104
BY JULIE REED
e have recently been unfortunate enough to experience firsthand the effects of being shut down with TB, after a barrener was found with lesions. This was followed by three reactors going on our check test. All were home reared cows and it was never expected as we are meant to be in a ‘TB free’ area.
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Being shut down could not have come at a worse time for us as we were overloaded with young calves. We had just calved a lot of cows, including eight sets of twins within three weeks, which our vet advised us was due to cows being slightly short of energy back at conception.
It is gutting having to sell our beef calves at between half and a third less than they would have made in a clean market. However, keeping them all isn’t an option, as we just don’t have the space and are not allowed to rent any extra buildings on new holding numbers while under restriction.
Fortunately we had a second test the beginning of October which was all clear. Fingers are well and truly crossed for our next test at the beginning of December. If we pass that then we will be all clear again. Moving onto something more positive and an excellent cow just calved for her fourth time, Strawbridge Baxter Showgirl, has proved she is a bit of a super cow. After being one of the cows who had twins, she then retained her cleansing, got
a twisted gut, then an infected wound from her operation However, somehow two months later she has topped our milk recording at a whooping 73.8 litres, when the herd average is currently 34 litres. I’m pretty sure this is the highest daily yield we have ever had on our farm.
My husband, Chris, is not one to stand still and always wants to push our business forward, so he has thought of a way to fit more cows on our farm. I thought we were at maximum capacity and maybe we could have a little holiday, but no not yet.
Instead we have been busy laying concrete, putting in more cubicles, feeders and a bigger outdoor bulk tank. We have been stupidly busy, but hopefully by the time you read this, it will be all finished and the new cows will be settled in and milking well.
In the mornings, armed with my walkie talkie on baby monitor mode, I try and feed the calves early, before Adam is
HERD FACTS Herd size:
200 cows and 100 followers Average Milk Yield: 11,700kg 3.9% bf, 3.1% p Farm Size: 125 acres FBT and 80 acres rented/ maize contract grown New Technology:
Not much, just hard work and heat time. Whats looking good in the parlour: Recently calved Yardhayes
up. The upside to this is I get to feed them quickly and in peace, the down side is it is pitch black around the calve hutches. After asking for an outdoor light for quite a while, I have resorted to a head torch. I may look a bit daft, but I have both hands free and can see what I’m doing so I’m happy.
In October the three of us went to the South West Dairy Show for the afternoon and for a change I enjoyed watching the interbreed championship while Chris entertained Adam. After tears and tantrums it is safe to say next year we will leave him at his grandparents. We have some good news, baby Reed number two is half way cooked and due at the beginning of March. Fortunately, my nutrition was correct as there is definitely only one of them in there.
Shottle Rolls at 23 months and we are excited about her, we also love our Twist daughters. Whats in the flask: ... beef Flagship Families: Our own family of Harriets, Rolls, Lydia(Lustree), Earle, Yasmin Favourite cow: Yardhayes Bolivia Smut EX90 and Yardhayes Shottle Yasmin VG85. Classification: 21 EX, 55 VG85
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