Buying stores: The numbers of store cattle for sale at marts will be increasing each week from now onwards. Despite difficult weather conditions in recent weeks, there are still plenty of farms with strong grass covers and an abundance of silage reserves. Buying a few store cattle now, rather than waiting until mid-October, may be a good idea for some farmers. Firstly, it can help to reduce the amount of competition you have around the mart ring. Buying cattle now gives you the option of returning some of these animals back to grass for a short period before housing. Buying lighter cattle and utilising this grass might be a cheaper option than trying to buy heavier cattle later in the autumn.

For example, at a purchase price of €2.20/kg, a 500kg store animal purchased now will cost €1,100. Taking this animal home and grazing on good grass for 60 days at a daily gain of 0.9kg/day will see the animal housed around 550kg liveweight. At a grazing cost of 50c/day and 30 days of meal feeding at 2kg/day (€240/t), the feed cost for this animal would be €44. To bring the animal to 550kg liveweight would have cost €1,144.

Compare this to an animal purchased at 550kg liveweight in November. At a purchase price of €2.20/kg, the animal costs €1,210. Even at €2.10/kg, buying the animal earlier and grazing may work out cheaper. It is important that you have top-quality grass available if you are considering this option. The economics depend on weight, purchase price and being able to graze the surplus grass for cheap liveweight gain.

Cattle Health: This week’s Focus supplement contains valuable information on animal health issues that are common in winter. Pneumonia is the number one cause of death in weanlings and the Journal Vet outlines the causes, consequences and ways to control the problem. Other issues, such as how good hygiene in calving pens can prevent problems like calf scour, are outlined. While farmers cannot eliminate all diseases from their herd, they can reduce the risks posed to their livestock. All too often, I hear the same farmers talk about the same problems they are having year after year, yet they have not taken any steps to try and prevent these problems. Nothing will change unless you change it.

Autumn-born bulls: Bulls born last autumn that are being taken through to finish should be coming close to housing now, in order to have the animals correctly fleshed and covered before sale. There is no benefit in trying to keep these cattle at grass into late autumn, as growth rate will suffer without high levels of meal feeding and they may be too lean when killed. Bulls weighing 500kg liveweight will gain 180kg to 200kg over a 120-day intensive feeding period, which is a daily gain of 1.5kg to 1.6kg/day. These animals are better off housed now and built up on to ad-lib meals. Start bulls on 5kg to 6kg/day of meal split between a morning and evening feed. Increase by 1kg/day every three to four days until bulls are on 10kg/day, which will be basically ad-lib level. Offer fresh straw or silage every day to make sure the bulls are getting enough rumen fibre.