Spring 2020..... 1.5m Dairy calves.... discuss.

ginger22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583051#Comment_119583051

So you agree with posters being slandered on here, it should be a free for all, says a lot

Say my name

Last year this shocked everyone. 270 calves dead on farm.

http://independent.ie/business/farming/news/farming-news/investigation-underway-after-270-dead-calves-found-on-farm-40343739.html

This came just after the largest trade mission since before Covid.

http://bordbia.ie/industry/news/press-releases/bord-bia-to-host-major-virtual-trade-fair-to-support-sector-most-exposed-by-brexit/

There has to a serious look into this. Now 400 reported dead in the press. Enviros pressed RTE to report the IT figure.

The farmer head on me says this is no way normal and can't just be dismissed as a random farmer with health problems. You can see the news articles telling it as a dairy industry problem. Gleefully as such. I probably posted last year as well about bank accounts. These Vegans play to win and will stoop to any level and play any long game to achieve their aims. They influence through Public Opinion. Social License crap, etc.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583200#Comment_119583200

At 55/20kg bag it's costing 2750/ton. 1.5 bags per calf is 82.5/calf. For 40 calves that is 3.3k. Add 30-40 bales of straw which is another 1k. Calf ration at 50 kgs/calf is 25/calf or another 1k. Vet and meds add 15-20/ calf so 6-700 euro. So about 150/calf

cute geoge

It is hard to know what to say about the case in Limerick but dairy farms will definitly have to up the game in regard the welfare and breeding of their calves .The big dairy farms have fuked the market in spring with a glut of bull calves for sale with nobody to buy if it was not for live export .This glut also drags down the price of the well bred and well fed calf.I rear a few calves also and it is next to impossible to make profit unless you can keep cattle until fat .Marts have pulled away with the last few years but the costs are beating the calf rearer man and next spring will tell alot

patsy_mccabe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583342#Comment_119583342

Plus mortality, plus extra Labour etc etc etc

K.G.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119582949#Comment_119582949

Well I have made my position clear and the other mods were in agreement. I asked them to have a look at this thread.personally it does me no good thinking about the recent situation and I cant understand why people can't show a little restraint and discipline in their postings on it

Neddyusa

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583413#Comment_119583413

Thats a very good point and highlights that without live export this problem will only get worse. Obviously the vast majority of dairy farmers will look after calves well, but the glut you mention affects the price of the well fed calves too. So theres less incentive for the messer to feed the calf well before sale, if they are (as they see it) not being paid for it.

alps

The lift in that glanbia product is not too bad.

We've just bought next Springs powder, paid for now, Janurary delivery.

It's up 36% from when bought last November, now a fraction more than the 25% you quoted above.

That will be a good price in the Spring, if the best before date is OK..

carrollsno1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583314#Comment_119583314

Like everything these days you just need to follow the money to find the full story. Tinfoil hat stuff but id be of the same thinking myself too a lot of those tinfoil hat fellas sounded ridiculous a year ago but they seem to be making more sense on some things these days than others.

Pinsnbushings

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583314#Comment_119583314

That would be my thinking, this case may be a health issue on farm or it may be more sinister but as an industry this calf thing is becoming a serious problem. As a lad who does a good bit of work on 1000 cow farm with only 3 staff allegedly spread over a couple if units said to me, when I asked how they manage the spring and surely they'd have losses? He said, "you'd be surprised how few but now the bull calves they'd have to fend for themselves"

FintanMcluskey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119581539#Comment_119581539

I have to agree here.

People need to be more responsible, certainly while caring for animals, and if they are actually prone to mental health issues, buying those **** dairy calves isn't a wise idea.

GNWoodd

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583298#Comment_119583298

Slander is the spoken falsehood. You mean libel .

Who is being libelled ?

Green&Red

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583867#Comment_119583867

IT quoted a figure of 11k bull calves dead on farm, which of 400k bull calves is only 2% but I'd like to see a comparison of bull v heifer calves and xbred v FR bull calves, I'm sure the figures wouldn't shock anyone

ginger22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119584227#Comment_119584227

oh so you are a solicitor now as well. I am only poor farmer, wouldnt be up with that legal speak.

farmerphil135

As a calf rearer it’s to easy to blame a dairy farmer for a lack of attention with beastings when 90% of the time there’s something else behind it.

but I wouldn’t go next nor near a mart to buy a calf

greysides

Thread closed temporarily.

greysides

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119583095#Comment_119583095

For what it's worth, this mirrors my view point. The responsibility for events like that in Limerick can have several homes. They all need to be dealt with.

I think we all are ultimately of the same opinion: It shouldn't have happened. It shouldn't happen again.

Let's keep that in mind when responding to each other.

Now, as Mod, I've already closed one thread on the Limerick situation until more information is available as speculation is unhelpful. The same applies here.

The topic can be discussed in the generic, non-specific form only.

THREAD RE-OPENED.

Sheep breeder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119587328#Comment_119587328

What are some of the 90% something else behind it, nobody else can be blamed for lack of attention to get a calf his first feed only the dairy farmer.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119587328#Comment_119587328

It may seem to be easy to blame the dairy farmer. If you are a larger farmer buyer you have certain ability to demand standards from dairy farmers selling.

It grand as well to say I would never buy a calf from a mart. The reality is that marts set the market especially for calves. 60-80% of calves sold before 60days go through marts.

They can tend to be dumping grounds at times however some dairy farmers now consider that the quicker a calf is out the gate the better. Marts have a responsibility as well. It should not matter who the seller is if calves are visibility weak, too young or under fed they should not be allowed to go through the mart.

If individual marts set standards for minimum weight, or even started to weight calves at the point of sale it would stop the messing.

Has the calf buyer responsibility, yes and it's because calf buyers are becoming more responsible incident's like this year and last happen. You have idiots that think that if they take the calf nobody else wants it's either a cheap way into stock and there may be money to be made.

When I reared calves 15+ years ago a bag on milk powder was 24 euro I think. A calf was at least 50 euro and a good average for Friesian's was 100+, straw was 12-15/ bale. Now every cost has doubled but lads think if the calf is free you can make money

Reality is different, if you are a small operator and buying as you go along those weak 10-14 day old calves are cost 100+to get to 12 weeks last years incident happened in April/May this time it's September.

It's hard to believe that someone got calves this far and the whole thing went tit's up when calves are 3-4+ months. Calves were not cheap from April on

whelan2

The last couple of years I've lost a few at this time of year after dosing them. They're vaccinated and the vet has been at a loss as to why they die. They have been looked after and we are years rearing calves. Touch wood we don't loose any this year.

I think everyone can agree rearing calves is not easy. As a dairy farmer I find it a bit insulting this talk of not looking after bull calf’s straight from birth. I’m sure their are farmers that are bad to feed calves but their probably also bad at looking after things anyway. Their are cowboys out there for sure. If I was buying calf’s I would be suspicious of lads that have gotten into cows in a big way in a short space of time. I kept my bull calf’s this year as the prices for them I thought was scandalous.

whelan2

A couple of weeks after the big glut the price was very good

Siamsa Sessions

The farmer is ultimately to blame but Govt have created the financial incentive to breed 100,000s of worthless calves. And Teagasc have given technical advise to farmers on how exactly to do it. The co-ops have benefited from huge supplies of cheap milk but they’re also under the bed. It’s a mess for any farmer who followed the official advice and no one seems willing to offer ideas on how to reverse out of it.

White Clover

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119588425#Comment_119588425

Is a higher output cow the answer? Less of them needed therefore less calves. Some dairy farmers will learn the skills of managing a different type of cow and some will not.

But, before all that, a radical overhaul of the advisory service that is geared towards farming in Ireland with all its inherent issues and not be lazy and just copy what some country on the other side of the world is doing.

davidk1394

Teagasc gave the road map to farmers on how to grow numbers. The first thing cut off the list was the quality of the calf. I bought plenty of calves off different farms and through marts to really appreciate a calf that was well cared for in their first few days. I do my best to ensure every calf gets well cared for before being sold on because I would like repeat customers.

The gas thing is a lot of the poster boys around here with jersey Cross herds have done a 180 and gone back to where they started.

Silverdream

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119588527#Comment_119588527

Back to the British friesian?

Anto_Meath

There is always lads looking to make a quick €, they see good Fr bullocks making €2 - €2.40 / KG and then in the calf ring they see calves making €5, they think that is a sure thing and cant loose, but they done realize that the Bullock making good money is a totally different animal to the calf sold at a €5 its like comparing an Angus to a black Belgium Blue they may have similar markings but this is the only similarity.

I have said before I rear a few calves and I only buy the Frs off a guy beside me as I know the quality of his cows. Good big square cows BR/ Ho Frs. I would generally kill them and they would be all be at least O= and killing 360Kgs + DW at just under 30 months. This year one of his fr was lovely square lad but a bit short of flesh so I brought him to the mart with some of my Limos. He weighed 645K and made €1,730, as a calf in the mart he would have made €150. Would I be better off with 30 at €5, yes but I would have had a lot more work and had to come up with about €25,000 in operating capital to get them from 10 days old to beef.. so 10 / 12 of him would probably leave me with the same profit as the 30 others and only a fraction of the capital tied up.

FintanMcluskey

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119587328#Comment_119587328

when 90% of the time there’s something else behind it.

How can you say that with such confidence?

cute geoge

What ever about a calf not getting enough beistings ,if the mother cow is lacking in mimerals ,it is impossible to rear the calf off her and the calf looks perfect in the first few weeks maybe this should be looked into more

White Clover

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119588599#Comment_119588599

HoXBRFR is a good animal. 100% Holstein bred using aAa matrix is just as good an animal too, square with good growth rate and size and not big tall lanky lads traditionally associated with Holsteins. It's the calves from cows bred using the EBI is where the whole thing falls down. The cows are just too small with zero power.