Beware of hidden lameness and prepare for the breeding season
When animals are in restricted accommodation, like slatted pens, lameness may go unnoticed.
This may be particularly true of bigger type continental suckler cows.
Some will notice that heavily in-calf cows are finding it difficult to stand quickly.
As younger animals get bigger through the winter, space may get tight in pens, and more injuries tend to occur at this time of year.
Give animals additional space, where possible.
Watch what you are feeding animals; in some cases, the diet may make animals more prone to laminitis, due to acidosis.
Breeding heifers
Make a plan for successful breeding of your replacement heifers.
Do you have a minimum weight for your breeding heifers?
It should relate to the weight of your mature cows.
Given the year we have just had, most heifers did very well on grass, and were housed in good order.
It would do no harm to separate out the smaller heifers intended for the bull now.
That way, you can increase feeding to them now, and keep them as a separate group for a while outdoors, before you commence breeding. By doing this, you can feed concentrates to them right up to breeding, to achieve target breeding weights.
Begin sire selection, if using AI, so that you have enough time for research.
If a stock bull is to be used, he should be on the farm sooner rather than later, so that he is well settled in before being put to work.
Rebreeding suckler cows
For calved cows, you should now turn your attention towards getting them back in calf. It is OK for sucklers to lose some body condition after calving, but not excessive loss.
On most farms, it will be necessary to feed very little concentrates to cows rearing calves, thanks to good silage quality. However, if silage is not of good quality, you must address this issue immediately after the cows have calved, to prevent excessive condition loss.
Feed a good quality mix which will contribute to good milk quality, and maintain the cow herself.
Base the protein content of the mix on the silage protein and the type of cow you are feeding. Minerals after calving also play a role in achieving good fertility.
Minerals will be fed in many ways, depending on the farm, but it should be attended to. Figure out which method works best for your system.
For many, it is a bolus, or a mineral lick bucket.
Finishing off grass
Remember that cattle will not finish off grass unless they are well grown.
Most cattle finished off grass are not slaughtered until August or September.
Spring grass after the first round of grazing will be high in protein, and will push frame growth and intakes.
For cattle to finish, they must have an ability to consume and convert large volumes of grass efficiently.
Try to make sure your stores are fit to make the most of grass when turned out.
