- Location
- North yorks
Quite common problem, we have the joy of having a newly created national trail through our front yard, it’s not too bad when people can follow signs/read a map.
Is this normally how animals are kept
- Thread starter Boomerang
- Start date
Pistonbroke
Member
There was a big push years ago by "beef expert"Basil Lowman for us all to use woodchip corralls with three or four feet of bark and chip , which ends up looking like that.Maybe somebody has followed the advice
Zebbedee
Member
- Location
- Scotland in the best bit
How does your risk assessment read? Do they have to do a 3/4 hour induction course before entering work site along with full ppe before entering yard
It’s ridiculous that a new trail is directed across your yard as if it’s not a workplace and dangerous.
You have my commiserations It would drive me mental
We have a footpath that goes right through our yard.
Princess Pooper
Member
- Location
- East Mids
Outdoor corral, often a lot healthier for cattle than housed (no respiratory disease). Several round here on tenanted arable units where they have access to plenty of straw.
Probably wanted to turn the cattle out a month ago but too wet.
Had to use more straw than usual, due to wet.
Straw got too deep round the feed barrier for them to be able to get their heads in without discomfort. They may have had some jump out too due to the depth of straw next to the side walls/barrier.
Too wet to cart it to the fields.
So humped it up which will also have meant they have a higher, better drained area to lie in.
But of course once it's humped up it's hard to put fresh straw on top. Cattle look cleaner than many in sheds (bellies and legs are not clagged with muck, just some with dirty flanks) and healthy.
Making the best job possible in a horrible, horrible wet winter.
Probably wanted to turn the cattle out a month ago but too wet.
Had to use more straw than usual, due to wet.
Straw got too deep round the feed barrier for them to be able to get their heads in without discomfort. They may have had some jump out too due to the depth of straw next to the side walls/barrier.
Too wet to cart it to the fields.
So humped it up which will also have meant they have a higher, better drained area to lie in.
But of course once it's humped up it's hard to put fresh straw on top. Cattle look cleaner than many in sheds (bellies and legs are not clagged with muck, just some with dirty flanks) and healthy.
Making the best job possible in a horrible, horrible wet winter.
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Princess Pooper
Member
- Location
- East Mids
We also have a footpath goes right through our yard. 70 years ago it was the paddock closest to the buildings,with a couple of stacks of straw in. Then Fr in law put some barns up to store the straw and meant he could store hay too. No where else to store it near the buildings. Then over the years more sheds added, still used mainly for straw storage (some indoor, some outdoor), big bale silage but also calf housing and dry cow/youngstock housing.
Until about the 1980's it probably wasn't an issue at all as most people walking it for leisure understood farming and it was little used anyway as people were no longer using it to get to/fro the local market town (the original purpose).
It was quite heavily used for the last 40 years but building of a road further along the route has resulted in much depleted footfall.
To be honest it's more of a worry than an actual issue (so far).
Until about the 1980's it probably wasn't an issue at all as most people walking it for leisure understood farming and it was little used anyway as people were no longer using it to get to/fro the local market town (the original purpose).
It was quite heavily used for the last 40 years but building of a road further along the route has resulted in much depleted footfall.
To be honest it's more of a worry than an actual issue (so far).
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- Location
- somerset
we have/had a footpath through our yard, never been a problem, very seldom ever used..
then, a large number of complaints, followed by an obnoxious foot path officer, all sorts of threats, so looked to move path, around the buildings, on an existing track, council came out, agreed the diversion, put 'temp' foot path signs round.
then, what we had to do, to get the 'ramblers society' to accept the diversion, that certainly was a shock, an expensive one. Wasn't going to spend that amount, full stop. So stopped pursuing the matter, found some historical info, that put doubt about the legality of the path, when council chased, told them that.
temp signs still up, very seldom is it used, and virtually no money spent. The very strong suspicion locally, is the letters of complaint, were sent by the obnoxious lady footpath officer !
but, footpaths are a big problem, any alteration is challenged by the ramblers, as a matter of course. Why ? Surely it is in every bodies interests, to sit down together, and agree a solution to 'stupid' or 'dangerous' paths, like those that go through yards. Its common sense.
our obnoxious lady, was saying we had to take down a barn, that has been there for 50+ yrs, l told her, see you in court. But why come out, with a belligerent tone, when an amiable friendly chat, would solve any 'issues'. On the barn, one corner 'blocked' the path, there is a hard track all along that side, might have been 5m diversion
- Location
- somerset
most of the vast feedlots abroad, are open corrals, usually without the addition of straw.
all one can say, is cattle look in great condition, as they look in feedlots abroad, the animals are to valuable to risk bad husbandry.
its a visual problem, not a welfare one. And after a long hard wet winter, they are probably cleaner than many housed cattle, with the price of straw !!
- Location
- Highland
In that case thank you for asking. You can understand that extremists and activists come on forums like this looking to further their agenda, rather than educate themselves about how their food is produced.
As as many others have said that looks quite a typical and acceptable way to yard cattle in the winter. A great windbreak, and crash barriers, ideal for containing cattle. I did deep bedding. You keep piling straw in all winter, the heat from decomposition low down provides heat. Muck out in the spring.
The cattle look exceptionally clean for a yard. It is not unusual to see plates of dried straw and muck on the outer hair but if you look underneath that there's a warm layer of clean fur.
- Location
- Ceredigion
Cartle look clean and fit ,
- Location
- Highland
I would add that no matter where you put a feeding/trough area, cattle will turn it into a slurry pit within a few days. Their feet are small for their weight, about the size of a saucer. 4 of those supporting 600-800kg. the important thing is that they can get back to high dry places for lying which they appear to have plenty of in this yard.
kiwi pom
Member
- Location
- canterbury NZ
As a "non cattle person" did you think they looked stressed/ill/poorly looked after?
Not having a go just keen to get your perspective.
They look fine to me but I'm not a cattle expert either, as I said upthread concrete slats in small sheds look awful to me, but people say they are fine.
suffolksmallholder
Member
- Location
- Suffolk
Oxing about.
Drive your animals into a confined space. Add straw, clay & horse-hair. Remove said animals.
Spread the resulting slurry mix on your interwoven hazel/chestnut wall and presto you have wattle & the perfect daub mix
SS
- Location
- somerset
this is where the anti meat lobby get support, producing photo's, video's etc, either airbrushed, or taken from a 'strategic' point, so it looks as if they are kept in appalling conditions.
the actual welfare of the cattle, is conveniently forgotten, they want the headlines. Been there, it really isn't a pleasant experience, RT and min vets, found nothing wrong at all.
l would imagine, after a very wet winter, some of the outwintered grazing herds, look in a bloody good mess. The min vet who came to us, said the largest number of complaints, from the public, were starving cattle, standing in deep mud, starving, because they were fenced of from their food. ln other words, a typical out wintered herd, but definitely not starving.
- Location
- Limousin
They look fine and cleaner than my lot if they are in the sheds all winter. I assume he has to scrape/clear the areas in front of the feed rails anyway, giving them some hard standing. Hell of a windbreak they have.
Jasper
Member
I’ve seen a few organic farms and the shed space they’ve got doesn’t meet the requirements for the number of cattle so they make an outside pen to give them the space and even in the worst weather they were usually outside . After a winter like this I’m sure lots of people have had to do things they didn’t really like but those cattle look well cared for . Roll on some dry weather .
Jasper
Member
Heaps of rain in pens cows walking in it water everywhere is this a normal winter ☔️
there's no way these cattle have been in there all winter standing out, they wouldnt look like that in their coats . Thats the mans muck pile / yard, and it obv has stuck them in there for a short time , go back in a week they wont be in there. There is no feed barrier so obv they dont live there. Taking pictures and putting them on the internet without knowing the full story is not good
Boomerang
Member
No they looked fine . Just never seen a mountain of straw in a pen like that.
Boomerang
Member
Not accusing anybody of anything just a simple question by a non livestock person.