The latest bovine tuberculosis (TB) test was completed on the farm in the last week and thankfully all were clear. As someone who has suffered losses in the past as a result of reactor animals, a clear result is very welcome.

My biggest issue with the annual TB test is that I have very little control over preventing the disease entering the herd. Apart from some bio security measures, it seems to be a case of bad luck to have a herd locked up with TB. Back in 2012 the herd was locked up for virtually an entire year and we are now only getting back on track in terms of numbers.

Scanning

Breeding of the autumn herd is nearing an end and I will have all cows and heifers scanned in the coming days. Scanning at this time of year is vital for me in planning for the year ahead. Identifying cows and heifers that are not in calf allows me to manage these animals correctly and target them for sale latter in the year.

I may end up culling what I think is one of my better cows, however feeding a cow for a year with no calf to sell at the end is pointless and loss making. By culling these empty cows there is the chance to bring some extra replacement heifers into the herd. There is little point looking at cows next autumn that have not calved and wishing I hadn’t sold that good weanling heifer!

Grass

As the spring approaches thoughts are turning to getting cattle out of the sheds and back grazing grass. Record from 2014 show that the first of the heifer weanlings were let to grass in the second week of February, so I am hoping to do the same this year. I took the chance over the weekend to measure grass on the farm and I have calculated that there is enough grass on the drier parts of the farm to carry these heifers until the middle of March.

Getting cattle out earlier is something that I have been working on the past few years. There are huge advantages in terms of animal performance and costs savings. Younger lighter animals that will not cause any poaching damage are usually the first bunch let out. Cows and calves are then gradually let out in small groups depending on ground conditions.

The slatted tanks are also starting to fill up, so I am hoping to graze off some fields before spreading the slurry. Trying to get fields grazed, slurry spread, fertiliser applied and fields closed up in order to get early silage is a delicate balancing act and requires some forward planning. At least these things are within my control, unlike the result of the annual dreaded TB test.