Since the weekend the south-easterly wind coming off the sea would cut through you. It’s two jackets kind of weather.

The house and farm buildings are among the first structures that wind from that direction hits on the skyline back from the cliffs.

That adds to the biting nature of breezes sweeping across the yard. I don’t know if we’ll get snow this far west but I’ll make what preparations I can in the event that situation arises.

On a positive note the wind has helped dry land out after what felt like a month of rain.

I was asked recently by a farmer what level of calving difficulty would I recommend.

Because there are so many different scenarios farmers find themselves in, I’d be slow to recommend a one size fits all.

Top of the list when choosing calving difficulty for me would be the farmer

In old money, I’d use 5% calving difficulty as my guide but I would have used an odd bull over that. I’ll admit I had to take a look through the expected calving date profile on HerdPlus to see what the exact figures were for the 2020 breeding season. The expected calving difficulty is 5.2% to 10.1% for heifers and 1.5% to 5.6% for cows.

Top of the list when choosing calving difficulty for me would be the farmer. Your own circumstances should play a big part in deciding.

What facilities are available, are you farming full-time or have you off-farm commitments? What market are you aiming at? Herd size plays a part too. Sometimes with a smaller herd you must try and maximise what you have.

Our herd and our system here have constantly evolved with all of the above factored in. Traits and probably even the shape of the cattle have changed a lot too.

Selling some beef cuts from my own stock led to that change, which saw a move away from muscle to what might be perceived as a less shaped animal.

At the same time, about 70% of the bulls grade U.

The calving jack isn’t the go-to apparatus it was to us in the late 1990s

Bear in mind too that what might make sense to do breeding wise with five cows could work totally against you if you tried it with 50 cows. Finding the optimum level can be difficult.

The calving jack isn’t the go-to apparatus it was to us in the late 1990s. It’s there if and when required.

Keeping the system simple is one of the key decision drivers for me. I enjoy working with cattle but I don’t want to spend every waking minute with them.

Docile, easy-fleshing polled cattle from cows with good fertility is what I’m looking to breed. It’s a work in progress and always will be.