In the first months of life, it is well understood that calves can be very efficient at converting feed to gain, but are equally very susceptible to digestive upsets that can reduce performance and survivability.
Jon Miller of Hollins Farm has been using Bloom milk replacer for the last two and a half years and says "it is by far the best milk replacer we have been on". The heifers have performed exceptionally well on it and we are having heifers calve down at 24 months yielding 34.6L with the highest achieving 42L at 43 DIM, with a first lactation pregnancy rate of 36.2% and a whole herd pregnancy rate of 29% from heifers that have been reared on Bloom, something which they are immensely proud of.
Rob Noad of Woodhouse Farm says "Stellar is delivering the growth rates we want, and calves do love consistency and routine, so the winning combination of a good milk replacer product fed accurately through an automated machine makes such a difference".
Two thirds of all joint ill cases are caused by the bacteria Streptococcus Dysgalactiae – the same bacteria that causes mastitis in cows. The other third of cases are preventable through adequate colostrum uptake.
Prepare yourself for summer and take a read about the different effects that parasites have on your youngstock and what can be done to reduce the risk both for internal and external parasites.
As cold temperatures remain low, take a read at how Pneumonia impacts on the respiratory system of the calf and what can be done to prevent it.
Great Hares Head dairy farm is run by Alistair, William and Hannah Lawrence, who grew hybrid rye for the first time in 2020 to feed solely as part of the dry cow diet, and saw great results in the clamp.
Managing your ewes effectively in the last eight weeks before lambing is one of the most important stages in the sheep calendar, says experienced sheep consultant Kate Phillips. If things go wrong at this stage the effects will be noticed in the following areas, lamb birth-weight could be low, lamb losses high, colostrum is poor in quality and supplies are below average poor and subsequent lamb growth below target. Thus ensuring the health of the ewe is vitally important.
You have done the hard bit…figured out where you’re going to source calves from, what powder to feed them, and what starter feed is best. Now you are faced with the many options for how to feed the chosen milk powder, and with those options, host a range of costings.
A key factor in producing quality forage is a carefully planned reseeding programme revolving around the core principle that you should aim to reseed 15% of the farm each year.
It is estimated that reseeding costs £250/ acre, making it a major investment, which requires attention to detail throughout the process. The starting point to this is selecting the right grass seed mixture which will suit your end requirements.
We are encouraging our growers to make spring seed decisions early, as popular varieties are likely to be in short supply.
Delayed drilling due to the ‘Beast from the East’ and little rainfall from May to August last year has impacted seed availability for 2019.
