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AI service of dairy herd:
The
cows, which had their calves in October, will now be ready for artificial
insemination (AI). Someone specially trained to use the equipment does this.
The farm buys semen, and when the cow is on heat, it is placed inside her.
This saves the need to have a bull running with the herd all the time. The
cow will take around 280 days to produce the next calf. During this time the
flock will be grazing around the farm – clearing up grass left by the
cattle.
Scan January lambing flock:
The
flock of sheep that produce their lambs in January will now be scanned for
signs of lambs developing. An ultra sound scanner allows us to see the lambs
inside the ewe. Those that are not pregnant can then be separated from the
rest of the flock.
Cattle housed for the winter:
The
beef cattle are brought into open yards and sheds for the winter. This is
so that they can be fed indoors while the grass is growing; the ground is
wet and prone to trampling. The dairy cattle are house in a cubicle shed.
In addition the college has a beef finishing system with around 20 Fresian
bulls and some Limousin X bulls on a cereals/silage diet. During their time
indoors all the cattle will need to be cleaned out daily and fresh straw laid
on the floor of the housing. They will also be monitored for signs of ill-health
and the beef stores will be weighed regularly
Calves disbudded:
Many
breeds of cattle naturally grow horns. When these livestock are housed together
the horns can be dangerous both to each other and to their handlers. So, when
the calves are young and the first signs of their horns become apparent, they
are disbudded. This is a simple operation which involves giving the calf a
local anaesthetic in the area of the developing horns and then removing the
bud with a specialist hot iron
Spraying cereals:
The
cereals are sprayed for weeds at this time of year if the ground conditions
allow. This is done to prevent the weeds from competing with the crop at an
early stage. A mounted sprayer is used. Operators of these machines need to
be specially trained and hold a certificate of competence. If it is not possible
to control the weeds at this time of year then they will be sprayed in the
spring.
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