As the Irish summer continues here in Sligo, it is a relatively quiet time on the farm. There are only a few of the later autumn born calves from last year left to wean.

Sheds have been cleaned out and disinfected and grass growth continues to be strong.

With grass growth so good and ahead of demand I have skipped a couple of paddocks from the grazing rotation and will take for silage in a couple of weeks.

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This should leave me with plenty of silage for the coming winter. Some paddocks are being topped just after grazing mainly to clear off any thistles or weeds left behind, but I am definitely doing less topping than in previous years.

By not letting grass get too strong in paddocks before grazing I am able to keep quality under control and cattle are grazing out paddocks well.

Pour ons

Over the last month all cattle on the farm have received a pour on to control worms. I did notice some coughing in the replacement and beef heifers and surprisingly also in some cows. So in order to be sure that there was no worm problem in any stock on the farm I took the decision to dose all together. This is the first time I have treated mature cows at grass for worms, but I am hoping it will also help in keeping the flies at bay and help in preventing mastitis. Coughing appears to have cleared up and any animal that was slightly dirty is now clean.

Tarring and garlic lick

The cows are continuing to be tarred weekly and have access to a garlic lick to prevent mastitis. With tarring, the pour on and the garlic lick there have been no incidence of mastitis to date. While all this effort and treatment with tar may seem like a lot of work, the cows do get used to the routine and are easy to bring in and apply the tar to on a weekly basis.

The first cows and heifers are due to calve in the middle of August and are currently being kept on a restricted grass diet. They appear to be in good condition and only time will tell if they are over-conditioned or not.

ICBF report

Time will tell in relation to a lot of events in suckler farming over the next few months and years. Farmers are shortly due to receive their initial report from ICBF showing the replacement index of cows and heifers in the herd. This report will be based on a new replacement index developed which should lead to more accurate €urostar values.

Hopefully over time this new replacement index will identify the best performing cows in the country. So maybe, as I wait for the cows to calve in August I will have some interesting reading to pass the time.