lazy farmer
Member
- Location
- som/dor border
87.5% calved in six weeks here.? must do better.
All things Dairy
- Thread starter Cows 'n grass
- Start date
What a embarrassment
What did you do, as I seem to remember your breeding didn't go that well?
- Location
- somerset
that is awful, go and stand in the corner !!!!! we have 6 cows left, and 7, that should have calved, but haven't, but all look I/c, the worry is, we had 1 calf, we couldn't tally, with a cow, so I expect 1 of the 7 is not I/c ! 7 hfrs left, 3 due april, but the other 4 should have calved, bag wise they definitely look as though they should have. Our 8 week cut off is 10 april, anything 'sellable' after that date, has been sold, so ignoring the odd 3/4, or footy, or elderly cows, which calve randomly over the summer, we are really pleased, as this is yr 1, of our swop.
But I am jealous of 87% in 6 weeks. As a matter of interest, what is your policy on out of sync cows ?
lazy farmer
Member
- Location
- som/dor border
Supposed to be 90% isn’t it ?What a embarrassment
What did you do, as I seem to remember your breeding didn't go that well?
we bought a few whom have all calved. It very much seems to Be a slightly lower conception rate on the first two cycles then a very poor conception rate on the last 26 days
Holsteinfriesian90
Member
- Location
- Cornwall
How did you get on with sexed semen?
lazy farmer
Member
- Location
- som/dor border
We stop serving July 24th and pd second week of September. We sell on empties if Tb allows. Only 10% of the herd was culled despite our car crash results
lazy farmer
Member
- Location
- som/dor border
10% worse than conventional. We have ended up short of heifers. The conventional we used appears to have been the semen left over after sexing !
- Location
- somerset
we left the bull in, and sold those I/c and/or in milk, made a hell of a lot more than barren, interestingly, the hardest to get I/c, ie aug/sept calvers made the most. Topped at £1120.
Thought we were aiming for 80% incalf with in six weeks, so never quite understood how the 90% to calf in six week unless you induced (which nobody does) or use short gestation bulls which we have but don't think I could gain 10% though, so any thing above 80% is top operator
Too much sugar? Borderline acidosis?
Holsteinfriesian90
Member
- Location
- Cornwall
How many kilos were you feeding?
You bought some cows or heifers?
8kg/hd fresh weight
lazy farmer
Member
- Location
- som/dor border
6 heifers 8 cows.
not entirely happy with them ?
More to life
Member
- Location
- Somerset
Was it washed
Not washed but put through a cleaner. Not too dirty
- Location
- somerset
perhaps we use different feeds, because we have been told, this is the right thing, it may well be, a closer look at what we do feed, and what we need to feed, is somewhat different. Any firm is reliant on selling product, the only way to increase profit, is either sell more, or sell something more, to customer. One way, is to sell extra add ons, mins, yeasts, fats etc, or as our nutritionist calls them, expensive bin bags, but a steady dairy farm, with a good system, is not going to earn any extra commission for the sales rep, so it is in their interest, to sell you something extra. Openly admit i got caught out years ago, feeding all sorts of 'bag' stuff, and getting no response, so, try this, or that. Changed nutritionist, and milk shot up, nearly 1000 litres per cow, the only extras, are mins, and some urea. Many farmers feed as they always have done, and continue to do so. Not put over well, but hope you get the idea, and not saying, what is, or isn't a correct way, just querying the why.
More to life
Member
- Location
- Somerset
My own theory is it doesn’t suit high yielding cows.