It’s taken some time for me to know a dialogue I heard at a farmers’ assembly a decade in the past.

The dialogue was concerning the deserves of investing to enhance the weaning proportion of suckler cows to attempt to obtain the 92% weaned (or extra) promoted by the so-called specialists.

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One farmer reckoned it wasn’t value the additional price. I desire issues to be easy and don’t like spending an excessive amount of cash and have by no means been satisfied that additional price mechanically results in extra output.

If farming was about cash, then whoever spent essentially the most on a bull would at all times get the perfect value for his or her calves.

Nevertheless, after a number of years of getting sheep, I’ve realized that now we have to place in additional price for productive sheep.

Now we have joined a flock well being membership and all of the related prices of blood and dung samples, together with additional feeding this 12 months, equal 10% of the worth of our lamb crop – and lambing hasn’t even began but.

Hopefully, will probably be value each penny.

After an extended, moist winter, March got here in “like a lamb”, with good climate. In a single week, the straw was baled and carted in after autumn rain postponed baling final 12 months. We additionally obtained some ploughing executed and slurry unfold. 

Calving was a number of days later in beginning however has been regular as soon as it obtained going. We had 56 cows out of 86 calve within the first 21 days.

One thing that I realized throughout my Nuffield travels was that breeding has much more to do with calving difficulties than feeding does.

I had a bull right here known as Fabregas who went off in 2021 at 9 years previous.

He was reasonable sized, tame, and his calves had been born simply, however he had one fault: too lots of his daughters need assistance at calving.

They’ve loads of room, however their calves are inclined to develop an excessive amount of within the womb. I’ve seemed again at my data and our cows are by 11 totally different bulls.

Calving 2023 is sort of completed and if I exclude twins and breach births, I’ve needed to help seven cows with bigger calves.

All cows have been fed the identical winter weight loss plan. Six are daughters of Fabregas and one is a granddaughter.