Dairy Chitchat 4, an udder new thread.

Similar here, but with 3 smallies, one in nappies and a stay at home wife. Add in the Esb and other household costs, it getting scary. Lucky that the heating is taken care of with timber. I put a heifer in the freezer last year and was worth it and got half a pig of a neighbour as a bit of barter. These help a bit.

Something has to give soon. Either a recession or more inflation.

In fairness it’s some ordeal on the calves to go such lengths without a feed

@alps, do yourself a favour and don't go there.

They were 18 hours travelling in France. They should have been fed and rested for an hour hand way. Those are the present regulations. Some of these calves were probably not weaned onto OAD before travelling. This will not be a problem in a couple of years time as calves will need to be weaned 6-8 weeks old minimum before export that is even if export is allowed

No calf died on Samie consignment which is good news. TBF after the sailing at unloading in the Cherbourg lairage out of six trucks and Fran says 2-3,K calves there is two dead calves. He must have been disappointed. TBF that shows an excellent level of husbandry.

Biggest issue was the non feed halfway. However TBF how can you expect a truck driver to feef 300+ calves on probably a triple decker where the ceiling heights are only 4' I would say.

Agree completely. Stop halfway big issue.

I can't imagine the patience required to get 300 calves down a ramp, but staff with patience is what should have been employed..

It's as much aimed at shaming dairy farmers into exiting dairying all together our drastically reducing numbers, and to be fair I reckon they'll achieve their aims, they're even trying to spin it that dairy farmers somehow should be ashamed of their profit levels last year and the beef man needs to share in this profit, won't be a peep when next years figures come out though and the figure is well over halved and of course the disclaimer that wages/loan repayments need to be taken into account won't get a mention

Lads stop making excuses, it's abuse of animals and there's no defense for it. Its something that needs to be highlighted or it will just keep happening. Would you tolerate employees mistreating calves on your farm or leaving them go hungry, of course not. Just because they are left our care doesn't mean we can wash our hands of it.

It could be a combination of price a d collection. It's unlikely that dairy farmers will be encouraged to keep cattle to finish as it would not make economic sense.

However there is moves to stop the same of calves before 6 weeks. It's probably 2-3 years away and to stop exports as well.

In the UK one dairy makes farmers responsible for calves until about 6 months of age. It prevents there same for slaughter or to farmers that will not looks after them.

I think you are allowed one mistake after that it penalities

Bobbying is banned from 2024 onwards, no calf can be slaughtered before 8 weeks of age under new department rules, then the 50 mile limit is in also banning the transport of any calf under 4 weeks old over this limit, another Stipulation re bord bia that calf mortality can't be over 4% i think and if it is you'll be in bother....

It's all well and good re implementing the above if our milk was getting a premium to do the above, but it's world commodity prices we are working off, the moral high ground is grand, but if co-ops go another few steps than what's in store from next year onwards it will be easily crash the milkpool and bankrupt a few of them along the way plus their suppliers

You want a premium to improve calf welfare ? You want to give the most lucrative sector in Irish agriculture some sort of benefit to do what is morally the right thing ?

Advocating for improved conditions for our animals is not the high moral ground.

Once a farm is adhering to bord bia and co-op requirements the morality of the situation doesn't come into it, theirs enough fire fighting daily on dairy farms to keep their own wheelhouse in order, then having to police mart staff, lorry drivers etc who should be department regulated and inspectors providing oversight and ensuring animal welfare standards are enforced....

Genuinely the margins in dairying this year are non-existant what regulations are coming in re nitrates will probably finish alot of us off in the next 5 years if we enter a period of stagnet/below cop milk prices, throw in your argument another couple of hundred euro should be levied on us per calf to do the morally right thing re keeping calves to a year old and 90% of dairy farms will be loss making

Why would you imagine that they are overstocked?

The policy from Europe seems to be to replace production in Europe from countries outside with no standards, no regulations, no health and safety, hardly any workers rights and zero concern for the environment.

I don't understand the vilification of the Jersey breed in his article, "It is so called ‘extreme dairy breeds’ that are the problem. Often they are Jersey cross cattle that are good for milk production but valueless in terms of beef production."

Firstly they are all Friesian calves going for live export to the European veal markets and secondly does he think meat from a Jersey/Jersey cross animal is toxic?

There was always going to be a backlash after the nature restoration law didn't sail through and I fear the might of the climate change lobby is going to come for all agricultural sectors with a vengeance in the coming months.

That being said, calves not being fed for an 18 hour period during transit is unacceptable.