Dairy
Top 5 tips for February
Top 5 tips for February Joe Patton, Head of Dairy Knowledge Transfer Teagasc, gives his top 5 tips for February 1. Get calves off to the best start – start testing colostrum quality on your farm using a Brix refractometer (>22 = quality colostrum). Follow the 1-2-3 rule – every calf should […]
16 February 2023
Milk feeding and the effect of temperature on young calf performance
Milk feeding and the effect of temperature on young calf performance The colostrum 1,2,3 rule is considered best practice for the newborn calf, Teagasc Dairy Specialist George Ramsbottom discusses the important factors to consider with calf rearing this spring. Transition milk is milkings 2-6 from freshly-calved cows. Where there are no underlying […]
16 February 2023
Contract Heifer Rearing
Contract Heifer Rearing Marie Kearney, Teagasc Business & Technology Advisor tells us contract heifer rearing has increased in popularity over the past number of years due to a number of different reasons; Removal of milk quota’s in 2015, has allowed dairy farmers the opportunity to expand and milk more cows, generating more […]
14 February 2023
Dealing with Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD)
Dealing with Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) Sarah Higgins, Ruminant & Equine Manager with MSD joins Stuart Childs on this week’s Dairy Edge podcast to talk about Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) and its impact. Sarah outlines what BRD is, how it impacts on animals and what people can do to reduce the impact […]
14 February 2023
Watch: ‘Back to basics’ on calf care
Watch: ‘Back to basics’ on calf care Calf care – ranging from the initial nutrition of the newborn calf, calf housing and management at weanling – is not only essential to minimise disease during the calf rearing period, but it’s critical to ensure the future productivity of both dairy and dairy beef […]
14 February 2023
Coccidiosis in dairy calves – your help needed to influence our advice
Coccidiosis in dairy calves – your help needed to influence our advice With the busy spring calving season in full flow, it’s time to focus on coccidiosis, a disease which continues to be a concern on many calf-rearing farms. Coccidiosis mainly causes clinical disease in calves from three weeks to nine months […]
13 February 2023
Extended grazing delivers feed savings on marginal soils
Extended grazing delivers feed savings on marginal soils A study completed in Ballyhaise College examined the impact of extending the grazing season on marginal soil types at two varying stocking rates to quantify the impact on pasture and animal performance, along with the input requirements of a grass-based dairy farming system. The […]
13 February 2023
Let’s Talk Dairy – Supplementation guidelines for cows in early lactation
Let’s Talk Dairy – Supplementation guidelines for cows in early lactation On this episode of Let’s Talk Dairy which took place on Thursday, 2 February 2023, George Ramsbottom was joined by Mike Dineen, Teagasc to discuss supplementation guidelines for cows in early lactation. Elsewhere in the webinar John Maher, Grass10 Programme Manager […]
10 February 2023
What is the impact of ‘banding’ on my farm?
0 What is the impact of ‘banding’ on my farm? Changes to the nitrates regulations will restrict cow numbers on many dairy farms this year, with a decision on further restrictions for derogation farms next year being made in September. Edward Burgess, Agricultural Catchments Programme Specialist, discusses further. Since the start of this […]
9 February 2023
Managing Somatic Cell Count this spring
0 Managing Somatic Cell Count this spring Elevated Somatic Cell Count (SCC) is a hidden cost on dairy farms. Unless a clinical case of mastitis is seen and treated, raised SCC levels are rarely acted upon. James Dunne, Teagasc dairy specialist, outlines the steps farmers should take to manage SCC in freshly-calved cows. […]
8 February 2023