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Preparing for calf rearing with DairyBeef 500

Preparing for calf rearing with DairyBeef 500

The Teagasc DairyBeef 500 team, along with stakeholders and programme farmers, will host two live online webinars on preparing for calf rearing this spring on Tuesday, January 16, and Tuesday, January 30. Both webinars begin at 8pm.

The webinars will focus on sourcing good quality calves from dairy herds, preparing the calf house, feeding them well and keeping them healthy to maximise performance and to achieve a good quality, weaned calf at the end of the calf rearing period.

The first webinar, taking place on January 16, will focus on preparing the calf house in advance of calves arriving on farm this spring. Martin Kavanagh, Munster Bovine, will give useful advice and tips on the requirements of a good calf shed and how to maximise performance.

Sarah Higgins, MSD Animal Health, will focus on keeping the calf healthy during the rearing period and will give guidance on vaccination protocols for different disease risks.

Peter O’Hanrahan, a DairyBeef 500 demonstration farmer from Co. Kilkenny, will outline his calf rearing facilities and how he manages to keep his calves healthy through the rearing phase.

For more information on these webinars, watch the below video:

On the second webinar, which will take place on January 30th, Tommy Cox, Teagasc DairyBeef 500 Advisor, will outline the key traits to look for when sourcing top-quality calves this spring. He will highlight the new Commercial Beef Value that is now available to be used to identify calves with higher growth potential to meet factory specifications at finish.

Liam Gannon, Volac Milk Replacers, will give a short presentation on the specifications of a good quality milk replacer and how to feed the calf over the first 10 to 12 weeks of life to have a good quality weaned calf, which is ready for turnout to grass in early summer.

Charlie Smyth, DairyBeef500 Campaign farmer from Co. Cavan, will give his thoughts and advice from his experiences of calf rearing on his farm.

On both nights, there will be a live panel discussion, with presenters and programme farmers available to give their views and opinions. Viewers will also have the opportunity to ask questions and have them answered on the night.

These two events will equip anyone thinking of rearing calves in 2024 with the knowledge and information regarding calf sourcing, housing, feeding and keeping the animals healthy during the calf rearing phase.

The webinars will be of interest to both beef and dairy farmers. If you wish to join us on January 16 and 30, be sure to register on the link below.

To register for these webinars, click here.

For more information on the Teagasc DairyBeef 500 Campaign, click here.