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Cogent’s Precision technology is used to detect heats in bulling heifers to allow efficient use of AI.
feet and legs, with good udder and dairy strength. We are on a white water contract with Medina. As part of a group of 30 farmers we’ve been selling to them for almost seven years. Components haven’t been something we’ve followed, but the possible move to A and B quotas has meant I’m looking at kilograms of fat, currently we average 3.6%bf and 3.2%p.” Although the herd is no longer shown, the herd had success in the South and Wiltshire herd competition in 2014, winning the best large herd and overall herd. Eastknook Bolton Pamela also won best cow in the summer herd competition. One of Richard’s favourite families are the Raquel’s tracing back to Boltonmanor Tab Raquel VG88 who was purchased in Canada and completed 125t in
Richard uses chalk to easily identify pregnant and empty cows.
11 lactations. She bred an EX92 Broker who is dam of a Prelude daughter that classified VG86 and gave 110t. The Prelude herself bred a Shottle daughter classified VG88 in the herd and has daughters by Goldwyn classified VG86, Iota and Fever. She calved at 22 months and went VG86 at 23 months. All three daughters had heifer calves by Bookem in 2015. In four years the Goldwyn has produced four heifer calves, regularly calving in February. Her daughters are by Sanchez, Stanleycup, End-Story and Bookem.
Eastknook Stanleycup Gem 2 is Richard’s favourite heifer in the herd at the moment and is out of an EX91 Shottle who is still in the herd, as well as an EX94 Forbidden. “The Gem family is the most consistent
Keeping the number of days in milk down means cows can be dried off giving between 35kg and 40kg. They are then fed hay for four weeks to dry them up quickly.
family going back to original cows purchased when the herd bought in to black and whites.” Recently, calves have moved in to hutches to manage them better as increased old facilities couldn’t handle the numbers. The Pottows chose hutches as a healthier option to the outdated old system. Calves receive four litres of colostrum within six hours of birth and are then fed twice a day. “We are always trying to improve the system to make facilities the best possible and allow our animals to achieve their best potential at every stage. In the future there is every possibility we will need to consider expanding the herd, but only if we have enough land available to grow feed,” Richard adds.
The first shed was built on a green field site in 2012, but there is now housing for 415 cows on deep sand cubicles.
HERD FACTS
Average milk yield: 12,500 litres sold - Voluntary waiting period: 42 days from calving Average days to conception: 108 - Calving interval: 388 - Pregnancy rate: 23%
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