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The snow was unprecedented down here. You don’t expect it so close to the sea.
My world became small. People were grateful to have the local co-op open when it wasn’t possible to get to town. I probably got to speak to my neighbours more in those few snowed in days than I would in a year. Our busy lives were something we all commented on when we met.
Even with doors closed, snow got in the length of buildings the first night. I stacked up straw bales outside the northeast-facing openings in all buildings to try to prevent it from happening again.
The stock bulls were outdoors and they located the sheltered spots depending on the wind direction. They got extra silage to see them through.
To reduce water demand, I pulled ration and increased silage to the young stock until there was a sufficient thaw.
I left a tap running in the calving shed so that, along with only having eight calved down, eased concerns there. Our only casualty was a farm cat that got caught in a snow drift.
The calving cameras also stopped moving so it was back to the old-fashioned ‘‘get out of bed and check’’ method. Thankfully, the cows held off calving for a few days.
At the time of writing, there are two heifers left to calve. One is overdue by a few days and the other, the best physical specimen among them, is due in early April.
The rest calved within the first three weeks of calving and it was great to have plenty of time and space to deal with them. There was one difficult calving, and one heifer that calved very easily has been slow to accept her calf but other than that they were straightforward.
The first group has been at grass for over a week now and is well-trained.
It’s a case of open the door to let them out and if they are not waiting at the gate to come back in, a quick whistle returns them to their calves.
We’re in week four of calving now, with the second- and third-calvers and an odd mature cow calving down. Like the heifers, most of them held to their first service so the next three weeks will put a big dent in this year’s calving.
Given the miserable weather and lack of grass growth, it may be a good thing that calving is now later. Prior to 2017, almost half of the cows would have calved in February. It has been comfortable to date and that certainly eases the workload.
I have also introduced a bit of polled genetics into the herd and will continue to go that route. The thought of no more de-horning is very appealing.
It’s the first year in a long time that there are so few cattle out on the farm. Normally, at the very least, the yearling heifers would have all got time at grass by now, if not be out full-time. Conditions just haven’t been suitable so far.
There is an eerie similarity between weather conditions since July and the wet summer of 2012 and cold spring of 2013.
Fodder crisis
The ensuing fodder crisis was said by some to be a one-off event. It may become more regular and if it is, that could force a change of thinking into how we farm.
An exodus from tillage could have wide ranging consequences on the rest of Irish agriculture and the contraction of the sector needs to be looked at by the powers that be.
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