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The month of April brings a new dawn to our primary breeding programme for grass based milk production in Ireland.  Early turnout to grass has not been successful on my farm visits in the South.  Land is saturated because of the persistent rain over the winter months.  It is questionable the practice of where dietary […]

1. Ensure excellent transition management for cows calving this month. The opportunity to get April calvers back in calf by the end of July will depend primarily on the health of the cow.   2. Make sure silage and forage are not contaminated by mycotoxins. Buffer feed cows when they are out to grass. The […]

Spring calving programmes are now on average at week six where 70pc of the herd have calved.  In contrast winter breeding programmes will in general finish this week as subsequent services will result in calvings over the Christmas period. Winter breeding programmes have been significantly curtailed this year.  The primary reasons centre on liquid milk […]

1. Turning cows out to grass requires caution so that cows do not loose excess BCS.  Ensure diets are balanced, avoiding digestive upsets as rumen microflora have to adjust to inclusion of grazed grass in the diet.   2. As calf numbers increase in the calf house, there are increased risks of calf scours and […]

This is a busy time of year on spring calving dairy farms.  The hours worked can extend to 18 hours a day for the full week.  There is little opportunity for social outlets.  This is a critical stage in the production cycle of the dairy herd.  The transition outcome for the freshly calved cow will […]

  1. Colostrum management essential to avoid contamination of Johnes.     2. As calf numbers increase, avoid overcrowding, poor ventilation, Coccidiosis and Cryptosporidum. These features will have adverse epigenetic effects on subsequent reproductive performance when heifers are 15 to 18 months of age.     3. Ensure dry cows get fresh water, excellent silage and […]

The calving programme for most spring calving herds will begin this week.  Many farmers book forward to the first cows calving and starting up in the milking parlour.  There will frequently be an early arrival associated with a premature calving or a cow having twins.  Caring for these animals can be a nuisance.  However, each […]

1. Autumn calving cows require reproductive assessment now.  This will enable assessment of herd health status.  Action can be taken reliably on those cows not yet bred and on those cows presumed pregnant.   2. We can assist you get your maiden heifers in calf efficiently.  We can advise on deep horn AI using sexed […]

The autumn of 2013 has been excellent for dairy farming in terms of grazing conditions and milk price.  Current milk price has persuaded many farmers to extend the normal lactation.  There is insufficient regard for body condition score and the requirement for an eight week dry period for mature cows and ten weeks for first […]

Spring calving cows   1. Ensure you have a silage analysis completed with supplemental concentrates to avoid body condition loss during the dry cow period.   2. Group cows if needed according to body condition score.   3. The most reliable method of dry cow management is a small amount of supplemental feed that is […]