ear to the ground

mf240

Starting now folks,

Conmaicne Mara

Bit tired of the food scandal/traceability pieces.

TITANIUM.

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

Bit tired of the food scandal/traceability pieces.

Ya there quare lazy that Ettg crowd. .....

sea12

TITANIUM. wrote: »

Ya there quare lazy that Ettg crowd. .....

Them cattle didn't look too hungry for that meal.,must have been fed already that day!!

Conmaicne Mara

Kids have to watch ETTG for homework, methinks the sexed semen piece will lead to some delicate questions........

Greengrass1

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

Kids have to watch ETTG for homework, methinks the sexed semen piece will lead to some delicate questions........

I wonder can it be used on humans

TITANIUM.

sea12 wrote: »

Them cattle didn't look too hungry for that meal.,must have been fed already that day!!

They did not. Either they were fed already or there the most laid back cattle in the country.

tanko

I thought the piece on sexed semen was interesting but nobody was willing to say what exactly the conception rate for sexed semen compared to conventional semen is. Surely this information is known now.

I'd be interested in trying it, but I wonder are they hiding bad news about conception rates.

biddy2013

Greengrass1 wrote: »

I wonder can it be used on humans

questuions like that are for the teacher only

on the river

i think the dairy farmers will put the beef farmers out of business with the sexed seman

Bellview

on the river wrote: »

i think the dairy farmers will put the beef farmers out of business with the sexed seman

Agree will be easy work the numbers is basically replace hol bull calves with beef sires... Suckler cow is real risk of being a part history in 3 to 5 years. Tough beef on way as icbf looking at maternal sire crap

Miname

on the river wrote: »

i think the dairy farmers will put the beef farmers out of business with the sexed seman

Or it might just make a good beef farmer up, all depends what way you look at it.

delaval

on the river wrote: »

i think the dairy farmers will put the beef farmers out of business with the sexed seman

???????

Would it not be of value for suckler farmers aswell

Dunedin

Miname wrote: »

Or it might just make a good beef farmer up, all depends what way you look at it.

exactly. It will eliminate the 650 euro cost of keeping suckler cow.

beef farming would be 100% profit as it seems that the cow is the only beef animal that incurs expense

micraX

Missed it tonight was it just about cows and shut or is there anything interesting?

rancher

Dunedin wrote: »

exactly. It will eliminate the 650 euro cost of keeping suckler cow.

beef farming would be 100% profit as it seems that the cow is the only beef animal that incurs expense

When we were allowed use hormones, which gave Friesian calves a potential to be good beef, farmers bid up the price so much that there was no profit.
The last year I reared them they cost £180 when the 2yr olds were getting £750.
Feeding calves will be the same as finishing beef, the animal will cost too much the first day

Conmaicne Mara

micraX wrote: »

Missed it tonight was it just about cows and shut or is there anything interesting?

1st segment was about horse burgers, scientists, abp, etc.

2nd segment was about a butchers in Tipp I think.

3rd segment was about sexed semen.

Eco Eye is well out ahead as a farming programme at the moment.

Zr105

Dunedin wrote: »

exactly. It will eliminate the 650 euro cost of keeping suckler cow.

beef farming would be 100% profit as it seems that the cow is the only beef animal that incurs expense

To a point possibly, but its important to remember that the beef breeds being used atm on dairy cows, such as angus and Hereford, are already commanding a lot more money than Friesian bull calves. Id imagine this price will only go upwards with sexed seamen, win in turn will leave less profit behind, especially when you consider that the bull beef route is pretty much gone and these calves will be half Friesian so possibly wont grade that well as bullocks.

Personally i see that the sexed beef seamen will lead to lads going for more heifers calves as they can either be sold on for replacements or else finished at 20 months or so, and command, currently but seems as if its dropping, a higher price than steer beef

moy83

Would the fr bull calf take much € more to finish compared to a beef breed ?
Like what is the difference in feeding a cow and bringing her beef weanling to finish over milk and nuts and calf price for the dairy breed to finish .
I wonder in 5 years time will lads be saying the dairy calf is robbing us and the suckler cow is as cheap a way of getting a factory animal ?
Will the price of calves , powder milk and nuts go up when lads are trying to put flesh on freisans for a few years .
I dont know any of the answers but it will be interesting to see

crackcrack30

Wouldn't it just fill the country with fresian/dairy heifer calves that wouldn't be a desired calf anyway...


I'd imagine that they would only use this method on the percentage of cows required for replacement....


Wouldn't it all pan out in the end as the increased numbers would bring down todays prices for the desired (fresian) calves...


Looks like a costly straw?....


I could see the requirement for bulls getting a knock or at least a move towards shared bulls....


P.S.... im not in dairy but very interested in this development...

Sam Kade

tanko wrote: »

I thought the piece on sexed semen was interesting but nobody was willing to say what exactly the conception rate for sexed semen compared to conventional semen is. Surely this information is known now.

I'd be interested in trying it, but I wonder are they hiding bad news about conception rates.

I was buying breeding heifers in 2011 and thought about using it to get mostly heifer calves so I did a bit of research back then semen was double the price of a standard straw and conception rate was only 60%. I didn't use it because it was the end of May and they would be March calvers any repeats would make them April calvers.

tanko

Sam Kade wrote: »

I was buying breeding heifers in 2011 and thought about using it to get mostly heifer calves so I did a bit of research back then semen was double the price of a standard straw and conception rate was only 60%. I didn't use it because it was the end of May and they would be March calvers any repeats would make them April calvers.

I do my own Ai and have been getting 80 - 85% in calf on the first service. I thought the lads on the programme were very coy about conception rates saying stuff like on average it worked well and that it should only be used on heifers and on farms with high fertility. That sort of talk doesn't inspire confidence in sexed semen yet. Or am I being too negative about it?

micraX

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

1st segment was about horse burgers, scientists, abp, etc.

2nd segment was about a butchers in Tipp I think.

3rd segment was about sexed semen.

Eco Eye is well out ahead as a farming programme at the moment.

So it was basically all llivestock related? Not watching it so. Yeah seen eco eye the other night, was very good.

Sam Kade

tanko wrote: »

I do my own Ai and have been getting 80 - 85% in calf on the first service. I thought the lads on the programme were very coy about conception rates saying stuff like on average it worked well and that it should only be used on heifers and on farms with high fertility. That sort of talk doesn't inspire confidence in sexed semen yet. Or am I being too negative about it?

That's what thought as well.

Teagasc are saying 75-80% of conventional ai in trials in the US
http://www.teagasc.ie/publications/2013/1902/Dairy_Newsletter_April13.pdf
That would mean you would get around 65% in calf to first service

tanko

According to that, frozen sexed semen gives a conception rate of 75 - 80% of what is achieved with conventional frozen semen. Good to see someone actually put a figure on it. I can't see too many commercial beef farmers using it based on those figures.

Hershall

Though last week was a joke. They were on about the beef crisis (no joke) so they decided to talk with a man with 600 acres and killing bulls under 16 mths. Why not talk to someone with a shed full of bulls coming 24 mths and struggling to get them killed!

Reggie.

Greengrass1 wrote: »

I wonder can it be used on humans

Would you test it out

Greengrass1

Reggie. wrote: »

Would you test it out

When I'm in the market for a young lad I'll enquire about it .

moy83

Greengrass1 wrote: »

When I'm in the market for a young lad I'll enquire about it .

They reckon plenty of bacon and cabbage in the the diet will produce males

Conmaicne Mara

micraX wrote: »

So it was basically all llivestock related? Not watching it so. Yeah seen eco eye the other night, was very good.

The first two segments had a very jaded haven't we seen this before feeling for me, I tuned out to be honest, didn't hold my attention.

The segment on the sexed semen was reasonably interesting, even though it doesn't apply to me.

To contrast I watched Eco Eye with interest.

I am not saying I could do any better, or that they aren't trying but I think ETTG has gone fairly wrong over the past while, from a farmers POV. It can't be easy to put out an interesting programme every week.

Greengrass1

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

The first two segments had a very jaded haven't we seen this before feeling for me, I tuned out to be honest, didn't hold my attention.

The segment on the sexed semen was reasonably interesting, even though it doesn't apply to me.

To contrast I watched Eco Eye with interest.

I am not saying I could do any better, or that they aren't trying but I think ETTG has gone fairly wrong over the past while, from a farmers POV. It can't be easy to put out an interesting programme every week.

Farming Sunday on horse on country is good. Don't know why they can't make a similar programme. There is plenty of programmes on tele for the urbanities.

ETTG got a big slating on twitter two weeks ago over the antibiotic resistance piece they did on the programme

biddy2013

what are the viewing figures like for ettg

Conmaicne Mara

Greengrass1 wrote: »

Farming Sunday on horse on country is good. Don't know why they can't make a similar programme. There is plenty of programmes on tele for the urbanities.

ETTG got a big slating on twitter two weeks ago over the antibiotic resistance piece they did on the programme

I heard that about antibiotic resistance. Though I would be of the opinion IF it's possible to effectively avoid using them, that would be the best course of action. I think it's in everyone's best interests, farmers, vets, doctors, impatient patients and anyone else using antibiotics.

tanko

"Rare breed" on UTV on Monday nite is a very good farming programme. The presenter is never seen, only heard. The three presenters on ETTG seem to think that the programme is all about them.

Darragh McCullough decides to do a feature on suckler farming and goes to a farm of 600 acres, 200 cows and finishing all stock. Hardly a typical suckler farm. He kept asking if suckler farming is finished in Ireland. I thought he was going to wet himself at the prospect of this happening.

Ella's interview with the lad from ABP was embarrassing. Anyone would think they had absolutely nothing to do with the horse meat carry on. Sure it was everybody else's fault seemed to be the attitude.

delaval

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

I heard that about antibiotic resistance. Though I would be of the opinion IF it's possible to effectively avoid using them, that would be the best course of action. I think it's in everyone's best interests, farmers, vets, doctors, impatient patients and anyone else using antibiotics.

I had no problem with the antibiotic piece thought it was interesting. Just cause we don't agree doesn't mean it's wrong. With the exception of Helen Carroll the presenters are crap with McC taking the crown for king of crap

John_F

is this the episode of eco eye people are on about... on teagasc youtube page

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgXXBSVvIC0

brian_t

biddy2013 wrote: »

what are the viewing figures like for ettg

For the Week Ending 16/02/2014

It was the 18th most watched programme on RTE1 with 329,000 viewers (not including the Sunday repeat)

Eco Eye was at 10th with 419,000 viewers

http://www.medialive2.com/television/latest-top-20-programmes/latest-top-20-programmes.html

vcshqkf9rpzgoe

Not enough tractors I think

Loafing Oaf

Former presenter Ronan Clarke has passed away and was buried today:
http://www.farmersjournal.ie/sad-passing-of-former-ear-to-the-ground-presenter-158562/

frazzledhome

Loafing Oaf wrote: »

Former presenter Ronan Clarke has passed away and was buried today:
http://www.farmersjournal.ie/sad-passing-of-former-ear-to-the-ground-presenter-158562/

May he rest in peace, a young man

Loafing Oaf

frazzledhome wrote: »

May he rest in peace, a young man

Indeed, terribly sad story with the trhree young daughters. I didn't know him beyond as a nodding acquaintance at GAA matches but I remember watching his coverage of the foot in mouth crisis back in the day. My mother told me over Christmas that he had cancer and the long-term prognosis wasn't good and sadly that's been borne out.