Will you have enough feed for winter 2017?

whelan2

Cows are in now full time. If it dries up a bit I will let them back out.I have enough silage and straw hopefully to see me through. So have you enough feed for this winter?

john mayo 10

Just about id say. Cows still out and hopefully stay out for a few more weeks

Limestone Cowboy

I don't think so, would have if I wasn't stuck with all the weanlings for the winter. A lot depends on the weather in spring but the winter has started very early for us .

kk.man

I have never saw as much feed saved around us. Grassnever stopped growing lads couldn't control it even after taking a cut out
When I look into farms as I drive passed I say to myself contractors must have big bank accounts this year.

George Sunsnow

If this type of weather persists we’ll consider housing all the dry stock here
That’s never happened before,so it is play it by ear
This is normally a very dry farm
The earliest the cows were ever in here in the last decade was nov 27th 2010 and that’s because snow was forecast on the east coast the next day and sure enough it came

Aiming to have the cows out at least by day until the first week in December as usual weather permitting
The very dry Summer in east Wicklow while a distant memory now has stood to us in terms of the ground (so far) away from mucky gaps,being able to cope with the recent frequent heavy rains

Lady Haywire

We're lucky that we always only take the one cut as we feel our ground is too wet for two especially if a wet summer occurs like this one. Plus, ya know, our 6 month winter period so we have to plan for a long winter!
So we got all ours in July, also swapped two fields of grass with our contractor for another 15 bales & have 30 or so leftover from last year so we've too much. Will prob consider donating some if the need for it arises.

patsy_mccabe

I wont that's for sure. Had a few bales left from last year so when a dry spell came around, I cut the silage a little early and it was a little on the light side. Quality was better though. Weather might improve again. I had some out till 31 Dec last year.

Who2

housed all that was out today. i'll scrape through i'd say. ive cover across a lot of the ground but i'm not going to chance turning whats there into soup. its the earliest winter i've ever had. I don't have room for a rat in the sheds here and i dont feel like throwing away the cattle either.

Robson99

Who2 wrote: »

housed all that was out today. i'll scrape through i'd say. ive cover across a lot of the ground but i'm not going to chance turning whats there into soup. its the earliest winter i've ever had. I don't have room for a rat in the sheds here and i dont feel like throwing away the cattle either.

Could work out better getting rid of some of them now rather than having to pay big money for bales in the spring or begging for them.

Robson99

Silage id imagine will make €30+ per bale come March in the West.
I wont be having a lot of sympathy for anyone who has to buy it at that. A lot haven't learned from the last bad Winter and are still overstocked and dont make enough provisions for an extended winter period.

charolais0153

Will have enough. All cows housed 6 or seven weanlings still out

I said

Yeah two cuts made here all bales have plenty of grass in front of cattle ground in ****e will be in the next 2/3 weeks

Who2

Robson99 wrote: »

Could work out better getting rid of some of them now rather than having to pay big money for bales in the spring or begging for them.

i wont be begging or paying big money, as i said ive just enough. a bit of extra meal to stretch isnt going to close the shop on me, if things turn really bad.

croot

Robson99 wrote: »

Silage id imagine will make €30+ per bale come March in the West.
I wont be having a lot of sympathy for anyone who has to buy it at that. A lot haven't learned from the last bad Winter and are still overstocked and dont make enough provisions for an extended winter period.

That’s one lousy attitude to have. Farmers around here couldn’t get in to cut since the beginning of August because of non stop rain but you go right ahead and judge people.

Lady Haywire

croot wrote: »

That’s one lousy attitude to have. Farmers around here couldn’t get in to cut since the beginning of August because of non stop rain but you go right ahead and judge people.

+1, I seen people with cattle housed in August. How were they supposed to get out in meadows in July. It's not that they couldn't make provisions for an extended winter period, it's that they couldn't make provisions full stop.

Robson99

Who2 wrote: »

i wont be begging or paying big money, as i said ive just enough. a bit of extra meal to stretch isnt going to close the shop on me, if things turn really bad.

Its often the cheapest form of feed

cashcow

Lady Haywire wrote: »

+1, I seen people with cattle housed in August. How were they supposed to get out in meadows in July. It's not that they couldn't make provisions for an extended winter period, it's that they couldn't make provisions full stop.

I deal with farmers in Waterford and wexford on a daily basis and when it comes to discussing farming they have no idea of the weather conditions the north west of the country have to deal with year round.they think we're crazy housing animals until May and June

Robson99

croot wrote: »

That’s one lousy attitude to have. Farmers around here couldn’t get in to cut since the beginning of August because of non stop rain but you go right ahead and judge people.

I'm not painting all with the one brush but now is the time to make sure you have enough . There is no one feeling sorry for lads having to give €20+ for a round bale of straw now or feeling sorry for finishers getting sub €3.90 for beef. Why would I feel sorry for lads who are overstocked and haven't enough winter feed. Solution buy some feed or sell some stock

The part time boy

I say I be short. Had to house everything today. Never had them in so early nearly a month early .

2nd cut went crazy late so no after grass. That's lost me 4 to 6 weeks grazing .

Plan to cut back stock , feed more nuts , pick up few bails locally and hopefully the late after grass will have grown a big over next few months so get cattle out in feb grazing

Mr321

whelan2 wrote: »

Cows are in now full time. If it dries up a bit I will let them back out.I have enough silage and straw hopefully to see me through. So have you enough feed for this winter?

Hopefully have bought in extra straw so will be making up a bit of a mix if things are getting skimpy.

Base price

If this wet weather keeps up for the rest of the Winter months I reckon we will be in trouble. We have enough bales of hay and straw in the sheds to carry us through a normal wet Winter but this year it's been raining every second day.
We moved 37 young bulls to the dry/sheltered out farm last week and it will carry them until Jan/Feb along with a bit of meal every day and a round bale of hay every other day if the weather gets rough. The rest of the same batch are at the home place and have access to bedded sheds and unfortunately they are using them every night. We still have 20 odd acres of good cover at home to strip graze during the Winter as long as the weather plays fair.

muirsin

What ration would one give suckler cows with straw. I will be short 4 weeks minimum due to early housing and maybe 4 more weeks in spring if weather bad.

TITANIUM.

I've enough to do me 2 winters I'd say. I've been carrying over a surplus for 4 years and building that surplus every year.

mahoney_j

TITANIUM. wrote: »

I've enough to do me 2 winters I'd say. I've been carrying over a surplus for 4 years and building that surplus every year.

Wise move ,I live looking at a bank of feed in yard every april ,great insurance

sea12

Ive enough for two winters also. Will hopefully sell the balance in spring. Some was meant for hay but ended up wrapping it so is only average but if the winter is bad some one will want it next spring.

kollegeknight

Housed everything today. Won’t have enough I’d say but will buy some. Reckon I’ll be 30 bales short, depending on put out time.

Will be mixing silage, straw, hay and a bit of meal if needed.

simx

Will have enough here, made surplus last year on purpose and had a good few extra bales made too, opening pit now that left over since last year, second cut on top got caught with rain, expecting pure sh876e when I opened it, wet looking alright but not too bad all the same, got it tested the other day -70dmd, I was shocked, extra silage is like money in the bank when ya have heavyish land

lakill Farm

Will have 60 bales to sell. And that’s enough silage till 15 May.

Karangue

lakill Farm wrote: »

Will have 60 bales to sell. And that’s enough silage till 15 May.

Take cash!

whelan2

In local goldcrop there. Sign up for silage bales for sale €12 !

K.G.

Right now every animal in the place is getting something.theres grass there but ground just too soft.hopefully we get dry soon because it would be too late in december