Dairy
Weaning calves successfully and target weights
Weaning calves successfully and target weights During the first weeks of life, the calf is entirely dependent on milk as a source of nutrition, with the digestion of milk occurring in the abomasum. Young calves have little to no rumen capacity in early life. Careful nutritional management before weaning ensures that the […]
29 March 2023
Selecting beef sires on more than calving ease and short gestation
Selecting beef sires on more than calving ease and short gestation On many dairy farms, the decision of what beef bull to use on their cows is often based on having a very low calving difficulty along with having as short a gestation as possible. While it makes sense to use these […]
29 March 2023
Watch: Identifying your herd’s strengths and weaknesses ahead of breeding
Watch: Identifying your herd’s strengths and weaknesses ahead of breeding With the calving season entering its final phase on many dairy farms, the next task on the horizon is breeding. Kevin Downing, ICBF HerdPlus Manager, joined Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, as part of a Breeding Week webinar to explain how to […]
28 March 2023
Keeping grass in the cow’s diet with on-off grazing
Keeping grass in the cow’s diet with on-off grazing The last two weeks have been tricky when it came to grazing, Sandra Hayes, Co-ordinator of the Teagasc/Tírlán Future Farm Programme, explained in a recent update. What has worked well for the monitor farmers is on-off grazing. Once cows have been milked, they […]
28 March 2023
Future-proofing through breeding
Future-proofing through breeding The Economic Breeding Index (EBI) has revolutionised dairy breeding in Ireland. It has become the go-to tool when selecting dairy sires. Robert Prendeville, Alan Twomey and Adrian Curtin explain more in this article from the March/April edition of Today’s Farm. The EBI of dairy females continues to increase by […]
26 March 2023
CAP 2023-2027: How is your farm affected?
CAP 2023-2027: How is your farm affected? On the 1st of January this year, a new five-year CAP period started. Andy Ryder, Drystock Advisor, tells us there are a number of important changes occurring in relation to the distribution of CAP payments that farmers need to know about. The majority of farmers […]
24 March 2023
Getting Ready for weaning
Getting Ready for weaning Weaning can be a stressful time for calves as they make the change from a liquid to a solid feed diet and move from a pre-ruminant to the ruminant phase. Much of the skill in calf rearing is making this diet transition as smooth as possible, without set-backs […]
22 March 2023
Breeding Considerations for the 2024 Calf Crop in Dairy Herds
Breeding Considerations for the 2024 Calf Crop in Dairy Herds Imagine milking a herd of cows and selling 550kg of milksolids from each with an annual profitability of €500 per cow more than the Irish Base cow. All that prevents you from achieving this, is your management and breeding decisions. These cows […]
21 March 2023
How pedigree herds are preparing for future challenges through their breeding
How pedigree herds are preparing for future challenges through their breeding Laurence Feeney, CEO of the Irish Holstein Friesian Association (IHFA), is on this week’s Dairy Edge podcast to discuss how pedigree herds are preparing for future challenges through their breeding. Laurence started by telling us a little bit about his background […]
20 March 2023
Teagasc Dairy Breeding Week 2023
Teagasc Dairy Breeding Week 2023 The breeding season on Irish dairy farms has become increasingly concentrated in the late April to June period. Teagasc and ICBF have organised a series of 14 information events during ‘Dairy Breeding Week’ which is running from today, Monday, 20 March to Friday, 24 March. These online […]
20 March 2023