Teagasc held a store-lamb finishing open day in Mellows Campus, Athenry, on Tuesday last. The event focused on delivering the latest findings from research and practical advice that can be implemented at farm level. Ration formulation was identified as a key area for lambs finished intensively. Farmers were told to look for high-energy ingredients, such as cereals and pulps, as the dominant ingredients in a ration or nut and advised not to lose sight of this by the presence of a high-protein content. Well-grown lambs only need a protein content of 11% to 12%, growing lambs 13% to 14% with very light lambs (under 30kg) benefitting from a protein content up to 16%. When finishing male lambs for a significant time frame, the advice was to include ammonium chloride at 0.5% with the investment of roughly €5/t money well spent to prevent urinary calculi. The event will be covered in greater detail next week and, in the meantime, on www.farmersjournal.ie.

This week's sheep management notes also cover the Department's liver fluke forecast and dealing with rumen fluke.