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Brown swiss

  • 16-03-2015 9:47pm
    #1
    johnnyg009
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7 ✭


    Just wondering does anyone know of any farmers keeping PB brown swiss cows looking to get in contact with someone any help would be greatly appreciated and also anyone have any good/bad experiences with the breed?


Comments

  • #2
    johnnyg009
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7 ✭johnnyg009


    Anyone with any info?


  • #3
    brownswiss
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 763 ✭✭✭brownswiss


    http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=77538009


  • #4
    sandydan
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,471 ✭✭✭sandydan


    had a number of hols X fr cross calf heifers but unfortunately due to BSE all went to factory pre- calving, but all were quiet and easygoing no hoof problems anyway by comparison to hols,bull calves sold as good as lim or sim
    know fella had some and was always talking about how quiet they were and easygoing . sorry cant help you further except to say i did not source straws from AI station.


  • #5
    Dawggone
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,506 ✭✭✭Dawggone


    johnnyg009 wrote: »
    Anyone with any info?

    Being meaning to reply...
    Great temperament, goodish feet and good enough solids.

    Won't touch pure hols on milk.
    Fertility is as bad as hols.


  • #6
    milkprofit
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,168 ✭✭✭milkprofit


    Dawggone wrote: »
    Being meaning to reply...
    Great temperament, goodish feet and good enough solids.

    Won't touch pure hols on milk.
    Fertility is as bad as hols.

    Not my experience fertility and feet ex lent good when crossed with Holstein not with
    The British fresian


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  • #7
    djmc
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,611 ✭✭✭djmc


    I would agree with both of ye having milked them for a good 10 years.
    The pure bred are soft enough had lameness issues mastitis and not as good as Holstein fr for milk.
    The crossed breed are hardier no lame ness issues but still not brilliant to milk or last.
    I didn't really have any fertility problems.


  • #8
    johnnyg009
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7 ✭johnnyg009


    Thanks for all your comments lads greatly appreciated


  • #9
    RightTurnClyde
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,141 ✭✭✭RightTurnClyde


    djmc wrote: »
    I would agree with both of ye having milked them for a good 10 years.
    The pure bred are soft enough had lameness issues mastitis and not as good as Holstein fr for milk.
    The crossed breed are hardier no lame ness issues but still not brilliant to milk or last.
    I didn't really have any fertility problems.

    Djmc, what did you cross onto them. I started with 25 here 12 years ago. And actually the last one was just loaded up 10 mins ago. As you said the pure ones were soft but I'm very happy with the crosses. I've been crossing them with Ho. About 30% of the herd are 25% or 50%, they're definitely the best cows I have.. One of the issues I found with bs on a block calving system is length of gestation, always 12-18 days over the average.
    I think with bs is that there's a lot of different variations in the breed, like Br FR to Ho Fr. The true Swiss bs isn't up to much, but you can get very milky cow from other countries.


  • #10
    johnnyg009
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7 ✭johnnyg009


    Anyone know where I could source some PB ones?? Their extremely hard to find


  • #11
    Kovu
    Closed Accounts Posts: 14,241 ✭✭✭✭Kovu


    johnnyg009 wrote: »
    Anyone know where I could source some PB ones?? Their extremely hard to find

    You could try the Brown Swiss Cattle Society secretary on 086 8340976 (if that number still works. Or the UK BS Facebook page has more details- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Brown-Swiss-Cattle-Society-UK/269679026382691?fref=ts
    There's a sale on April 16th if you are interested in importing a couple

    I also see there's an Irish Brown Swiss Cattle Association Limited on solocheck.ie with a Kathleen Kelly & Mervyn Eager as directors. The address is Coolroe, Burncourt, Cahir, Co. Tipperary. Mervyn Eagar is also part of the IHFA & Progressive Genetics so you may be ale to get contact info for him from the IHFA office in Clonakilty on 023 8833443

    Hope that helps :D


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  • #12
    RightTurnClyde
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,141 ✭✭✭RightTurnClyde


    johnnyg009 wrote: »
    Anyone know where I could source some PB ones?? Their extremely hard to find

    That's what finally put me off them. There were a lot brought in from Switzerland but the person who sourced them kept the better ones and flogged the rest.gave them a bad name in this country. The brown Swiss society in Switzerland were not happy. Even good bs semen is hard to get here


  • #13
    sandydan
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,471 ✭✭✭sandydan


    RightTurnClyde wrote: »
    That's what finally put me off them. There were a lot brought in from Switzerland but the person who sourced them kept the better ones and flogged the rest.gave them a bad name in this country. The brown Swiss society in Switzerland were not happy. Even good bs semen is hard to get here
    not involved in dairying now but id totally agree with you and some individuals in position to so do in my opinion were no help sourcing good alternatives in any breed other than HO either either.at time i got semen for brown swiss, Normende , mountbellarde from private importer but he is retired now.,also Castleisland had a dairy Simmental bull called Dolfhie,

    as far as lamenes goes did you consider increasing content of maize meal in dairy nuts. some i know have when price dropped a few years back and claim it reduced the incidence of lameness considerably and that is in FR/HOLs breeds.


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