What happens to male calves in the Irish dairy industry?

Worztron

Hi. What happens to male calves in the Irish dairy industry? Are most killed for veal or soon after birth?

L1011

Bred for beef or veal usually - sold on if the farm is solely dairy. Bulls are needed to perpetuate dairy herds also, although as its pretty much entirely done via AI not that many are used for that. There are agriculture forums here if you want more specific information, usual thing is to ask a mod to move the thread.

Musketeer4

Sold on to beef farms.

Worztron

Musketeer4 wrote: »

Sold on to beef farms.

Yes, but a tiny minority I'd say. Beef cattle are a different breed.

L1011

Worztron wrote: »

Yes, but a tiny minority I'd say. Beef cattle are a different breed.

No, unlike chickens, dairy cows are not utterly useless for meat production. Wrong forum to go in to the details of beef and veal farming!

Musketeer4

There's actually much fewer bull calfs on dairy farms nowadays with the use of sexed semen in AI. Bull calfs are basically a waste byproduct of dairy farms and it is much more preferable to have all cow calfs born because they can supplement the dairy herd.

Worztron

Musketeer4 wrote: »

...Bull calfs are basically a waste byproduct of dairy farms...

We live in such a sick society when sentient creatures are considers a 'waste byproduct'.

GrasstoMilk

Majority are sold on to other farms where they are rereared on milk replacer up toll 3 mths old when they are weaned. There rearing continues for another 15mths on grass silage and meal and then they go in the fattening stage where they are gotten ready for factory.
A small % are reared for veal at 10mths.
Some farmers do rear all there own stock but the majority prefere to specialise with cows where there is a better income.

Rearing bull calves is profitable at large scale but more often than not it's part time farming where the farmer also has a full time job to make a living

ganmo

GrasstoMilk wrote: »

Majority are sold on to other farms where they are rereared on milk replacer up toll 3 mths old when they are weaned. There rearing continues for another 15mths on grass silage and meal and then they go in the fattening stage where they are gotten ready for factory.
A small % are reared for veal at 10mths.
Some farmers do rear all there own stock but the majority prefere to specialise with cows where there is a better income.

Rearing bull calves is profitable at large scale but more often than not it's part time farming where the farmer also has a full time job to make a living

Op you'll get more personal answers if you ask in the farming forum

Worztron

This is so messed up. :mad:

Worztron

ganmo wrote: »

Op you'll get more personal answers if you ask in the farming forum

Nah, I will stay here. I don't want to listen to the pro-dairy crowd jumping up and down about how much they "love" their animals and how "wonderful" the dairy industry is.

Worztron

What a messed up industry.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2152402/Viewers-outrage-harrowing-scenes-day-old-calves-shot.html

http://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/shocking-video-footage-puts-spotlight-on-new-zealands-dairy-industry/

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/animal-charitys-horrifying-video-exposes-6928566

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3340565/Shocking-video-shows-New-Zealand-dairy-farmers-bashing-kicking-throwing-four-day-old-calves-regarded-trash-bloodied-concrete-floors.html

New Home

I saw this earlier today, and it cheered me up immensely - one at least is safe and happy and loved (not an Irish animal, unfortunately).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXHysSElZC8

More info here:http://www.gut-aiderbichl.com/page.targets.php

_Brian

Worztron wrote: »

Nah, I will stay here. I don't want to listen to the pro-dairy crowd jumping up and down about how much they "love" their animals and how "wonderful" the dairy industry is.

It's an interesting reply.
So essentially your asking the question in a particular forum so it will be answered by people with a similar view to yourself rather than those directly involved in the industry.

The majority of dairy bull calves make it into a beef system where they are killed by 24 months of age. Depending on many factors year to year a large number can be exported for veal to other countries.

It would be a nice situation if we could have sexed seven guarentee the results as in theory that would eliminate the dairy bulls completly and more selective breeding of dairy replacements and more beef stock would happen - I don't see that being achieved any time soon though.

I think it's excessive to say farmers love their animals, but the vast majority have a healthy respect for them and the welfare of the animals is paramount in farming practices. No farmer will condone mistreating animals, but farming them is the business and I'm sure that includes some stuff some people don't much like.

The reality is though that I think you knew full well the answer you'd get and that there was an adjenda behind asking the question.

Tar.Aldarion

Here is a talk given recently on farming in Ireland by Bite Size vegan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBy5BqCv4us

00:00 Opening & framing
00:39 Imagine If
03:21 Speaker Intro
03:38 The Challenge
04:10 I Won't Make You Vegan
04:30 Behind Closed Doors
05:18 Ireland Disclaimer
05:45 Source of Facts
06:18 Definition of Vegan
06:47 Vegan Extremism
07:10 It's Not Like That Here
08:27 What IS It Like?
09:30 You Deserve The Truth
09:59 SOPs & Humane Regulations
11:04 Ireland's Population
11:27 Ireland's Output & Consumption
12:18 Ireland's PIG Industry
12:58 Processing Piglets
13:30 Mother Pigs
15:11 Ireland Non-Compliance
15:26 Undercover Pig Investigation
16:26 Highest Standards
17:55 Pig Stats
18:31 Irish CHICKENS & EGGS
20:18 Battery Cages & EU Ban Explained
22:00 Alice & Joy
23:14 Free-Range/Cage-Free
23:52 What Happens To Baby Boys?
24:43 Ireland's Laws For Grinding Chicks
25:52 Why Don't People Know?
26:21 Ireland's Chicken Death Toll & Methods
26:50 Bacterial Outbreak
27:16 COWS of Ireland
27:51 DAIRY
30:26 VEAL
30:57 Mothers Of Dairy
31:33 Mutilation
32:31 The Pus We Drink
33:00 Our Rationalizations
34:32 Irish (LIVE) EXPORTS
3540: Irish IMPORTS
36:20 Consumer Awareness
37:12 Our Absurd Contradictions
39:11 Profound ILLogic
39:58 THE BEST WE HAVE TO OFFER?
40:29 There's Another Option!
41:02 Footage Intro W/Question
41:37 FOOTAGE Of LEGAL PRACTICES
45:15 End of Footage Message
46:22 CO2 Chambers & Corruption
47:15 HEALTH IMPACT - Heart Disease, Kids, Obesity
48:38 ENVIRONMENT & OCEAN
51:15 Grass-Fed & Land
51:55 Personal Choice & Global Crisis
52:20 Saving Ireland
53:00 Traditions Are Not Justifications
53:27 The Good News - You Decide
54:54 Additional Vids

Worztron

Hi Tar.Aldarion.

Yeah, I saw that last week. Excellent video. It's a shame that most people won't even think about the suffering of animals yet alone bother to even change their eating habits. :mad:

Worztron

@Tar.Aldarion

It just popped into my head the other day the part in the video by BSV -- the cow was slaughtered but had a calf and they cut out the calf and slit its throat. That was one of the saddest things I've ever seen.

What monsters we humans are. :mad: