Cows 'n grass
Member
- Location
- Modbury, South Devon
I was only going off what my vets have suggested to do
I'm at a bit of a loss
The following is going to be controversial
I can calve outside on this farm during June-July, maybe may and August
Every other month will result in dead calves
This farm resembles Scotland more than it does cornwall, I farm the second highest point in Cornwall and its bitterly cold 75% of the year, and wet. But it grows grass. It also grows rushes for a past time. Nothing on the hedges grows, I might get a gorse Bush if I'm lucky
I had to drag my fencing contractor out of one of the fields the other day as he had sunk
In his words he has never fenced such a wet farm
Dad's is the polar opposite, he farms 10 minutes away. It is just a very difficult farm
One option is to calve much later, say may-july? Roddas would be ecstatic if I did, I could probably calve outside, I can make a big cut of silage when the cows are dry in april-may on the half of the farm that I can cut and the other half I could graze with youngstock
I could also plant fodder beet to graze during the winter along with maize to feed during the winter too
Yes I am grasping at straws
I don't know your farm but @Dead Rabbits manages to calve outside in -20 ice storms and gets away with it (it looks fekin miserable for the people involved though). You're in West Cornwall; you, your cows and your calves would be absolutely fine calving outside.
Your cows are calving fine indoors though and that is not your current problem, If halocur / parafor is not saving your calves then I wouldn't be so confident that it's crypto killing them. What age are they dying? All of this is just fine tuning and most of us have been through it, you don't need to be considering massive system changes just to improve calf health.
Have your vets rules out mycoplasma?