Newford Farm March/April Update 2024
General Detail
- Calving on Newford farm is now completed
- Calving started on the 29th of January and finished up on the 15th of April
- Like all parts of the country again this week, weather was the big issue with its hail, rain and roads flooded in the local area.
- Getting stock out to grass remained the biggest issue for the farm , but Newford took the decision to open its door and let its cows and calves out to grass and its yearling heifers (43) between Tuesday and Thursday of this week ( 16th + 18th April)
The farm had turn out its bulling heifers (19) on the 29th of March , hence a small group is easily management during these wet weeks.
On normal years , Newford would had it cows and calves gone to grass 3 to 4 weeks earlier , but this is not a normal year and that left Newford with another big decision regarding as too when it would start the 2024 breeding season.
o Newford always started its breeding on the 3rd week of April.
o But the farm’s dilemma was do we started the breeding on the 22nd of April ( This coming Monday ) bearing in mind the cows were only gone to grass or push back the breeding date to give the cows a chance to adjust of been just turnout and cycle and this later date would also affect our drafting time of animals in autumn 2025.
Cows were been monitored in the shed regarding cycling and body condition so the farm manager ( Stephen Frend) took the decision that breeding would commence on the 22nd of April 2024.
Breeding
The Breeding season will start on this Monday the 22nd of April and details as follows;
- All the cows and bulling heifers have received their mineral bolus and leptospirosis vaccine over the last two weeks
- Their body condition score has been monitored over the last number of weeks to ensure it remain on target in light of the very long winter housing period this year over 6 months
- All cows were tail painted last week and heat detection has been recorded in a note book for the last two weeks to monitor breeding activity, which has been positive to date.
- Cows will be batched into two groups (40 per group +/-) for the breeding season and a teaser bull will run with each group
- Three teaser bulls with an average weight of 406 kg were bought (ready to go) costing €1,015 each
- Teaser bulls will be been fitted with Moocall heat detection collars along with a chin ball harness for marking the cows.
- The breeding season will last for 10 weeks and finishing up on the 1st of July
- 100 % AI will be used on the farm again this year - Once a day AI will be used and cows will be inseminated at midday each day. If a cow is inseminated at 12 noon and she is still displaying standing heat again that evening that same cow will be inseminated again the next day (12 noon).
- The majority of cows are in an ideal body condition score for breeding.
- There will also be a teaser bull running with the maiden heifers.