When's calving starting 2023

squinn2912

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120522199#Comment_120522199

I would agree there. I don’t like too much messing with a calf thats just born I’d rather allow the cow to lick him into shape . I throw a bit of sand down if I’m about and that gives him a bit of grip. Get the naval done with iodine and I aim for that to be it. The act of sucking early helps a calf get going too. If we had to jack a calf then yes he would get some bieslin but otherwise I’d always try to let the team at it. Last year we had one calved outside and the calf couldn’t get up. Eventually after 3 weeks he got up unaided. Mother shocking wild is away now. I’m not too sure what else could have been done but I had a foster cow for him and he went on ok, not a stormer but a right oul bullock now.

squinn2912

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120521994#Comment_120521994

I think you should blog your journey. It’s looking more and more like we’re all mad with sucklers but sure they’re still there anyhow! Farming for me isn’t a money maker so what I’d like to do is cut back on cattle and hardship and have it that there’s always plenty of feeding than the messing were at this last few years.

Grueller

Good few here talking about getting out of sucklers.

No shortage of dairy calves available anyway for lads changing system.

https://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/calf-registrations-dairy-calf-numbers-surpass-1-million/

Dairy calving numbers up 2.3% with suckler calvings down 5%.

squinn2912

It will be sad to see the absence of colour and quality in fields around the country. But its all about the margin.

James2022

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120522199#Comment_120522199

Nope doesn't have any bad effect. I'd actually say its the best method to get a calf going and ensure it stands and suckles without a problem. Most of the time I just pick the calf up and put it straight under the mother after it has a quick drink from a bottle. Like I said having calves suckled and done 45 mins after being born has taken so much of the trouble out of calving season. A calf isn't able to take the maximum when its born unless they have poor milk so that's not a problem either.

After growing up with belgian blue calves I'm very hands on. I'd rather just pick a calf up and stick it under the mother to be done with it rather than checking back. It sounds like more work but it's made things a lot easier for me. We all have our own methods. A neighbour just closes the shed door at dinner time and comes back in the morning, somehow that works for him every year.

I’d say the last time a had to get a calf to drink a cow was 2.5 years ago. Maybe some breeds need more help

James2022

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120523312#Comment_120523312

What do you do when a heifer calves?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120523782#Comment_120523782

They get the calf going themselves generally.

squinn2912

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120523802#Comment_120523802

Same here, would only help a calf if the calf needs the help. Had a section last week and tubed the calf twice but that needed done.

SuperTortoise

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120523091#Comment_120523091

I do the same as you here, i'd often warm a cup full of shop milk and a grain of sugar and put it in a bottle, once they get the taste it's a huge help to get them sucking the cow.

squinn2912

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120525068#Comment_120525068

You guys must have awful quiet cows. Ours are fine but you wouldn’t go into a lot them when they’re fresh calved. I find the cow is the best at getting the calf up sucking herself so if she calves herself I’d keep an eye and not bother with them. If it was a handy pull I’d let her out the headgate and give her first chance. Hard pull and then they need help to get going.

Anto_Meath

I would be the same as you @squinn2912 generally Lmx cows here with LM calves the calves are usually very lively & would be up trying to drink within a half an hour. So I leave them at it. Just keep an eye, plus the cows are usually fussing about the calf so I find I would only be agitating the cow if I was to try bottle feeding a calf that didn't need it. Lad up the road here stomach tubes 2L of colostrum (gets it from dairy farmers) into every calf with 20 minutes of calving. He recons it gives them a great start but every year he has a calf that refuses to suck for a few days, I would say its the tubing puts the calf off. Also I would fear bringing some bug into the farm getting milk from another farmer.

squinn2912

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120525488#Comment_120525488

Yea we have been very lucky with the Charolais bull here as well calves easy and lively calves too. I would get colestrom from dairy lads too but only have it for when we need it. That’s a good point imo where you might put the calf off from sucking himself. I suppose what works in one place might not be the way in another.

Hard Knocks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120525838#Comment_120525838

How you look after the cow precalving makes a difference too

charolais0153

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120525488#Comment_120525488

Big difference between limousines off mature cows and blues or Charolais for get up and go

mr.stonewall

The end of calving is nearly in sight, down to the last one left. Only started calving the last day of march. Has went well with 24 cows and their 24 calves are at foot. Had to intervene with only 2, one coming backwards ( then cow decided to put out the calving bag as the calf popped out.) Second was a cow that had slowed down a lot. Working full time so dont want hassle cases. Breeds used were aubrac for cows and a nice Angus on the heifers.

Things that went well. Getting cows out for the daytime hours to a bare paddock marked for reseeding. ( It's now well tilled). This made silage at night very easy. Seeing the cows stretching out helps a lot in the days coming up to calving.

Having accurate serve dates for the bull and ai are great when backed up scanning. The bit of time with tail paint and checking around at breeding pays off.

No calf stayed in more than 2 days, they are just better off out. Really lightens the work load. Even with the few cold and wet spells they are just hardier out and less chance of pneumonia

All the bull calves are castrated (lamb rings) as they are tagged. Just safer and easier to do now.

Overall a better year, I might still have to eat my words, 😭😭

squinn2912

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120525967#Comment_120525967

Tight operation there. Nothing like having all about the place with a pulse. You must have very dry ground that you could let them out. We had an awful buck maybe the best cow died with tetany after being let out with her calf. There’s an oul sh cow now rearing him and her own lad. She had a lick and hay the evening before. Got vet and she lived on another 2 days but then died, it must have got to the brain.

Would you need to squeeze them that early? Ours would always be done around weanling.

mr.stonewall

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120526389#Comment_120526389

It's as easy to watch 3-4 due to calve as one. I find the key to a tight calving spread is first make sure that the cow has calved without problem. Last year start to finish was about 6weeks. Hard calvings are just hard on everyone. Calving jack should be used on less than 3%of a herd and that came from the vet.

2. Is pick a date that breeding finishes and stick to it. Most will have got 3 chances to go in calf. If not bye bye. This leaves you breeding from only your most fertile cows

3. Doing a bit of tail painting and recording heats pre breeding. Having this data is vital as it gives a pic of cycles.

Farming a very heavy farm. The paddock they went into for calving you couldn't have driven a tractor across it for most of the month. And it's getting a drainage job in early summer. If it wasn't wet I would pull a harrow over it, shake seed and roll. It's brown now and I had skinned it in early March with yearlings during the wet. all I want for the cows was ground to stretch and lie off on. Few years ago I has cryto and rota at the same time in late Feb, I was sick of carting straw, moving pens and trying to rear 50 bucket feds at the same time. Something had to give and I slipped calving back to april. This is 7th year of it .Calving outdoors is a pleasure. Last year's paddock was handy, I could look out the kitchen window

About 25% were to FTAI. Heifers and daughters of the bull.

On the castration side. They were always going to be squeezed. Just safer and easier to do it at the first few days.

Barron lad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120520816#Comment_120520816

A pity to see another suckler farmer producing quality stock leaving the game. What is your plan now ?

IMG-20230422-WA0000.jpeg

Last cow calved here last Friday. A lovely bb5214 heifer calf to finish it off.

Katie 2018

Had last cow calved about a month now.calve all Dec ,Jan time.whats best way try get her back abit in calving date.she with bull again.anything I can inject her with bring her on heat

mr.stonewall

Try a crid ( coil) might help. Talk to the vet and it's Fixed time Ai. When ai put a short gestation bull like an AA.

It's a decision to make, take the short calving and samller calf or move on the cow

Katie 2018

She running with limousine bull. Ai not an option. On outfarm.she 2nd calver

Hard Knocks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120526790#Comment_120526790

Would she be a silent heater & you didn’t notice the bull after her?

Base price

One of the FR cull cows was springing last week (three spins) so we put her on the stand off pad. She calved a cracking AAx bull calf earlier this morning. She's a second calver and buckets of milk on the three teats. I'll try and adopted one or push my luck with a second over the weekend and see how she gets on with them for a few weeks along with her own calf.

minerleague

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120526711#Comment_120526711

Can you separate cow and calf and let calf suckle twice a day?

tanko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120518054#Comment_120518054

Any action?

Sugarbowl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120536333#Comment_120536333

Just today actually, a big lump of a bull. Calved herself but she had good size to her so that helped. He can’t be far off 70kg and he’s up and sucking himself. It was the longest a cow has carried for us I’d say. Glad it came out alive and all that anyway.

Katie 2018

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120535003#Comment_120535003

All outside this last week so be too awkward to work that

tanko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120536483#Comment_120536483

Very good, which bull was it?