Teagasc DairyBeef 500 and Signpost Programme participant, Gareth Peoples brings us up to date with the latest happenings on his farm, updating us on parasite control programmes, grassland management and finishing plans.
It’s been a busy enough few weeks here on the farm in Donegal, trying to keep on top of jobs while the weather stays half settled. Between dosing, grass management and planning the next steps for the older stock, there’s always something to do.
Dosing
One of the main jobs I completed recently was dosing all the calves with a long-acting moxidectin. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve had issues with lungworm in calves in recent years, so I try to stay ahead of it. I gave them a levamisole-based injection back in June to knock back any active infection. And, while it settled things down, I noticed a bit of coughing creeping back into the group over the past week or so. Nothing too serious yet, but it was clear there was pressure building again.
After consultation with my local vet, we agreed it was time to move on to a longer-acting product. This year, I used a moxidectin-based injection, administered at the base of the ear. It’s supposed to give over 100 days of cover, which will hopefully carry them right through the high-risk period in August and September. The hope is that the exposure they got to date this year will help build some natural immunity going into next year.
Before dosing, I always weigh a few of the heaviest calves in each group to set the correct dosage. It’s a simple job, but very worthwhile. Guessing weights can easily lead to underdosing, which not only wastes money but also encourages resistance – something we all need to watch now.
The importance of weighing
I’m planning to weigh all the calves and yearlings properly this week, which is a job I find very worthwhile. The scales tells you what your eye can’t – you get a true picture of how they’re performing since turnout. It helps me work out average daily gains, pick out the best and worst performers, and make informed decisions based on this.
Bull finishing
This spring, we ran a batch of spring 2024-born calves as bulls, and I’m hoping the stronger ones will be up around 500kg liveweight. If so, I’ll be bringing them in and starting them on meal for finishing in the coming weeks. Once bulls get up around that weight and with changeable weather, they tend to level off a bit at grass, and so I find it’s better to get them housed and pushed on properly indoors. Plus, it’ll take a bit of pressure off grass supplies, which are being stretched now as the younger calves and yearlings are motoring on. That said, grass growth has held up fairly well. We got second-cut silage done over two weeks ago, and those paddocks will soon be coming back into the rotation for the calves. With a bit of luck and decent weather, things should stay on track for the second half of the year.
The above article first appeared in the Farming Independent as part of a Signpost Programme update.