When's calving starting 2020

tellmeabit

We're off.. Little heifer calf. Small pull. Calf up and drinking within in 30 mins..

tanko

Good stuff. Is that the Lapon (CH4321) calf?
The mother looks a good strong heifer.

tellmeabit

tanko wrote: »

Good stuff. Is that the Lapon (CH4321) calf?
The mother looks a good strong heifer.

Ya that's her. Tidy calf. Heifer will be 3 in April. Off stock bull from Mozart. Out all winter until last week. No meal for any of them this year except a touch this last week before calving. Might work out cheaper to give calves a touch from start.

Lady Haywire

First one at home! Bivouac heifer calf off an Ulsan at 23 months.

https://twitter.com/LadyHaywire/status/1236252667485315072

john mayo 10

Anyone heard of giving calcium to cows before calving? Meant to help cows calf easier

Lady Haywire

john mayo 10 wrote: »

Anyone heard of giving calcium to cows before calving? Meant to help cows calf easier

Never heard of that, but it would help prevent milk fever which causes lazy calving.

Lime Tree Farm

"Milk fevers are a lack of calcium and can therefore happen at any stage.
Why does it happen at calving?

A dry cow’s calcium requirement calcium is 33-50% of her milking requirement. Grass silage generally supplies an excess of calcium for a dry cow but a deficit of calcium for milking cows. During the dry period the cows stores this excess. Once she starts to bag up, her diet cannot meet her requirements and she needs to draw calcium from her bones. This switch from storing to drawing calcium requires a hormonal change, which is controlled by the cows’ magnesium and vitamin D nutrition."
https://www.dairygoldagri.ie/farm_focus/mineral-feeding-pre-calving/

Biscuitus

12 calves here now. Only one assist cause the cow wouldn't sit down to push, easily pulled it out in the middle of the pen and she got the biggest fright. She's a bit of a dozy cow, don't think she realised she was calving despite it being her fifth. Every calf up in 30 mins and suckling soon after. I kept cows on hay the whole winter and silage 3-4 weeks before with meal and mineral 3-4 days before.

Heifers and second time calves due to start in 2-3 weeks. Hopefully it is the same for them.

Biscuitus

Woke up to find a heifer calved and not able to get back up, she had stayed pushing in one position so the right leg and bottom side of her body was numb. Thankfully I was able to ring someone to come down. It was just a matter of each of us grabbing a leg and turning her over. I wonder if I could have done it myself with ropes. She got up straight away and took to the calf, a bit wobbly but seems fine now.

I've a few cows repeating yet this heifer jumped the fence and got served in 30 mins before I hunted her back to the field. I'm trying to decide will I bring calving forward a week or bring it back further. Pros and cons, especially this year with the wet weather.

squinn2912

Another three today. Had to do a C Section on a heifer and the calf came out dead. Small heifer calf born backward late into the night and another heifer calf this evening. Whole day rootin. That’s now 5 calves lost out of 19. Wouldn’t be long sickening you. Any wonder lads don’t bother with sucklers

older by the day

Lime Tree Farm wrote: »

"Milk fevers are a lack of calcium and can therefore happen at any stage.
Why does it happen at calving?

A dry cow’s calcium requirement calcium is 33-50% of her milking requirement. Grass silage generally supplies an excess of calcium for a dry cow but a deficit of calcium for milking cows. During the dry period the cows stores this excess. Once she starts to bag up, her diet cannot meet her requirements and she needs to draw calcium from her bones. This switch from storing to drawing calcium requires a hormonal change, which is controlled by the cows’ magnesium and vitamin D nutrition."
https://www.dairygoldagri.ie/farm_focus/mineral-feeding-pre-calving/

That's interesting as this is the first year il give a kg of nuts to cows up to calving. I used to stop a few weeks before calving when the cows were in good condition and I was afraid the calves would get too big. However I got rotavirus last April and it occurred to me that the colostrum wasn't thick enough. Also a vet told me that if energy is negative the week before calving its the week after calving the cow will lose condition

50HX

Biscuitus wrote: »

Woke up to find a heifer calved and not able to get back up, she had stayed pushing in one position so the right leg and bottom side of her body was numb. Thankfully I was able to ring someone to come down. It was just a matter of each of us grabbing a leg and turning her over. I wonder if I could have done it myself with ropes. She got up straight away and took to the calf, a bit wobbly but seems fine now.

I've a few cows repeating yet this heifer jumped the fence and got served in 30 mins before I hunted her back to the field. I'm trying to decide will I bring calving forward a week or bring it back further. Pros and cons, especially this year with the wet weather.

If they are in heat serve them
Whose to say they will keep on this serve ....well+ good if they do
If they don't keep the decision is made for you

whelan2

Had 2 dead calves born in the last couple of days. Always get some grief around tb testing time .

3 the square

whelan2 wrote: »

Had 2 dead calves born in the last couple of days. Always get some grief around tb testing time .

Could u not try to shove it out a few weeks??
They done it for me I told them I wasn't well !!

Limestone Cowboy

squinn2912 wrote: »

Another three today. Had to do a C Section on a heifer and the calf came out dead. Small heifer calf born backward late into the night and another heifer calf this evening. Whole day rootin. That’s now 5 calves lost out of 19. Wouldn’t be long sickening you. Any wonder lads don’t bother with sucklers

It's a right sickner. I'm not doing much better than you. Have 4 lost out of 22 calved.

whelan2

3 the square wrote: »

Could u not try to shove it out a few weeks??
They done it for me I told them I wasn't well !!

Ye but I wouldn't be able to sell calves if the herd test was out of date, or would I?

tanko

whelan2 wrote: »

Ye but I wouldn't be able to sell calves if the herd test was out of date, or would I?

Could you not do your herd test in the Autumn, your calves could be sold in the spring without a TB test once they're under six weeks old.
Calves hardly need a TB test to be exported, do they?

3 the square

whelan2 wrote: »

Ye but I wouldn't be able to sell calves if the herd test was out of date, or would I?

Department might be understanding if u told them u were not well etc
You would have to make it real bad !!

Buford T. Justice XIX

tanko wrote: »

Could you not do your herd test in the Autumn, your calves could be sold in the spring without a TB test once they're under six weeks old.
Calves hardly need a TB test to be exported, do they?

Aren't all round tests supposed to be carried out within a short time period of each other to confirm an area is TB free?

There's a 2 month window to test in, iirc, and if you don't test within that 2 month period your herd is restricted until you carry out a herd test?

whelan2

We pushed it out a week last year and 2 days this year

Lady Haywire

Letter this morning that neighbour on outfarm is locked up.
Detest that wee brown envelope.

tanko

Buford T. Justice VI wrote: »

Aren't all round tests supposed to be carried out within a short time period of each other to confirm an area is TB free?
I don't know, most people in my area do their annual test in sept/oct before they sell weanlings.
I'd imagine that vets would rather not be doing herd tests in the spring with calvings going on.

There's a 2 month window to test in, iirc, and if you don't test within that 2 month period your herd is restricted until you carry out a herd test?

Yeah, once you get the test notification if you don't do it within two months your herd will be restricted.

squinn2912

Limestone Cowboy wrote: »

It's a right sickner. I'm not doing much better than you. Have 4 lost out of 22 calved.

Don’t start mate. We had a big cow in with a wee cow and their calves. Routinely giving them meal and letting the wee one eat first. Two sensible cows no problems. Big girl lying dead this morning. Would drive you demented

whelan2

What do ye do with the cows with no calves, cull or adopt a calf on to them?

Limestone Cowboy

whelan2 wrote: »

What do ye do with the cows with no calves, cull or adopt a calf on to them?

I adopted a calf onto 1 of them. The other 3 are for the road.

squinn2912

Limestone Cowboy wrote: »

I adopted a calf onto 1 of them. The other 3 are for the road.

Same as usually let them go unless it’s at a time when there’s a good gap until the next calf. You need time for that messing. Depends what happens too I’d forget about anything that got a C section.

Sugarbowl

squinn2912 wrote: »

Don’t start mate. We had a big cow in with a wee cow and their calves. Routinely giving them meal and letting the wee one eat first. Two sensible cows no problems. Big girl lying dead this morning. Would drive you demented

What had happened? Was it the calf dead or the cow?

squinn2912

Sugarbowl wrote: »

What had happened? Was it the calf dead or the cow?

The cow! Couldn’t make it up. Unless tetany? She was a great strong cow. Only 4 calves

Limestone Cowboy

After pulling a very big ch heifer out of a lim cow there now. Was upside down and its not often I get beat but I spent a half an hour trying to straighten her and I couldn't, had to call a neighbour and he got to right her and a big pull then, got caught on the hips for a few minutes aswell for good measure making the death roar. Lucky I called the neighbour anyway because she went down after the head came out pure arseways up against the wall of the shed. Never a dull moment with them. You'd wonder at times why you'd draw the trouble on yourself. 5 hours sleep now and another day of slobbering around in sh1te to look forward to....Lovely.

patsy_mccabe

Limestone Cowboy wrote: »

After pulling a very big ch heifer out of a lim cow there now. Was upside down and its not often I get beat but I spent a half an hour trying to straighten her and I couldn't, had to call a neighbour and he got to right her and a big pull then, got caught on the hips for a few minutes aswell for good measure making the death roar. Lucky I called the neighbour anyway because she went down after the head came out pure arseways up against the wall of the shed. Never a dull moment with them. You'd wonder at times why you'd draw the trouble on yourself. 5 hours sleep now and another day of slobbering around in sh1te to look forward to....Lovely.

Do you have a calf resuscitator? Thinking of getting one myself. Handy when you have them stop breathing like that, when they get caught at the hips.
At the calving demo in Ennis a while back, the vet Direen Corrigan was saying that the calf can't breath while you are pulling it so the best thing is to stop pulling and give the calf a break. I dunno if that's right though. The 'death roar' as you call it seems to happen anyway, pulling or no pulling.


https://www.agridirect.ie/product/calf-resuscitator

Gudstock

Was watching a maiden calve a AA calf on the camera the other night, all appeared to be progressing fine but no movement when calf was ejected into deep bed of straw and heifer didn't rise. Cue panic to get to farm, into pen and found the thick cover never broke, ripped it off the head and neck, propped the calf up and he kicked and started breathing. Heifer only got up then and got going with him. Not too long in him I'd say.

Limestone Cowboy

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

Do you have a calf resuscitator? Thinking of getting one myself. Handy when you have them stop breathing like that, when they get caught at the hips.
At the calving demo in Ennis a while back, the vet Direen Corrigan was saying that the calf can't breath while you are pulling it so the best thing is to stop pulling and give the calf a break. I dunno if that's right though. The 'death roar' as you call it seems to happen anyway, pulling or no pulling.


https://www.agridirect.ie/product/calf-resuscitator

No i don't have one. In all honesty I probably wouldn't have it there when I'd need it anyway and time isn't really on your side in that situation. I'd never stay pulling constantly if they get caught. Always try not to use any more pressure than necessary, I'd let the cow do as much work as she's able for. Hate to see lads trying to ratchet the calf out in 10 seconds.

patsy_mccabe

Had one of those days here today. I have a cow with the bull in a dry part of the field near the shed. With all the rain, the field is in mud. We got 30mm here yesterday.
Noticed her this morning starting to calve. Had a few things to do and when I came back she had calved quickly. Calf grand so let him be for a while. When I came back he was lying in a pool of mud trying to get up. Had to drag him a bit to a dry spot and get him standing up. No way I could carry him out. Got him walking to the gate behind the cow only for my little jack russell to appear at the gate looking at us. No way would he move and I knew if I left the calf, cow would take him back down the field again. Dog never comes near the shed - smell of after birth must have brought him. After me roaring at him to feck off he went home.
Anyway, cow has big bag with bottle nose teats all covered in mud. Into crush, hoist leg up and clean her off. No way would calf drink her. At this stage he's shivering. Into shed with calf and dry him. Have a sliding bar on the bottom of the crush that I have to slide back to let out the cow. She decides to give it a whopper of a kick and hurts her leg. Blood coming out and she limps into the calf.
Back to the house to chase the dog around the lawn so I can wash him. Back to shed and calf is drinking on his own. Never a dull moment eh?

Lime Tree Farm

Lime Tree Farm wrote: »

LM 12 May, SI 18 May - I find that if they are carrying bull calves they can go over their time too. Thanks again.

Update
LM - 12 May - went 292 days, bull calf - large - calving jack.
SI - 18 May - went 297 days (today), a very handy size heifer calf - small.

squinn2912

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

Had one of those days here today. I have a cow with the bull in a dry part of the field near the shed. With all the rain, the field is in mud. We got 30mm here yesterday.
Noticed her this morning starting to calve. Had a few things to do and when I came back she had calved quickly. Calf grand so let him be for a while. When I came back he was lying in a pool of mud trying to get up. Had to drag him a bit to a dry spot and get him standing up. No way I could carry him out. Got him walking to the gate behind the cow only for my little jack russell to appear at the gate looking at us. No way would he move and I knew if I left the calf, cow would take him back down the field again. Dog never comes near the shed - smell of after birth must have brought him. After me roaring at him to feck off he went home.
Anyway, cow has big bag with bottle nose teats all covered in mud. Into crush, hoist leg up and clean her off. No way would calf drink her. At this stage he's shivering. Into shed with calf and dry him. Have a sliding bar on the bottom of the crush that I have to slide back to let out the cow. She decides to give it a whopper of a kick and hurts her leg. Blood coming out and she limps into the calf.
Back to the house to chase the dog around the lawn so I can wash him. Back to shed and calf is drinking on his own. Never a dull moment eh?

It’s amazing the sieging you be at when you take a minute to write the steps down. Such fixes we get ourselves into

tellmeabit

No2. Heifer from dbz. Good pull. 290 days.
Scales arrived today so will try weights tomorrow hopefully

amens

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

Had one of those days here today. I have a cow with the bull in a dry part of the field near the shed. With all the rain, the field is in mud. We got 30mm here yesterday.
Noticed her this morning starting to calve. Had a few things to do and when I came back she had calved quickly. Calf grand so let him be for a while. When I came back he was lying in a pool of mud trying to get up. Had to drag him a bit to a dry spot and get him standing up. No way I could carry him out. Got him walking to the gate behind the cow only for my little jack russell to appear at the gate looking at us. No way would he move and I knew if I left the calf, cow would take him back down the field again. Dog never comes near the shed - smell of after birth must have brought him. After me roaring at him to feck off he went home.
Anyway, cow has big bag with bottle nose teats all covered in mud. Into crush, hoist leg up and clean her off. No way would calf drink her. At this stage he's shivering. Into shed with calf and dry him. Have a sliding bar on the bottom of the crush that I have to slide back to let out the cow. She decides to give it a whopper of a kick and hurts her leg. Blood coming out and she limps into the calf.
Back to the house to chase the dog around the lawn so I can wash him. Back to shed and calf is drinking on his own. Never a dull moment eh?

Wash him?? I'd give him a tap of the shovel.

patsy_mccabe

amens wrote: »

Wash him?? I'd give him a tap of the shovel.

Washed him with the hose in the yard. He's a house dog and he was 1/2 covered in mud.

Dozer1

2yr old heifer calved herself at 1am last night lovely little ch heifer calf up and sucked herself if only they were all as easy.

whelan2

15 year old pb angus cow. Very bad on her feet. Had her just going around the yard this last week or so. She broke a fence into a calf paddock during the night and calved there. Neighbour with special needs was ringing me and texting me this morning to tell me there was something wrong with the cow. He arrived over to tell me. I was milking, cow was on outfarm. Lucky he didnt go into her as she's crazy. My dad went over and she went for him. We ended up letting the 6 calved cows and calves into the paddock to confuse her and got her out. Her teats are too big for the calf to suck. Ths amount of time spent on her today was unreal.

visatorro

whelan2 wrote:

15 year old pb angus cow. Very bad on her feet. Had her just going around the yard this last week or so. She broke a fence into a calf paddock during the night and calved there. Neighbour with special needs was ringing me and texting me this morning to tell me there was something wrong with the cow. He arrived over to tell me. I was milking, cow was on outfarm. Lucky he didnt go into her as she's crazy. My dad went over and she went for him. We ended up letting the 6 calved cows and calves into the paddock to confuse her and got her out. Her teats are too big for the calf to suck. Ths amount of time spent on her today was unreal.

Only one road for her now!

whelan2

visatorro wrote: »

Only one road for her now!

I've been listening to that for about 4 years now:(

tanko

whelan2 wrote: »

I've been listening to that for about 4 years now:(

A shot of estrumate every couple of months would sort that problem.

whelan2

A bullet might be a better option.

tanko

True but he'll hardly agree to that. A trip to the factory when he's away might be the best option.

TooOldBoots

tanko wrote: »

True but he'll hardly agree to that. A trip to the factory when he's away might be the best option.

or Burger King

squinn2912

4th c section this evening. Camera paid for itself. I saw the heifer trying to calve from school. Rang da, hauled ass and rang vet. Live heifer calf. Need to check the records could be lim or sh calf. Very lively. Heifer on camera kinda starting to take to the calf. I’m bucked.

emaherx

squinn2912 wrote: »

4th c section this evening. Camera paid for itself. I saw the heifer trying to calve from school. Rang da, hauled ass and rang vet. Live heifer calf. Need to check the records could be lim or sh calf. Very lively. Heifer on camera kinda starting to take to the calf. I’m bucked.

Wouldn't be able to manage here at all now without cameras

bogman_bass

TooOldBoots wrote: »

or Burger King

There can be hight restrictions at the drive through so the cattle box might not fit

Lady Haywire

Two massive swobs on the slats this morning, guessing from the one cow. And when I say massive, I mean like the size of a medium leek :pac:
Only one cow over right now so has to be her, though was only due a week ago.