that help the exhibitor to achieve the success they are looking for..I do not want this to become a debate of egg shake/VS commercial products.. upon my retirement and move to the city, I purchased a computer, at the urging of a little grandson. I became familiar with Breeders World and one day someone posted if anyone knew of any good "homemade" show shake recipes..Since I had used the egg and honey shake with success for many years, I posted the ingredients..since that original posting, I have received over 400 emails concerning this shake..I have answered each one of them to the best of my knowledge and ability..Larry Carter, KyHamp, introduced me to this site, MyLamb, several months ago..I'm very grateful to Larry for telling me about it..It is a forum that can be very benificial to our youth, and their parents, involved in the junior livestock program..We as contributors have to be positive in our comments..we have to tell the truth and sometimes we have to use "constructive critism", but it all has to be from a positive standpoint..I have no secrets..when I was an FFA advisor/breeder, if I heard of something or if I was the originator of an idea and it was legal, and it helped exhibitors/breeders achieve their objective, then I was always willing to share, at no cost..This may or may not be an admirable trait, but this is just the way I am and people who really know me, know this is the truth..In closing, I would hope we can"lie to rest" any debate about the egg shake/VS/Final secret, etc.,because it serves no purpose..If someone ask me how to use the egg shake, I will respond. but I do not want anyone to believe that I think it is the only product out there that is any good..I just have not had any personal experience with the use of the othe products...Fair enough?...gail christian

[Bigiron59]

I have not seen a "competitive" feeder at any "competitive" show using this in years. In many places it is violation of rules.  Far better, cheaper, and science based products that actually work out there. It's time to put this one in the basement other the rest of grandpa's antiques.

[Chho35]

BigIron, what are some other products that give same/better results?

[Bigiron59]

Any of the honor show feed products, fitters outpost makes a powdered product.  Standalone has something that is evidentry working.  I belive Sarah Brister has products. NRG and blulyte,  the list goes one. No need to mess with raw eggs,which do not work and have absolutely no value to  ruminate.  Which is why they get the scour.
Fast fat . Almost all show feed manufactures have a top dress that works. As well as many other options.  If you need a drench gun in today's feed game, your gonna be looking at the drive from the bleachers.

[Chho35]

Thank you.

[Hansen]

Almost all show feed manufactures have a top dress that works. As well as many other options.  If you need a drench gun in today's feed game, your gonna be looking at the drive from the bleachers.

Unfortunately I would totally disagree Shane. I am not sure how competitive the shows are in Alton, Iowa but I'll say that if you can't run a drench gun in Texas you will be looking at the drive from the bleachers.  Show feeds and products have come a long way but it is still nice to be able to manage one at a show with a drench gun.  I would venture to say there are more folks that use egg drench or a variation of it, than those who don't use a drench gun at all in Texas.. Just my two cents. 

[MizLiz]

It would be interesting to find out the nutritional values of the egg drench. Protein, fat, etc. I would think that if body builders are still drinking raw egg smoothies that raw eggs still have a benefit. Though they are messy and carry some salmonella risk. And the cost difference between the GC Drench and those packaged/pelleted/powdered products. A gallon of dyne runs 45. 30 eggs seems cheaper. Granted I've never used it cause my barns never had fridges so I guess I can't talk, but it seems it would still be relevant.

[Bigiron59]

Glad you weighed in Josh.  That one we bred and helped feed that was unbeaten in breed at County, District, and state fair and won Aksarben  in her drive  was probably "good enough". And she would have done fine down there in your world as well. And in " our little corner or paradise " using a drench gun will get you 2 years on the bleachers.
And that "egg drench " here is a violation of the drug affidavits that every kid must sign.  All of the 'labeled' products will pass.   
Can we wet feed ? Yes
Can we compete with out a drench gun ? Obviously 
And I belive Antony Cochran had an analyzed the raw egg drench. It's not want you think it will be
Body builders may still drink raw eggs. However a sheep's digestive system is completely different than a person. And the fact for either, is that the albumin in the eggs must be heated to allow the protein to  be untilized to any degree. Other wise it passes through the digestive tract unused.  It's makes a nice  movie though.
My point was that I would hope that new feeders would utilize new technology  to feed lambs.
  But as usual it becomes a topic about the North versus the south and how non competing the north is and how the south needs a drench gun. 
I will leave it at that.

[Don Drewry]

Josh, I think the upper Midwest lambs hold their own when shown at national competitions against the Texas lambs that show up.  I think it would be sufficient to say both areas produce and show great looking lambs.

I've not been to a Texas show, years ago when my son showed at Kansas City they had a rule against drenching.  Near as I could tell, the rule was interpreted to be, "thou shalt not actually drench your lamb in the show ring, however no one cares if you drench in the wash rack, in front of your pen, or the on deck area". The families I've seen that consistently win certainly have some products they use a show day and show week.  We don't have any obvious drenching of lambs at our state shows much like BI stated.  But, it's pretty easy to get the lambs to eat the egg drench on their own.  When my kids showed I decided I liked the handle of the lambs a little bit better with the egg drench than the dyne drench.  Given some of the legal alternatives now, I'm not sure if would be my choice still or not.  BUT I do think the egg drench makes a difference between not using anything and using it.  So while, I'm not qualified to tell BI if the lambs can or can't digest the egg protein, I can tell you if you start drenching with the egg drench compared to just feeding a quality show feed you will have judges start commenting about the big tops and fresh handle your lambs have.  I'm quite convinced the product makes a difference.

[Hansen]

Lol Shane and Don, I'm not sure how this turned to a North vs. South debate.  I agree that both areas certainly produce great lambs.  Shane I'm not even sure what sheep you are referring to?

I was simply pointing out that being competitive at your local county fair does not make you an expert feeder that can advise against a drench gun.  As far as the egg drench I'm not commenting on whether or not it will or will not test out.  I have no idea if it will.  I will say that before Anthony made Egg Drench Made Simple I bad been through plenty of drug tests and always got my checks.  The point here is that most competitive feeders from California to New York and Iowa to Texas use a drench gun.

Wet feeding is great! But what about one that goes off feed at the last minute? Sure is nice to be able to hold them together with a drench gun and some type of meal replacement shake. 

[FittersOutpost]

During the development of our Egg Drench Made Simple I actually had the homemade egg drench analyized.  The results were;  31% protein , 37 % fat, the guaranteed analysis on our Egg Drench Made Simple is the same.  All ingredients in Egg Drench Made Simple are FDA approved and it is licensed for cattle, sheep, goats and swine. 

[Bigiron59]

Josh, you questioned the  "competition" in my area.  I did not bring that up. We live in different worlds.
But I did breed one that was "competitive" enough to win a couple "pretty big" shows.  You can look her up on my website site. It's listed on champion drive. She's white.
And she beat some pretty impressive black sheep at other shows.
 She was never drenched.  And passing a drug test,  has nothing to do with winning. Not sure how that got brought in.
It's simply the fact that they you can not use a drench gun here. Or muzzles. 
So get your feed game on. Will always be the advocate that needs a drench gun to "keep one together" cause it went "off feed".
Well maybe if your feed program was better, and you were not depending on a drench program , the lamb would not have gone "off feed".
We live in different worlds.
The OP was advocating for an antiquated feeding program
That was my only point.
In today's feed market , there are plenty of good feed programs. Why don't people feed to win, instead of feed to rely on a antiquated program at the end.
If I am not Mistaken, don't you market some feed program you developed?
Or is the "egg drench" part of that regime?
This is not about you or me. Or who is a better feeder or breeder. Or who is better North or south. Your the one that called me out for not living in a "competitive " area.

I simply am telling a young feeder , that better options really exist.  And they would be better served to look at those.
 
 

[EmsoffLambs]

Let's keep things civil. I don't see that anyone called anyone out or questioned the level of competition in any area. Josh said, "I am not sure how competitive the shows are in Alton, Iowa." I suppose if you were inclined, you could view that as an insult or you could just give him the benefit of the doubt that it was simply a statement of fact, that he really doesn't know.

I personally have only used the egg drench once on a couple sale lambs and it did seem to have them handling fresher and fuller over their tops. I may well try it again this year. I will say that the people that I know that are winning big and consistently, not just one show or with one lamb, but multiple shows with multiple lambs are using drenches. Not necessarily the egg drench, but something. And this is in California, if that matters.

[Hansen]

And that "egg drench " here is a violation of the drug affidavits that every kid must sign.  All of the 'labeled' products will pass.   

This is where having a drug test was brought in. You stated that the egg drench was a violation of the drug affidavits.  I simply said that I have used it and have been drug tested while on it and never seemed to have a problem. 

I didn't say that any of mine have went off feed or that we depend on drench programs. I did say that it sure is nice, in the case that it happens, to be able to hold one together.  I think suggesting that a proven drench is antiquated is a bit of a stretch. I guess dyne, wheat germ oil, soy bean meal, etc. have all been around for a while so they are probably antiquated as well, right? 

We do market a feed program that works really well for us, but that has nothing to do with the original post.  We were sick and tired of using one of the "newest" feeds that was supposed to have all the bells and whistles only to go to the feed troughs every day and dump out all of the "bells and whistles" because they wouldn't eat the pellet. That was a true case of sheep going off of feed and needing a drench program to hold them together - what a disaster - glad we are past that point. 

I think the only real point I got out of your post is that we do live in dfferent worlds.

To crystals post - I honestly had no idea what the level of competition is in your area. What I merely said was that if you didn't understand how to use a drench gun in Texas, you'd probably be watching the show from the stands, and I'll stand behind that statement. 

You're right, this isn't about you or me - this is about making sure they everyone gets a fair shot at being competitive in their respective areas. Just because you didn't like the results of a particular drench program or regimine doesn't mean that someone else won't love the results. My best advice to anyone else reading this thread, find someone in your area that is consistently at the backdrop and ask them for advice.  Most of the folks I've met in this industry are willing to help out.   

[Honey Tree]

The reason I posted the information on the egg drench was because there will be people who will look for it and I wanted to make it simple to find.  I realize that some will love it, some may hate it and some won't care either way.  Everyone is certainly able to weigh in with what they like as an alternative or what they like or dislike about this recipe but I didn't put it here to create enemies.  The solution may just be to agree to disagree.