xbred dairy bull calves

[Princess Pooper]

Our milk buyer requirements already ban routine euthanasia too. And I thought an annual collation of births/deaths and analysis of causes of death was already part of RT? It's certainly in our Annual Herd Health Plan Review.

 

[som farmer]

Our milk buyer requirements already ban routine euthanasia too. And I thought an annual collation of births/deaths and analysis of causes of death was already part of RT? It's certainly in our Annual Herd Health Plan Review.

our buyer stops it after next year, red tractor looks to bring it in sooner, having brought this subject up, on this forum, last year, and been ridiculed for being stupid, perhaps some farmers will think again !
This is going to be a serious problem going forward, and, again, to all those farmers, who think sexed semen is the answer, it isn't. The problem is two fold, the first is, where's the market for the meat those calves grow into, because, at the moment, there isn't one, the trade cannot absorb an extra 1 or 2 hundred thousand calves, without crashing the suckler beef trade, and secondly, who is going to rear all those calves ? The beef farmers will not take them, if they cannot see a profit at the end, those dairy farmers, that said, not our problem, the beef farmer HAS to take the calves, and if he cant make a profit, tough, perhaps they would like to think again. I don't know the answer, and as it stands at the moment, I can see a lot of dairy farmers, stuck with calves they cannot either sell, or give away.
Euthanasia of calves, at birth is wrong, to the public, and in all fairness, most farmers do not like it, and its only the fact that there is no mkt for those calves, is why it happens. We simply have to find a mkt for them, its the sheer numbers that are the problem, s/mkts, must love it, all that cheap mince !

 

[digger64]

our buyer stops it after next year, red tractor looks to bring it in sooner, having brought this subject up, on this forum, last year, and been ridiculed for being stupid, perhaps some farmers will think again !
This is going to be a serious problem going forward, and, again, to all those farmers, who think sexed semen is the answer, it isn't. The problem is two fold, the first is, where's the market for the meat those calves grow into, because, at the moment, there isn't one, the trade cannot absorb an extra 1 or 2 hundred thousand calves, without crashing the suckler beef trade, and secondly, who is going to rear all those calves ? The beef farmers will not take them, if they cannot see a profit at the end, those dairy farmers, that said, not our problem, the beef farmer HAS to take the calves, and if he cant make a profit, tough, perhaps they would like to think again. I don't know the answer, and as it stands at the moment, I can see a lot of dairy farmers, stuck with calves they cannot either sell, or give away.
Euthanasia of calves, at birth is wrong, to the public, and in all fairness, most farmers do not like it, and its only the fact that there is no mkt for those calves, is why it happens. We simply have to find a mkt for them, its the sheer numbers that are the problem, s/mkts, must love it, all that cheap mince !

Why is it that everywhere b&w dairy replacements/dry cows are grazing near my cattle or seen on my travels about which is several different places is there more or less always a few jerseys or crosses with them as if everyone has to have a few in the last couple of years ?

 

[applejack]

Why is it that everywhere b&w dairy replacements/dry cows are grazing near my cattle or seen on my travels about which is several different places is there more or less always a few jerseys or crosses with them as if everyone has to have a few in the last couple of years ?

Crossbreeding! It's the current buzzword, a somewhat kinder definition for grassrats.

 

[happycows]

Crossbreeding! It's the current buzzword, a somewhat kinder definition for grassrats.

Not all crossbreds are grass rats

 

[applejack]

Not all crossbreds are grass rats

True, I was being a little sarcastic! Everyone to their own

 

[som farmer]

Not all crossbreds are grass rats

grass rats are small cows, highly efficient though, but I wonder when the ban on calves arrives, whether they will be quite so popular, if you have to make a negative cost, for the calf, because while some calves are fine, others are not, we have just had a hfdx born, description, modern art ! That one will go to cornwall for a suckler cow, but, if we have to give a £100 with the calve, will make a difference.

 

[Henarar]

Dairy farmer down the road use to have (retired now) BF cows in the main with crosses to MRI, Monty stuff like that, no hol or CI, what they didnt want replacements from were put to blue or baz bulls, they had folk come buying them of farm didn't have to take them to market they couldn't get enough of them and the dairy bulls would sell easy enough.
We bought a few beef cross heifer calves from them not cheap but made darn good suck cows.
Perhaps its time you dairy boys produced a calf that was worth buying and someone would pay good money for, just saying

 

[som farmer]

Dairy farmer down the road use to have (retired now) BF cows in the main with crosses to MRI, Monty stuff like that, no hol or CI, what they didnt want replacements from were put to blue or baz bulls, they had folk come buying them of farm didn't have to take them to market they couldn't get enough of them and the dairy bulls would sell easy enough.
We bought a few beef cross heifer calves from them not cheap but made darn good suck cows.
Perhaps its time you dairy boys produced a calf that was worth buying and someone would pay good money for, just saying

good calves sell, and the BF produces them, although the modern BF is more like the HOL when they came in. The problem, as I see it, is the numbers extra, that have to be reared, and the effect on the beef price, we are going to go down the BF route, sexed semen, and beef, jersey on the hfrs, atm. But, that doesn't solve the extra numbers, or the effect on the beef price.

 

[applejack]

Some good points there @som farmer , you're right the modern BF is like the hol was when it came in on the other hand I have some old photos of my dad's BF when he went tt attested in the mid fifties and they looked like the early hol. But breeds develop and evolve as farming practices dictate, alot of the BF's became short dumpy barrels on legs , many holsteins became hat racks.

 

[som farmer]

Some good points there @som farmer , you're right the modern BF is like the hol was when it came in on the other hand I have some old photos of my dad's BF when he went tt attested in the mid fifties and they looked like the early hol. But breeds develop and evolve as farming practices dictate, alot of the BF's became short dumpy barrels on legs , many holsteins became hat racks.

been given a pile of 'sport and country' magazines from 1950, the breeds then, looked very different from the same breeds today. Then, the main milking cows were shorthorn, aryshire, jersey and guernsey, friesians were just coming in, and I definitely wouldn't want them, then. But, plenty other breeds were milked, many are now on the rare breed list.
The guernsey, has really disappeared, as has the shorthorn, aryshires are just hanging on, with the friesian, and the jersey has prospered, and the holstien as appeared, in very great numbers ! I would like to browse back to the cows, milked in the 30's, and see them, apparently loads of 'scrub' cows, all sorts of x's etc, jump forward to now, all those x's, are now being promoted, although better than the 'scrub' cows of then. The wheel is turning full circle, again, same principle, better cows !

 

[Beef farmer]

Calf income is still only 3% of our total income. Sooner rear the calves to fat than have a holstien cow that had a decent calf value. When beef is 3.60ppkg they will sell, when its 2.80ppkg they wont. Simple

 

[applejack]

Agree on the dairy shorthorn and Guernsey, Ayrshire's possibly more in demand than ten years ago.

 

[Homesy]

If you look at this page any click on the the years you can see what has happened to the holstein breed. I prefer the ones from the 60's to any of the recent ones

Dairy Cow Daily - 2012 All-Canadian Holsteins

 

[Dead Rabbits]

If you look at this page any click on the the years you can see what has happened to the holstein breed. I prefer the ones from the 60's to any of the recent ones

Dairy Cow Daily - 2012 All-Canadian Holsteins

You can really see the frailty and increase in stature start late 80s early 90s.

 

[frederick]

What appears interesting is the red tractor review is focusing on euthanasia which would happen on farm. The wording doesnt appear to leave any leeway to review sending to slaughter at 10 days so presumably stopping this isnt being considered.
Interesting take if keeping public and supermarkets happy is the angle.

 

[Beef farmer]

What appears interesting is the red tractor review is focusing on euthanasia which would happen on farm. The wording doesnt appear to leave any leeway to review sending to slaughter at 10 days so presumably stopping this isnt being considered.
Interesting take if keeping public and supermarkets happy is the angle.

Its 100% about keeping the public happy.
Either 1 hour old or 30 months old, the outcome is still the same. End result doesn't change for the beef animal

 

[ImLost]

Its 100% about keeping the public happy.
Either 1 hour old or 30 months old, the outcome is still the same. End result doesn't change for the beef animal

They are cute cuddly calves at 1 hour old, at 30 months they are a big ugly monster that "might trample you"
I had some members of the public wander off the footpath and through a field of cows the other day. I warned them of the dangers of getting between cows and their new calves, "yes yes, we noticed the big bulls in the field, we were watching out for them".
Public perception and all that ?

 

[Princess Pooper]

If you look at this page any click on the the years you can see what has happened to the holstein breed. I prefer the ones from the 60's to any of the recent ones

Dairy Cow Daily - 2012 All-Canadian Holsteins

one of our frailer ladies ?

Known as The Tank. A Twist daughter, coming to end of 4th lactation.

 

[Rossymons]

View attachment 888223
one of our frailer ladies ?View attachment 888224

Known as The Tank. A Twist daughter, coming to end of 4th lactation.

Pretty black for a Twist daughter!