With growing forage and buying feed one of the biggest influencers on overall performance and profitability, feeding livestock efficiently is high on the agenda for any beef, dairy or sheep farm. According to AHDB figures: Store beef: Over 21% of variable costs came from feed and forage on average in 2023 Finishing beef: Over 22% […]
Author Archives: Graeme Warnock
05
Jul
Jul
Summer mastitis predominantly occurs during the warm summer months with cattle out at pasture. The disease changes little over the years, affecting the same farms year after year and often just certain fields on those farms. The disease affects non-lactating cows, but can also affect replacement heifers, leading to devastating consequences. Very few affected quarters […]
12
Oct
Oct
Feeding calves – whether beef calves or replacement dairy heifers – is complex and costly. No matter how fine-tuned the system, there’s always opportunity to optimise… Nutrition and housing are the two major impactors on calf performance. Calves need a clean and comfortable environment as well as a consistent and correct nutritional programme to grow […]
22
Sep
Sep
Dairy and beef farmers find themselves in the almost unique positions of having grass banks building up on their farms on a par with what they would expect to be dealing with during the very best spells of spring weather. But irrespective of how good grass growth rates are at the present time, it must […]
17
Feb
Feb
Lambing is looming and it’s the calm before the storm, so to speak. To minimise the storm, we need to use the calm to ensure ewes are in the right body condition. High energy sheep buckets is often just what they need. Is body condition scoring really necessary? Having breeding ewes in the right body […]
27
Oct
Oct
Respiratory problems – such as pneumonia in calves – are most prevalent when temperatures are low and humidity is high. Poor ventilation and direct draughts can also cause calves and sheep to develop respiratory problems. According to AHDB, pneumonia in calves costs the UK cattle industry around £50 million every year. The cost of […]
18
Sep
Sep
Many cases of milk fever can be prevented, by ensuring normal blood magnesium levels are maintained in the dry period. This is particularly true of summer and autumn calving cows which spend their entire dry period at grass, often eating forages with a low available magnesium content. Milk fever (parturient hypocalcaemia) means a lowering of […]
11
Aug
Aug
New research from Aberystwyth University has again confirmed that feeding Crystalyx Extra High Energy to ewes at grass increases the number of lambs born next spring compared to ewes on grass alone. At scanning the Crystalyx fed ewes, in the Aberystwyth University study, had an EXTRA 20% lamb numbers inside them compared to the control […]
22
Jul
Jul
The fly season is in full swing and with it comes the very real threat of breeding heifers and dry cows succumbing to Summer Mastitis. All it takes is a single incursion by an infected fly into the teat canal of a cow or heifer to create the problem. The end result is the severe […]
11
Feb
Feb
With so many different feed blocks and mineral buckets on the market, it is often difficult to determine which product offers the best value in terms of product cost and livestock performance. The cost differential between blocks on the face of it can be quite significant; however, if you scratch the surface and look beyond […]
