Paula Hynes: Our farm's secret to fantastic maiden heifers

Housing through summer with a consistent diet transformed their thrive, boosting future herd performance and AI success

The show heifers simply powered ahead as their diet was constant every day.

I really cannot believe Easter is upon us already. The first three months of the year seem to have gone with the click of a finger. Calving is finished, and calf numbers are dwindling on the farm, thankfully, as the work focus switches to working more with the show team. 

At home, the cows are grazing twice a day, and we have been working our way through the first rotation with the herd performing well this year, and fat is currently at 4.30% and protein at 3.58%. 

The herd averaged 510kgs of milk solids last year, which is a big jump from where we started out many years ago, but there is much more work to do yet over the next few years. 

The one thing I am really happy with is our maiden heifers, we have been placing a huge emphasis on calf rearing for years but then they never really performed when turned out to grass. 

Some years were better than others but likewise weather varies from year to year, and weather has a huge impact on a calf's diet at grass, so summer scour was an issue from time to time as well. 

Where we really noticed a difference was between the young show heifers and the young heifers at grass. The show heifers simply powered ahead as their diet was constant every day and had a higher fibre content. 

We discussed calf rearing with many nutritionists and also looked at systems outside Ireland, and eventually made the decision to house all heifer calves through the summer last year, feeding heifer rearer nuts and straw before switching to dry haylage at five to six months of age. 

Of course, grazing calves is a lower cost system, but likewise vet bills and lack of thrive also cost money, as do underperforming first lactation cows. As they say, the proof is in the pudding, and the group have turned into fantastic maiden heifers, all of which will be AI now on a synchronisation program with sexed semen. 

They will be turned out to grass within a few weeks of breeding. We have a golden rule here not to change a heifer's diet within four weeks of insemination, so with the poor weather in March, we chose to keep them all housed until served. It will be interesting to see, going forward, if we achieve higher conception rates with the group.

Becky in Australia

As I mentioned in my last article, Becky is back in Australia. She flew from Dublin to Dubai last Friday and then on to Melbourne. She said Dubai was fine, and while we are all well aware of the war in the Middle East, airlines put safety first.

Emirates Airlines has been superb. There were more changes again to her return flight schedule, but the airline was quick off the mark, ensuring a few changes would make it work for her.

She landed in Melbourne and was picked up from the airport to go straight to the Central Gippsland Jersey fair in Victoria, where she got straight down to the business of clipping the show team for the Wootanga Park herd.

As I am writing this, Becky has just won the senior showmanship class at the Jersey fair but the rest of the results will have to wait for my next article as it is now the middle of the night in Oz and she has a good few to show on day two of the fair. 

She will have a few quiet days after the jersey fair which will also give her a chance to work with her yearling Holstein heifer in milk named Daphne which she owns in partnership with Rachel McGrath. 

She then heads up to Impression, owned by the Flemings, with the Wootanga Park team, where she will be based for a few days, making final preparations with both show teams before they travel to The Royal Sydney show, where she will be showing for both farms. 

The Royal Sydney Show is Australia's biggest show and attracts over 850,000 visitors. It was first held in 1823 and moved to its newest showgrounds in Olympic Park in 1998. 

Britain's Queen Victoria granted the show royal status in 1891 with Queen Elizabeth II being the only ruling monarch to attend the show when she visited in 1970 with her family. Princess Anne attended the show on two further occasions and also judged there on one of those visits, while Prince William and Kate attended the show in 2014. 

The show has always maintained its prestige, and etiquette is strictly adhered to, but one thing showmanship has ingrained in Becky is to always look respectable in the show ring. She has four days of showing at Olympic Park, which is right beside Sydney airport, so all going to plan, she will go straight from the show to the airport for the long journey home.

Ireland's show season

With the Irish Agricultural Show season looming, now is a great time for any young enthusiastic breeders to join up a local YMA club and the IHFA will only too happy to put people in contact with their local club. 

There are showmanship classes at all the agricultural shows where young handlers can try out there handling skills. 

It is a great way to learn stockmanship skills, washing and halter training a calf and also learning the calf's good points and bad points.

Becky learnt her trade at the local shows. 

It seems like only yesterday she began her journey by halter training a little jersey calf at home, which was nine years ago, and now she travels the world and has made her skillset into a job. 

She has been to Australia four times, along with Belgium, Italy and regular trips to the UK. 

Mastering showmanship and clipping has been of huge benefit to her travelling as she prepares the animal and then shows it for the breeders. 

There are so many who have encouraged her since the beginning, some fantastic mentors and attention to detail is what delivers results in the show ring.