Storing animals:

I saw some light Angus and Hereford dairy-cross 18-month-old heifers being sold for very small money during the week. Are there other options for these cattle aside from selling them at a loss? For people who went down this route, it’s probably better that you try to go the whole way to finish with them to get maximum value.

Some farmers who went down this route are opting not to finish indoors but instead turn back out to grass and finish in midsummer off grass.

The short-term outlook for beef isn’t good but with high kills over the past few months, the outlook into next spring may be more positive. The question is: how much concentrates do you have to feed to achieve an acceptable level of liveweight gain over the winter months for store animals?

Target liveweight gains over the winter months should be 0.5kg/day for heifers and 0.7kg/day for steers. If silage quality is very good (+72 DMD), it may be possible to get away without feeding any concentrates. However if silage quality is moderate to poor, they will need 2-2.5kg/head/day to achieve target gains. Crude protein concentration of rations for store cattle should be 14-15%. Mineral requirements are similar to weanling cattle and a general purpose cattle mineral will suffice if feeding straights.

Weigh these animals if possible now and again at turnout to see if target weight gains have been achieved. The key to lowering costs with these animals will be early turnout and maximising gain at grass.

It’s a similar story with cull cows. Prices are very poor at the moment for light cows. Can you afford to feed them to build condition or even bring them to finish?

Dirty water

With slurry storage at a premium on many farms – especially in the west – making sure clean water is diverted away from tanks this winter is a must. Take a look at gutters and downpipes and make sure none of this water is entering a tank. Large roofs can collect a huge amount of water and tanks can fill very quickly if water is diverted the wrong way.

If animals are standing on a yard area, this water must be collected but if for example a yard area has been washed down and is out of use for the winter, this clean water can be diverted away from tanks.

Stock bull check

With breeding taking place in autumn herds indoors now, the chances of a stock bull getting hurt are greater. Try to avoid breeding cows on slats if you can as the chances of a slip or fall is greater.

It is no harm to check a stock bull’s feet once housed as small problems can escalate quite quickly once animals are indoors.

Keep an eye for repeats and if in doubt, get some cows scanned to make sure everything is progressing as it should. Identifying a problem in time is very important. Indoor breeding is a great opportunity to try some AI in the herd. Breeding some animals to maternal sires will help boost milk and fertility in the herd.