Nothing
"Improving Our Lot" - Planned Holistic Grazing, for starters..
- Thread starter Kiwi Pete
- Start date
- Location
- Devon
How often are you moving them?
ShooTa
Member
- Location
- Denbighshire - In the vale of Clwyd!
hey who cares ( and ill be the first to admit mines getting a tad too long - the cows next door are no longer eyeing it up.)
ive even had the old - what about the thatch comment recently - however i will caveat that the run their on at the moment will be topped behind them so i have a good comparison.
dt995
Member
- Location
- Carmarthenshire
Every 2-3 days.
dt995
Member
- Location
- Carmarthenshire
I would be happy to face 'em all down if it weren't for the constant feet problems.
The cows still go into long, and do well at it with lots of trampling of the rush.
But the sheep feet are always scaldy and footrot-y.
- Location
- Devon
And how long rest/ rotation?
- Location
- Derbyshire
Here's mine 5 weeks after drilling. Just a 5 acre of patch I thought I would try with no fertilizer. This is Bittern (kale)
Bales lined up in the background ready to put out soon. This will be the R1s home for January (weather permitting) Still wondering if I should give in to put on some fert before the bales go out , or keep patient? "It'll come right"
dt995
Member
- Location
- Carmarthenshire
Plenty. Lots of grass has got away from us this year (which is better than running out). The cows get the longest, but the sheep still have stuff that is normally reckoned "too long for sheep", including on a sward stick the wife got from somewhere.
couldn't you vaccinate ?
- Location
- Devon
It's a difficult one.
How have they done apart from the lameness?
There are people grazing sheep holistically but it's a steep learning curve. Much easier with cattle.
I've had plenty of problems but I can't say lameness is one.
There's been times (including this evening) when I'd happily have sold the lot and gone all cattle!
our sheep are very often on long stuff so you can't see them, we get little foot trouble just one or two with a bit of scald, to much of that and we cull them
dt995
Member
- Location
- Carmarthenshire
We've tested cobalt deficient, so that didn't help any of them this year.
We got rid of the lot and bought in some from a breeder with a good reputation for culling troublesome stock, and they're the ones now with footrot.
Maybe it just doesn't work right where I am in wet Wales.
We got rid of the lot and bought in some from a breeder with a good reputation for culling troublesome stock, and they're the ones now with footrot.
Maybe it just doesn't work right where I am in wet Wales.
- Location
- Derbyshire
. . . or maybe, without actually realising it, you have just got sheep that are genetically prone to foot issues. Maybe the breeder didn't just cull for issues, but also 'moved stock on'
Dont beat yourself up about it. Mark the bad ones with a notch (not to be bred from) , cull as hard as you dare and only keep replacements from ewes that have good feet.
Maybe not a short term fix, but in the long run it should come right.
The wife? ?
Can’t be blaming her.
Tricky one. Do you think the decomposing sward is likely to be pulling a lot of N out of the soil.
Time for a trial I think!!!!
- Location
- Derbyshire
Ahhh. Hadn't thought of that. So what should I have done/do next time?
Got any spare slurry from the dairy that could go on? Or maybe spray off a bit earlier. Or both.
There is bound to be someone along soon with more experience than me doing it.
- Location
- Devon
Maybe they haven't come across the particular bugs present on your farm?
As said try to breed/ cull your way out of it over time. But it's not a quick fix.
SilliamWhale
Member
Trying to take a wide view on this. Do you think the whole long grass and sheep thing genuinely has merit or not? I cannot rationally think it can.