Timmaay wrote: » Another 15 dry here this morning. 3rows over Xmas will be nice, to go OAD is my only decision, not many cows doing much over 4litres in the evening milking, but still a few may/June calvers still doing 18l/day, I'd hate to see them dry themselves off.
Mooooo wrote: » How will you be for Jan supply? Drying off here today and 2moro. Keeping 8 April cavlers till the second week of Jan but they will only be filling up the 4th row with them there. Have to hit about 1kL a day in Jan for winter scheme.
3 the square wrote: » Would u not be afraid that one or both cows could still be incalf happened to me once or twice always use the enfef test on or scan before drying off.
farisfat wrote: » I had 2 this year that had standing heats scan incalve.
Mf310 wrote: » Would a temprary milking parlour be a complete no no for milking heifers? Planning permission for milking parlour will take 3 months so 3 months from january is march if we are lucky so thinking temporary for a couple of weeks or would it work at all
Timmaay wrote: Once its strong enough it would be grand. Are you getting the grant on the parlour, and is that why you are getting the planning? You don't actually need planning for the machine itself, just the building and concrete work. However you will need to wait till you have grant approval also, which can take up 4 to 6 months if any of my applications are to go by. So that would be another 4 months on top of the 3 for planning!
Timmaay wrote: As an alternative, you could do the parlour shed and concrete work without the grand. The shed itself can be very basic, a simple leanto or A frame will do grand, I did a leanto for my parlour for about 1600 materials (no labour charge in that, built it myself). The parlour concrete work cost me something around 5k, all walls 4inch solid blocks on their flat. Most NZ style parlours don't even bother with outside walls (invest in warm rain gear instead for the 20 or so days in the year you actually are proper cold in the parlour ha).
Timmaay wrote: Final thing I'll say is if your proper stuck for the parlour grand approval do get in touch with them department a week or so after the closing date, and plead with them to fastrack it! Next closing date is early jan, something like the 13th, but double check that, could be sooner.
Mf310 wrote: » Grand thanks ... no actually hopeing to be a new entrant ..have been thinking about it a while and now with the fixed milk price schemes and the milk price outlooks for next year im really considering it .. will definately be going in in 2018 but was thinking i might be able to get going 2017 with maybe 50 or 60 cows to keep things ticking over and keep grass ate ... therell be no grants going for a second hand milking parlour so all i have to wait for is planning permission on milking parlour shed
alps wrote: Guy on done deal recently up north, with a really good portable milking parlour. 10 unit, fully integrated unit on the back of an artic low lower trailer. It would really be worth looking at. It's for rent or sale... If you need to buy dairy stock, I wouldn't wait till mid or late 2017 to buy. I'd really push now to.look at getting in on the way up....
Mf310 wrote: » Thats exactly what i was looking at rent it for a couple of weeks ... yes was thinking that way thanks
Timmaay wrote: » Just looking at my agfood tams applications now (this thread reminded me I've an application to fully finish and submit before the end of the year!), anyways the 1st application I put in was on the 24th June (I'm fairly sure the closing day of that tranche was the end of June), but anyways the status on it since the 15th Dec is "ready for pre approval", whatever that means anyone? 6months and I've still no approval, could they take any longer if they tried? The fancy online system doesn't appear to have helped speed up anything if this is to go by.
Buford T. Justice V wrote: » I put in for sheds and cubicles in the first tranche over a year ago. I got a letter 3 months ago looking for some engineers cert and sent it off. Now it appears they don't like my planning permission so I may have to put them up without grants:(
Timmaay wrote: » Ugh don't give me stories like that ha. Looking at my spreadsheet costings here on a slatted tank I've jsut got planning for, full grant spec 21k, without the grant best I can do with skimping on steel etc is 17k, with a 60% grant it really really will pay to get it over the line if I can.
Timmaay wrote: » Just looking at my agfood tams applications now (this thread reminded me I've an application to fully finish and submit before the end of the year!)
Timmaay wrote: » And 3hrs later of pricking about on the agfood website I still can't get it to accept my application. Disaster of a system, and no wonder I've been putting it on the long finger ha.
pedigree 6 wrote: » We always give the calves 3 litres ( whole milk) twice a day for 3 weeks and then up it to 3.5 litres. The first feed of colostrum is by far the most important though. Give em as much as they can drink (usually 3 litres but sometimes 4 depends on the size of the calf). Ideally within a hour, but as soon as possible really. Edit: those figures are fairly shocking though Buford. Do some people really just give 2 litres???
kowtow wrote: » By my reckoning it's almost a year to the day since we started our new cubicle shed, and - finally - the cows got to move in last night. It took a good bit longer than I thought, but in my defence the boy & I did it with no outside labour at all, unless you count concrete lorry drivers. I had almost forgotten that none of the cows are cubicle trained, but at least most of them are standing up on four legs in a space and half of them have already started laying down, so I have high hopes. There are a good few bits still to do but having a working shed, and most of all a feed passage, will make a big difference.
Buford T. Justice V wrote: » Is that a JerseyX in the last pic:D
![Photo of [Deleted User]](https://w6.vanillicon.com/v2/6b045e3248245c8ff8c1e910a6b3b442.svg)
