Identify and take out any surplus grass without delay
The fodder crisis is not yet over for many farmers around the country.
Unfortunately, many farmers just had to keep grazing low covers.
This was compounded by the slow-down in growth last week, resulting in a further deficit in grass supply.
Many are looking at all their grazing paddocks having similar low covers.
This will lead to its own problems, where all paddocks will have the same amount of grass, but obviously can only be grazed one at a time.
This will cause a welcome grass surplus on many farms over the coming weeks.
It is key that any surplus is identified quickly and taken out ASAP. This action will help the subsequent sward, and help to build next winter’s silage stocks.
Breeding season
The breeding in suckler herds is well under way, and reports from scanners confirm that many cows are in very poor condition.
Try to prioritise quality grass for cows rearing calves, to ensure that they can produce quality milk for their calf and begin to regain weight. Creep feeding the calves will also help to take pressure off the cow.
As well as being thin, many cows have uterine infections, and this problem needs to be addressed if they are to have any hope of going back in calf.
If cows are not bulling, you need to investigate sooner rather than later.
There is a very strong link between under-conditioned cows and their ability to fight infection and go back in calf.
Energy is the main driver of the immune response, and when cows are in negative energy balance, the immune system is impaired.
Something else being observed during scanning is the amount of heifers that have not reached puberty yet. This is common this year on both beef and dairy farms.
This issue is due in most parts to heifers being far behind target weight, but also due to cramped winter environments, longer housing periods, and stress.
Bull beef
The price being paid for young bulls continues to improve, thankfully. Obviously, in order to attain the best prices, bulls must be in spec for weight, age, confirmation and fat score.
Young bulls have a phenomenal ability to convert feed once they are on an appropriate diet.
Any bulls being fed for slaughter need to be on a high energy density diet, and don’t need a lot of protein.
Selection of bulls for feeding should be based upon their weight and age.
Lighter animals may need to be grown more before heavy feeding commences.
Age is a significant factor if you are trying to get bulls to slaughter for particular target markets. Premiums are being paid for bulls under 16-18 months.
Ingredient choices
One ingredient which is very popular in all diets at the moment is maize meal, because it is a great value feed, and the best feed to get the final cover on cattle.
Many dairy farmers are using maize meal this year, and it is helping to keep condition on cows, while having a very positive effect on their milk protein.
Take care, however, to feed maize meal safely; don’t give cattle too much of it, and have a good fibre source available at all times.
A significant development over the last year has been treatment of maize meal to raise its pH and protein, enabling larger volumes to be fed.
