Paula Hynes: YMA — much more than just showing calves
The Cork YMA workshop held recently on the Hynes farm.
The weather just doesn’t seem to want to settle this year, and grazing conditions continue to be tricky, which is far from ideal as cows hit peak milk production.
It is hard to believe we are into the second week of May, contractors and tillage farmers are still busy trying to get maize and crops sown, and Cork seems to be the worst affected by rain, as further up the country, many farmers have been cutting silage, and I know of a good few farmers in Northern Ireland who have already completed first-cut silage.
We might be a few weeks away from silage season here; however, breeding season is progressing well and we are seeing plenty of heats every day. We are only using sexed dairy semen and are hand-picking our way through the cows we want to breed replacement heifers from, while we are using beef semen on the rest of the cows.
Becky has been away for a few days, clipping the show team for Euro Holsteins as they were attending the Kingdom County Fair. All the show heifers at home have been clipped again in an effort to keep them eating well and allow them to grow better-quality hair.
We still haven’t quite decided when we will start showing and have chosen to take it easy through May, as there is a big run of shows for us in June, but thankfully, Georgie’s ankle has improved, and she is no longer wearing the boot cast.
After a few days of spring cleaning, we were delighted to host Cork YMA for their youth workshop on the May bank holiday Monday. Cork YMA is by far the biggest club in the country and it was wonderful to see so many new young enthusiasts attend.
The club invited Gary and Izzy Jones to coach the young people on the day. With nearly 40 young people attending, the couple first spoke about selecting a calf for showing.
A show calf doesn’t necessarily need to be the biggest — select the calf with the best confirmation and, for showmanship, select a calf that fits the handler.
They then spoke about nutrition for the show calf, stressing that diets need to be simple. Quality feeding straw is best, as the quality of hay is too hit and miss in Ireland.
A calf needs to be fed 4-5kg of meal daily and feeding straw will help the calf develop its rib cage, but calves should not be thin and need to be fed well. There is a huge difference between “dairyness” and underfeeding.
The Jones duo then split the YMA group into two, allowing for more interaction, with Gary demonstrating washing and clipping while Izzy focused on showmanship skills.
The youngsters got hands-on washing and also got the opportunity to get the feel for how a clipping machine is held and how it runs against the heifer.
When it comes to showmanship, they don’t come much better than Izzy Jones, so hopefully the youngsters will have picked up plenty of tips from her.
YMA teaches many crucial skills and far more than just showing or working with heifers.
It was great to see so many attend the workshop, as the committee had made a huge effort to advertise the event.
The club also provided a rope halter to every young person who attended. Livestock Show Equipment in Holland gave them a fantastic deal on a large batch of halters, and Erica has always been a great supporter of the youth coming through in the show circuit.
The Cork YMA club will hold the annual calf show on June 29.
The calf show is also a qualifier for the YMA National Finals and the club will also hold a stock judging and reason-giving field evening in conjunction with CHFC during the summer.
When you look across the world, ag companies always hold great respect for youth showing and the skill set it teaches.
Being part of a youth dairy show club is a huge asset on a CV, as companies recognise the skill set it teaches.
In the US and Canada, 4-H is highly respected, and many of the directors and management in dairy companies have all spent time in 4-H.
In the UK, the same recognition is given to HYB and likewise here in Ireland, the YMA always receives great support from companies, as they know future employees may well come through the ranks.
As I am writing this, the rain is pouring down again. It seems as if grazing conditions can never catch a break.
Hopefully, Bandon Show will have a dry day next Sunday. The show is always well supported by the town and welcomes great crowds on a fine day.
Midleton Show looms the weekend after Bandon Show and then Belgooly Show celebrates its birthday on Saturday, May 30, and no doubt they will have a fantastic show planned this year.
June is also a jam-packed month for shows in County Cork with Clonakilty, Cork Summer Show and Charleville. They are a central part of the rural social scene and always a great celebration of rural life.
As the show season comes into full swing, Becky’s phone is getting busier with calls from people asking her to clip show animals for them. Having done competition clipping and also clipping on the other side of the world, it is nice to see her working a little closer to home.
She is being followed close on her heels by her younger sister, as they both clip together at home, and Georgie plans to begin clipping in competition this year as well.
Knowing Becky will be spending even more time travelling internationally, it is great to see that Georgie is as keen because there will always be heifers here to be clipped, and it is crucial that Georgie is self-sufficient going forward.
