Dairy Chit Chat- Please read Mod note in post #1

RightTurnClyde

I didn't say what age or size they were. They're all pre March 15th. They won't be sold or weaned until they're 125kgs. All heifers here are usually 300kgs and bulling pre 12 months.
€180 :):)

Milked out

RightTurnClyde wrote: »

I didn't say what age or size they were. They're all pre March 15th. They won't be sold or weaned until they're 125kgs. All heifers here are usually 300kgs and bulling pre 21 months.
€180 :):)

And I could nearly guarantee you there'll be someone somewhere pay that and more for a may born fr bull in june...

Buford T. Justice XIX

Milked out wrote: »

And I could nearly guarantee you there'll be someone somewhere pay that and more for a may born fr bull in june...

As long as he is buying it off me, I won't complain:p

Milked out

Buford T. Justice V wrote: »

As long as he is buying it off me, I won't complain:p

I think the last two or 3 years the last born fr bulls sold for the highest price, couldn't make sense of it

pedigree 6

RightTurnClyde wrote: »

I didn't say what age or size they were. They're all pre March 15th. They won't be sold or weaned until they're 125kgs. All heifers here are usually 300kgs and bulling pre 21 months.
€180 :):)

You calve them all down at 23-24. I hope?

Some year for anyone wanting to get big numbers dairy stock for small money.
A lot of beef calves will be born next year.

orm0nd

Wildsurfer wrote: »

You wouldn't give €180 for high EBI heifers? If they were only 3 weeks old they'd still be March calves and easily calve down in Feb 2017 with proper managment. How much do you think it's costing you to get your heifers on the ground cause I think this is fantastic value

too young to benefit from grass & to calve @ 2yo will be a bag push

bought top quality calved heifers this year between 1500 & 1650,

In my situation I would make far better use of the land & sheds for 2 winters maybe yours is different... go for it... I won't critize your work

RightTurnClyde

pedigree 6 wrote: »

You calve them all down at 23-24. I hope?

Some year for anyone wanting to get big numbers dairy stock for small money.
A lot of beef calves will be born next year.

Yup, sorry typo, at target weights to calve down at 21 months.
Last few years rather than wean at kgs meal consumed or age, I'm weaning at 125kgs weight. Am getting away with little or no meal till Sept. Meal from Sept to 1st Feb and all heifers bulling well 300kgs by 12months Feb/Mar.

blue5000

Not dairying, but wondering what beef bulls you dairy lads will be using? I hear some ppl round here had problems calving herefords. Calves too big, maybe the heifers they used them on were 2 small. Even 2 yo suckler heifers had problems with them too.

Milked out

blue5000 wrote: »

Not dairying, but wondering what beef bulls you dairy lads will be using? I hear some ppl round here had problems calving herefords. Calves too big, maybe the heifers they used them on were 2 small. Even 2 yo suckler heifers had problems with them too.

AA stock bull with BB, AA and HE beef straws in the pot. Prefer aa on heifers as I find a lot of HE have big heads and doesn't allow heifer to open up while calving, that's my theory anyway. Would use mainly BB on cows then.

visatorro

Cows on last last of first round, around a cover of 2000 on it. Clean out is crap. Dunno what it's going to be like for the rest of the year. I probably should mow it really but too late for that now. Using strip wire and cows stand there balling as if they are starved.

Buford T. Justice XIX

visatorro wrote: »

Cows on last last of first round, around a cover of 2000 on it. Clean out is crap. Dunno what it's going to be like for the rest of the year. I probably should mow it really but too late for that now. Using strip wire and cows stand there balling as if they are starved.

Move them on and bale that paddock next round?

visatorro

Buford T. Justice V wrote: »

Move them on and bale that paddock next round?

That would be the right job. Even if I were to bale it, I dunno who I'd get to bale it anyway. Lads are busy getting maize ground ready so not really an option either.

freedominacup

Buford T. Justice V wrote: »

Move them on and bale that paddock next round?

Move them on and bale it now.

pedigree 6

Interesting article here on MFD. Especially for Irish farmers.
More questions than answers though and cost effective answers that fit in with the grass only diet.
http://www.veterinaryirelandjournal.com/images/la_jan_2016.pdf

Edit: Take your time and read it.

Sam Kade

Milked out wrote: »

I think the last two or 3 years the last born fr bulls sold for the highest price, couldn't make sense of it

Ah but they will be the early next year calves

Buford T. Justice XIX

freedominacup wrote: »

Move them on and bale it now.

....and drive the neighbours insane:D

Sam Kade

pedigree 6 wrote: »

You calve them all down at 23-24. I hope?

Some year for anyone wanting to get big numbers dairy stock for small money.
A lot of beef calves will be born next year.

Where would I buy cheap maiden heifers, plenty average maiden heifers on done deal looking for stupid money for them.

pedigree 6

Sam Kade wrote: »

Where would I buy cheap maiden heifers, plenty average maiden heifers on done deal looking for stupid money for them.

Can't help you in that regard. First year that have heifer calves to sell and going by prices quoted here. I think I might hold on to them for another while.

pedigree 6

Milk test results just there now.
Bfat 3.94
Pr 3.26

Bf gone up here. Cows are grazing ground with a heavy cover on it.

Timmaay

Cows on 36hr blocks at the min, protein hit 3.56 last collection, that's a new record for springtime here! But like the rest of yas, Bf crash from 4.11 last collection to 3.76 ugh!

pedigree 6

Timmaay wrote: »

Cows on 36hr blocks at the min, protein hit 3.56 last collection, that's a new record for springtime here! But like the rest of yas, Bf crash from 4.11 last collection to 3.76 ugh!

Was silage in diet for the 4.11% test?

Timmaay

pedigree 6 wrote: »

Was silage in diet for the 4.11% test?

Don't think so unless they picked abit from the feed passage which is doubling up as the dry cow housing and holding yard depending on which side of the farm the milkers on. But if they did it was no more than a kg or so. Pr up from 3.42 so payment wise I'm only slightly down (1kg of protein pays the same as about 1.7kg of bf)

freedominacup

Timmaay wrote: »

Cows on 36hr blocks at the min, protein hit 3.56 last collection, that's a new record for springtime here! But like the rest of yas, Bf crash from 4.11 last collection to 3.76 ugh!

When you see how well they go on 36hr breaks you'd wonder what you were at with all those reels over the years. I've a block up next that looks to have around 48 hrs on it and I'm just going to let them off on it tomorrow evening and see how it goes. Teagasc advisor was advising against it during the week as he reckoned you'd be into hitting regrowth territory. Lots of wires to come down. A few new troughs to go in but rigid paddock sized are on the way out here.

mf240

Butterfat 3.77 protein 3.45 up from 3.27 two collections ago while in at night on lucky bags.

Just over 30 litres. With a few stale cows in the mix.

SCC 244 which isn't great.

Sam Kade

My scc is 47k-60k had a bit of a mishap earlier on with a fresh Calver she drove bulk tank scc to 480 but quickly came back down.

mf240

Sam Kade wrote: »

My scc is 47k-60k had a bit of a mishap earlier on with a fresh Calver she drove bulk tank scc to 480 but quickly came back down.

Thats good going.

jaymla627

freedominacup wrote: »

When you see how well they go on 36hr breaks you'd wonder what you were at with all those reels over the years. I've a block up next that looks to have around 48 hrs on it and I'm just going to let them off on it tomorrow evening and see how it goes. Teagasc advisor was advising against it during the week as he reckoned you'd be into hitting regrowth territory. Lots of wires to come down. A few new troughs to go in but rigid paddock sized are on the way out here.

Cows religiously get 12 hour block here, fresh grass every grazing....
Never have been able to get over the idea of letting cows out on to 24/36 hour breaks and excepting them to eat down swards right, when you take into account what they're dunging on/walking into the ground; it's like you eating your dinner three times over on the third day and it going through the microwave everytime haha

kowtow

RightTurnClyde wrote:

Kowtow are you really looking for heifer calves. 55 heifers here, want to sell 15-20 of them

Yup, looking for a handful of heifer calves and a handful of maidens or just served heifers.... might even take a fresh calved late heifer or young cow. We're only after small numbers, six or eight in total. Good looking quiet b+w for preference with decent solids.

Bought a couple this week but not in any great rush, will probably take a drive up the country at the back end of next week.

Timmaay

jaymla627 wrote: »

Cows religiously get 12 hour block here, fresh grass every grazing....
Never have been able to get over the idea of letting cows out on to 24/36 hour breaks and excepting them to eat down swards right, when you take into account what they're dunging on/walking into the ground; it's like you eating your dinner three times over on the third day and it going through the microwave everytime haha

12hr blocks are fine if your buffer feeding, but otherwise it's impossible to match the area with the demand exactly, your always either underfeeding the cows or something left behind, on 36hr blocks you only push the cows every 3rd grazing, or sometimes you do like I'm doing today, give the cows 1/2 a 4th grazing to fully clean out and move them on at lunchtime. Cows back to 2kg of nuts in the parlour here also.

Milked out

Timmaay wrote: »

12hr blocks are fine if your buffer feeding, but otherwise it's impossible to match the area with the demand exactly, your always either underfeeding the cows or something left behind, on 36hr blocks you only push the cows every 3rd grazing, or sometimes you do like I'm doing today, give the cows 1/2 a 4th grazing to fully clean out and move them on at lunchtime. Cows back to 2kg of nuts in the parlour here also.

Wouldn't say impossible Tim but more margin for error alrite. With strip wire here would give them a bit more for first grazing and leave em tidy it up over second or third or depending on paddock sizes may alternate day and night time grazing depending on what's left. Will try 36 and 48 hrs blocks on some paddocks this year but heavier ground wouldn't suit it as the "giving out" walking on the last grazing would possibly do more damage and walking the whole field in first grazings would dirty or lose more grass than on dry paddocks