All things Dairy

[Cowmansam]

Yer mines not dropped below 4.3 and I e only just started calving again barrens and back Enders get grass and 400grams of 14perfent cake

 

[Sid]

I disagree, when I stopped buffer feeding this spring butterfat dropped to 3.7, put some hay in a feeder and it went back up to 4 and litres went up by 2l a cow, I put that down to the grass being too high quality and not being able to get the full benefit, I then switched to silage and butter fat went up to 4.2 and litres went up by 1 per cow

What works on one farm might never work on another, personally I'll never not buffer feed something

But if your feeding 12 kgs of cake that's a large part of a cows DMI in conc

 

[Cowmansam]

Don’t take this the wrong way but buffering all year and feeding that amount off cake to frisians I can’t see you been in business in 5 years

 

[Cowmansam]

They should do off grass

 

[Holsteinfriesian90]

Don’t take this the wrong way but buffering all year and feeding that amount off cake to frisians I can’t see you been in business in 5 years

We buffer feed all year around but our grazing fields by night are limited. But maximum feed in the parlour is 6kgs.

 

[Cowmansam]

Well there’s a reason to that then but buffering and Corning the hell out of cows when he’s had to drag sucklers in to eat his grass is madness

 

[som farmer]

If grass is going through them fast just feed them more instead of a lower quality feed

there isn't any restriction on good quality grazing, they cannot eat more, to get more utilisation, it isn't going to slow passage through the cow, the longer it stays in the cow, the better utilisation you get, shitting your guts out everyday, would make you want to re-assess your diet, wouldn't it ? If it helps cow health, l don't mind doing it, if it doesn't, they won't get it. The hfrs are looking pulled, cannot feed them more cake, they just shite more.
As for taking our eye of the grazing, no objection to taking some out, and bale it, may well need it to feed, if it comes in really wet, or dry.

 

[Sylution]

5th round of grazing. January and Feb calving batch, and milking barrens in herd now. Autums are dry. Easy time of year. 3kg cake and grass, 23 litres of milk average. Summer been spot on here, enough rain and damp for grass, but not too wet to make me, the cows and the fields miserable. Hope for good weather for end of August and September to calve.

 

[Jdunn55]

But if your feeding 12 kgs of cake that's a large part of a cows DMI in conc

They arent all having that!
I wish they were! But like said they have to be doing 45 litres to get that!
Average of 30 litres gets 6kg of cake

 

[Jdunn55]

Butter fat no lower than 4.4 here this yr on grass and blend.

Havent you got jerseys in the mix?

 

[Jdunn55]

Plus as soon as you put buffer feed into your cows you take your eye of your grazing and miss the boat aka some of your grass pictures earlier in the year

My grazing this year is due to me learning the farm, I'm very clearly not as clever as most of you on here and got some things wrong and learnt a lot about the farm. It's not an easy farm despite what most of you seem to think, hopefully next year I can use what I have learnt this year and make less mistakes,

I don't get your point about buffer feeding causing me to take my eye off the ball? It takes me less than 5 minutes to put a bale in...

 

[Cowmansam]

It’s not about cleverness it’s about experience it’s a lot less expensive if you can learn from our mistakes than make the same ones yourself

 

[Jdunn55]

Im not corning the hell out of anyone!
They HAVE to be doing ATLEAST 45 litres to get 12kg of cake, I wish every animal on the farm was being fed that as I would have a herd of cows all doing 45 litres but alas they're not

Average cake being fed at present is 4-5kg

Buffer feeding works for me, it doesn't cost me a huge amount and pays for itself easily. I've just finished my wholecrop which I'm hoping I can use to get my average butterfat up to 4.5% over the entire lactation whilst doing 7500l yield. Will have to see, if it doesn't work then as atleast I've tried

Well there’s a reason to that then but buffering and Corning the hell out of cows when he’s had to drag sucklers in to eat his grass is madness

 

[Cowmansam]

I know you think we give you a hard time but it’s because between the collective minds in here we have probably done everything in the book not to do

 

[Cowmansam]

12kg is Corning the hell out off something

 

[Jdunn55]

I agree and a lot of what's been said on here would work brilliantly at dads farm, but this farm really is a pita and it's taken a long time for me to get my head around it, I finally think I'm getting there though!

It’s not about cleverness it’s about experience it’s a lot less expensive if you can learn from our mistakes than make the same ones yourself

 

[lazy farmer]

Havent you got jerseys in the mix?

Absolutely. I have the cow to
Suit my land myself and maximise
My milk contract with minimum hassle and cost.

 

[In the pit]

With autumns?

Yes
Springs would be nearly same apart from protein would be lower at 3.25 to 3.4

 

[In the pit]

My grazing this year is due to me learning the farm, I'm very clearly not as clever as most of you on here and got some things wrong and learnt a lot about the farm. It's not an easy farm despite what most of you seem to think, hopefully next year I can use what I have learnt this year and make less mistakes,

I don't get your point about buffer feeding causing me to take my eye off the ball? It takes me less than 5 minutes to put a bale in...

But that bale has to be made and the sh!t has to be scrapped
Are the cows brought in early or kept in at the end to eat the bale = more sh!t to scrape then tanker out and spread
Any form of silage will restrict grass intakes and as soon as it rains cows will wait at the gate for the silage and more or less stop garazing

 

[In the pit]

there isn't any restriction on good quality grazing, they cannot eat more, to get more utilisation, it isn't going to slow passage through the cow, the longer it stays in the cow, the better utilisation you get, shitting your guts out everyday, would make you want to re-assess your diet, wouldn't it ? If it helps cow health, l don't mind doing it, if it doesn't, they won't get it. The hfrs are looking pulled, cannot feed them more cake, they just shite more.
As for taking our eye of the grazing, no objection to taking some out, and bale it, may well need it to feed, if it comes in really wet, or dry.

Any silage fed restricts the amount of grass they can eat
Cake has least restriction but you get milk for your money
Hay/ straw is the worst in terms of restricting the grass
For every kg / dm hay you put in you loose 2/3 kgs grass because it’s not 1 for 1