Aonghusa Fahy - June 2024

‘I’m weighing up what to do with my vasectomised bull’

I finished using AI on May 31. I am very happy with the results: 33 out of 34 cows and heifers have been inseminated in six weeks, with just seven repeats.

The bull is in now for another three weeks but he will have very little to do. Provided there are no breaks, the cows and heifers will be calving very compactly next spring.

The vasectomised bull worked hard; without him , I would have missed some heats.

I am not sure what will I do with him now. He is not the best-looking animal and only weighs 380kg. I would normally keep him for the summer and then feed on for slaughter.

But I might just keep him for a couple of months to get back some condition and sell him live in autumn. He has earned his keep!

The next big decision is whether to replace my Limousin bull for next year. He is getting on a bit and he had feet problems last winter.

My advisor is telling me that I cannot justify spending €3-4,000 on a new bull to mop up a few cows.

I am now confident with AI and I could continue using AI for another three weeks — nine weeks in total. Also, I am on summer holidays at that time, so labour won’t be an issue. It is just the insurance he brings, but the policy is too high a price.

June and July are a lovely time on the farm. All the big jobs are done.

It is just a case of controlling grass and some maintenance work. I have 80 bales to make. Any paddock that gets too strong will be taken out as surplus bales.

I try not to use the topper and will instead cut every paddock once for bales.

The phosphorus and potassium indices are high so I just a follow up with 20 units of protected urea per acre plus sulphur.

If the contractor has time, he will apply slurry using a trail and shoe.

The calves are grazing ahead of the cows. The cows can be kept back to graze out the paddocks to 4cm while the calves move on a get the best grass in the next paddock. It is a cheap way of getting weight gain and helps break the maternal bond for weaning later in the year.

The TB test was passed so that was a big relief. Along with the restrictions, there’s the inconvenience of rounding up stock and the anxiety about getting over the line.

The next one is due on July 20 so hopefully it will be clear also.

In June we took a break for a week. It was great to switch off and spend time with the family without any distraction.

Juggling work, time on the farm and family life can be a challenge. I try to limit the time spent on farm to 20 hours per week in order to balance it all.