Mixing milk replacer for a large number of calves doesn’t have to be time-consuming. Jamie Cahill from Cahir, Co Tipperary, has a well thought-out setup for feeding his calves. Every year, he buys in and rears 50 to 60 calves. In the past, he used to make up the milk replacer for them in small buckets and it could take up to two hours to feed all of the calves.

Now, Jamie has updated his setup to make the job easier. A large IBC tank was mounted on a stand in a shed and is fitted with a ballcock and mains water supply, so it is kept topped up. Below this tank, a used 200-litre acid barrel is mounted on a small wooden frame. Jamie attached a large tap to the bottom of the barrel. An industrial-sized whisk was fitted to a power drill, so he can now mix the full 200-litre barrel full of water and milk replacer in approximately two minutes.

A bucket of milk can be filled from the tap underneath the barrel in five seconds. Jamie said the whisk cost €20 in his local co-op and the tap for the barrel cost €30.

Reader's query

A regular labour-saving tip reader contacted me recently about an unpleasant issue he is having with the water troughs in his slatted shed.

The cows are dirtying the troughs and it is becoming a real nuisance. He said that he cleans the troughs three to four times a week, but finds it difficult to get all the manure out of the water. From speaking to other farmers, it seems to be a common problem. The reader wants to know if anyone has a way of stopping this. He is aware that there are water troughs available with special tipping mechanisms for easy cleanout and troughs with special covers that allow cows to drink while giving protection from dirt contamination.

But he doesn’t want to buy new troughs – he just wants to find an innovative way of protecting the ones he has.

If you have a good solution for this problem, send your ideas and pictures to pvarley@farmersjournal.ie or text us via Whatsapp on 00353 (86) 8633465. The best answer will get a €50 One4all voucher.