Cowmanagement april-may 2018

V O LU M E 16 N O 3 APR IL/MAY 2018

IN THIS ISSUE

L A B O U R S E R IE S

M A C H IN ERY & EQ U IPM EN T

C O W HEALTH

We focus on how to recruit and retain staff

Innovations that can save time and increase efficiency

Mastitis: the latest thinking on treatment decisions

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CO NTENT

FEATURES

Cow Talk Value added: doorstep deliveries Roger Evans ForFarmers Nutritional News/ Thompsons Nutritional News 41 CRV Avoncroft Breeding Information 47 NMR Dairy Management News 50 Events and contacts 5 11 19 35

REPORT

12 Scottish herd retains NMR production ranking top spot FEEDING

16 Fresh approach to transition period/ Turning cows out to grass H E A LT H

22 Udder treatment options for progressive herds 38 Johne’s award highlights top four BREEDING

32 Adding value to milk 48 April bull proofs

John Harvey “Dairying is like juggling – with lots of balls in the air” 12

Editor Rachael Porter Setbacks and successes

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s we go to press, many producers will finally – with much relief – be turning cows out to spring grazing, after what’s been an extremely cold and wet spring. Seeing the back wall of the silage clamp is never a welcome sight, so here’s hoping for a bumper crop of first-cut silage to bolster dwindling forage stocks.

We spoke to a producer who grows lucerne, as well as grass and maize silage, to add variety and home-grown protein to his cows’ winter ration.

Take a look at page 44 and see if this nitrogen-fixing crop could have a place in your rotation.

This issue’s special focuses on machinery and equipment. We take a closer look at the latest kit that could help to reduce labour and fuel costs on many units, as well as potentially boosting feed efficiency and cow performance.

Automatic feed pushing technology ensures that feed is in front of the cows 24/7 – even at the busiest times of the year and where labour is already stretched. It could be more cost-effective

than you think. Take a look at page 28 to find out more.

Investing in a self-propelled mixer and feeder wagon could also offer huge financial benefits for many dairy businesses, as well as increasing cow health, fertility and productivity.

We’ve more information about this on page 26.

The team that owns and manages the herd that has, for the third time in five years, topped NMR’s annual production report, offers a few tips and pointers on maximising herd health, welfare and productivity on page 12. John Harvey shares some of the secrets of his family’s success when it comes to consistently topping the dairy production charts.

We also feature a Monmouthshire-based producer in our new ‘Value added’ column, who’s bottling and delivering milk. And Roger Evans has been thinking about water. That’s suitably topical, considering the wet weather we’ve all been experiencing!

Main article Staff shortage

Special Machinery

Feeding Lucerne

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Sourcing dairy staff can be tricky, so how can you make sure they stay?

Self-propelled feeder wagons, feed pushers, and a round up of some of the latest kit

COW MAN AG E ME N T

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Alternative forage can boost milk quality and reduce bought-in protein costs

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C O W

TA L K

Control chickweed in grass now Chickweed growing in established pastures and new-sown leys will compete with grass species for space, light, water and, most importantly, nutrients such as nitrogen. The good news is that controlling chickweed is a quick and easy way to increase the quantity and quality of grazing and silage.

Spraying with a modern, translocated herbicide – that enters through the leaves and travels throughout the plant from leaf to roots – will offer the best control. Envy, a herbicide from Dow AgroSciences, works at lower temperatures than other solutions and can be sprayed from now until the end of November. “Chickweed grows rapidly and its prostrate habit quickly colonises any gaps in a sward,” explains

Dow AgroSciences’ Andy Bailey. “One of the two active ingredients in this product allows it to work at cooler temperatures, and also in conditions where there are large fluctuations between day and night temperatures.

This means that spraying can be done now, making it one job less to worry about later this spring.”

The herbicide can be used at a dose rate of two litres per hectare in established grassland and at a lower rate (1.5 litres per hectare) against chickweed in newsown leys – ones that were established in autumn 2017 and in fields seeded this year.

The product is sold in three-litre packs and each one treats 1.5 hectares when used at the two-litre-per-hectare rate.

Undersow arable silage to boost this year’s forage Livestock producers should consider growing an arable silage and grass mixture to boost forage this summer and autumn. So says DLF Seeds’ Nick Duggan.

“The cold and wet spring has left many producers extremely short of both fresh and conserved grass,” he says. “Reseeding a long-term grass ley now will not produce sufficient forage in the short-term.”

But sowing an arable silage crop – like a pea-and-barley mix – could be a cost-

effective way of producing high quality additional feed. Undersowing with a long-term ley would then ensure quality grassland further down the line.

“This could be one of the most economic and practical ways of replenishing forage stocks this summer, along with restoring unproductive fields.”

Mr Duggan suggests sowing a spring barley and pea mixture, and cutting seed rates by between 10% and 15% to allow the grass to establish successfully. Arable silage should yield 8t DM/hectare.

Biological control solution combats nuisance flies A biological control solution for nuisance flies has been launched by farm vet practice, Lambert, Leonard and May. Parasitic or ‘friendly’ flies allow producers to take a proactive and costeffective approach to issues caused by biting and nuisance flies.

Using the product, called Friendly Flies, as part of a managed fly-control programme, can also help to reduce insecticidal and antibiotic use, and improve potential herd performance.

The natural fly parasitic species are bred by entomologists in Texas and recognised as part of US Biological Integrated Insect Control Programmes. “We have several clients who have trialled the fly parasites

with considerable success and are continuing to see the benefits of a reduced fly population,” says company vet Mark Hickinson.

Female parasitic flies pierce nuisance fly maggot pupae and lay up to 350 eggs per day. On hatching, the parasites subsequently eat the maggots. Over time, this cycle naturally reduces the nuisance fly population. Application is recommended on a fortnightly basis throughout the fly season.

“Parasitic flies provide a natural, longterm and cost-effective solution to reducing the use of traditional potentially hazardous chemicals,” adds Dr Hickinson.

COW MAN AG E ME N T

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A RT I C L E

We share some tips

Communicat io Staff-shortage solutions This is the second article in our series that takes a closer look at dairy labour. Many UK producers are facing the increasingly difficult challenge of finding staff to manage and run their herds and businesses. So attracting and retaining workers has never been more crucial. What can producers do to reduce staff turnover?

Part 1: Dairy labour: why there is a shortage?

Part 2: Recruiting and retaining staff Part 3: Inspiring the next generation Part 4: Success stories – training and apprenticeships

Sourcing dairy staff can be tricky and, when you do find the right candidate, how can you make sure they stay? We spoke to some leading dairy recruitment specialists to find out more about employee attraction strategies. text Rachael Porter

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hat really motivates staff and creates loyalty is often not what producers think. So says LKL’s business development director Ian Lindsay.

And he should know. He carried out a survey, asking producers what they thought motivated their staff.

He also asked dairy workers the same question.

“The answers made for interesting reading,” he says. Most notably, producers believed that, above all else, wages and remuneration motivated staff.

Yet this was low down the workers’ list. They cited communication, followed by training and responsibility, appreciation and involvement, and job security as more important ‘motivators’ (see box on page eight).

Different view “What’s really telling is that the number-one motivation for staff – Ian Lindsay: “Good communcation communication – doesn’t must be a priority“ even feature on the employer list. There’s a big disconnect here and the results tell us that producers looking to recruit and, more importantly, retain staff must make good communication a priority.

“I questioned employees across a range of skill levels, pay grades and herd sizes and the results reflect – from both employee and employer

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perspective – a similar picture seen across other industries.”

LKL’s managing director George Gordon says that, often, dairy producers don’t have a reputation for being good communicators. “But it’s important and well worth putting in the effort and taking time to do things better. Of course, pay is

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ome tips on recruiting and retaining dairy employees

at ion key to staff retention competitive. Workers’ expectations are very different today and some producers have to move with the times.

This may mean offering more time off, shorter shifts, and more sociable working hours.

“At review time, some staff may prefer more pay, but some would opt for more time off. Moving to a ‘one weekend on, one George Gordon: “Working hours weekend off’ scenario, and and pay must be competitive“ maybe introducing a rota accommodating different team requirements, could make all the difference.”

Competitive package

important and employers should make sure that the wages they offer are competitive to both attract and retain employees.

“On the face of it, many see that there are easier ways to make a living and, in some instances, they are right.

So it’s important that the working hours and pay are

“Again, work out what would work for you and your business, and talk to your staff.” Mr Gordon sees that the trend is towards dairy staff having more time off, working, on average, between five and 5.5 days a week: “That’s forcing up the cost of staffing a dairy unit. But it’s the kind of package that’s required to keep the sector competitive and to encourage people to stay in the industry.”

When it comes to recruitment, things are getting tighter and not least because the number of people coming to the UK from Romania and Bulgaria have slowed considerably since Brexit.

“Businesses employing European labour, and indeed British people, should now be pulling out the stops to retain good staff. Listen to the team, communicate and change things to create better working conditions.

“Get accommodation issues sorted out and put effort into people management.

Try to keep team morale high wherever possible.

For ambitious senior staff, the key here can be to offer them opportunities and maybe even promotions that could be mutually Dominik Wojciechowski: “Imagine beneficial. Equity and profit shares are attractive what it would be like to work for you” options, that will allow senior team members to take on more responsibility and to take some ownership. And, with the average age of UK dairy producers in the late 50s, it creates the opportunity to let someone else take the strain.”

Whatever producers do, it’s vital that they do something to retain staff. “If someone leaves to

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work in construction for £200 a day, for example, they’re not going to come back. It’s vital that we all look after the good people that we’ve got and then also take steps to attract others into the industry. Understanding what motivates staff is a good place to start.”

Regional managers As a result of the survey, and feedback from European employees, LKL appointed regional managers, from the Romanian and Polish communities working with cows in the UK, to support staff and help them settle more easily into their jobs on UK units.

“Starting any new job is stressful. Now imagine doing that in a different country with little or no language skills and having to sort out all manner of paperwork – let alone carry out your day-to-day responsibilities,” says the company’s Dominik Wojciechowski.

He helps to recruit and support the company’s Polish staff and now works from Poland, but he started working for LKL in 2008, milking cows on a farm in Sussex.

“Communication is my biggest role – and making sure that Polish staff working in the UK are as happy as possible. The language barrier can create fear and uncertainty, but if they know that there’s someone on the end of the phone who can help, then that helps to take the stress out of many situations – be it a work, health, financial or family issue that they are struggling with.”

Language barrier

What really motivates staff?

Top-five ranking factors from LKL’s survey of employers and employees:

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Producer ranking

Employee ranking

• Wages & remuneration • Job security • Promotion & growth • Good working conditions • Mutual loyalty

• Communication • Training & responsibility • Appreciation & involvement • Job security • Wages & remuneration

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Mr Wojciechowski knows what the Polish staff are experiencing when they first come to the UK – he’s been through it himself.

“Firstly, you’re in a new and unfamiliar country with a different culture. And then there’s the language barrier. And the working environment; Polish farms tend to be much smaller than those in the UK and many people are used to working alone.

The UK has larger units and people must work as part of a team. These are all big changes that take time to adapt to.”

Once staff are settled, his job is to keep them in the UK. “Ideally we’d like them to settle here for good, move up the career ladder and take on more responsibility.”

There’s more choice for employees now – the job market is strong. “Having worked on both sides of the fence, I think that it’s important that employers put themselves in their employees’ shoes.

“Imagine what it would be like to work for you?

Would you want to work for you? If not, how could you make your employees’ lives and working day more satisfying? Accommodation, machinery, systems, communication, rapport – they all have to be right if employers are not only going to recruit but also retain motivated and dedicated staff.

“There’s one main reason why staff leave, in my experience, and that’s stress. So do all you can to alleviate that and you’ll go a long way to avoiding staffing issues.” l

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VA L UE

A D D E D

Name: Rhys Lougher Herd size: 110 milkers Adding value: on-farm milk processing and doorstep deliveries

Pyle

Rhys Lougher: “We identified a gap in the market that we could fill”

Mitigating market volatility text Rachael Porter

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ow farm-gate prices and market volatility were the catalysts that drove John and Rhys Lougher to look at a myriad of processing options to add value to their herd’s milk back in 2006. “I’d just come back to the family farm, after studying at Aberystwyth University,” explains Rhys.

“We had 70 cows and the milk price was down to just 17ppl. That wasn’t sustainable, particularly if I wanted to join the family business. So we looked at many different options, including ice-cream and cheese production.”

Ty Tanglwyst Dairy, in Pyle, is close to Bridgend and the M4 corridor and after two years of research the Loughers decided to bottle their own milk and start a local milk delivery round.

“We identified a gap in the market and we were in the perfect position to fill it,” says Rhys, adding that they still did plenty of homework before taking the plunge and have slowly built up their

rounds and the range of dairy produce that they offer.

Initially they processed and delivered between 5% and 10% of their onemillion-litre annual milk production.

Now all the milk produced by their 110-cow pedigree Holstein herd is processed on farm – into liquid milk as well as cream and butter – and delivered to more than 2,000 customers across South Wales. “We deliver to customers in the region between the urban fringes of Cardiff and Swansea,” says Rhys.

Business growth has been organic. “We started small and grew slowly. That said, three years after we started, Dairy Farmers of Britain collapsed and we took on its local rounds in Porthcawl. That helped our business to expand.”

Investing in milk pasteurising and bottling equipment is a huge step: “And that’s why market research is important.

Initially we spent around £70,000 on a small plant. We’ve since added to that as the business – and the range of products that we offer – has expanded.”

Today the family processes and sells whole, semi and skimmed milk (in poly bottles), as well as cream and butter. “Our butter recently won the Royal Welsh Show and Great Taste awards and we supply the Vale Resort – home of the Welsh rugby team during the Six Nations.”

Half of the milk is sold via doorstep deliveries. The remainder is sold direct to restaurants, hotels, pubs, campsites and, for the first time in 2017, the business won its first public sector contract to supply milk to 58 local schools.

“Home delivery has been ‘normalised’ again – helped by the huge growth in on-line shopping.

And there’s plenty of support and loyalty. It all helps to ensure that the business remains viable and sustainable. And we’re doing exactly what we set out to do – mitigating the milk price volatility that threatened the future of our herd and dairy business.”

COW MAN AG E ME N T

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H E R D

R E P O RT

Scottish family’s herd retains production ranking top spot

How do they do it?

One Scottish dairying family has retained top position as NMR’s highest Holstein production herd in the organisation’s latest Annual Production Report for the year ending September 2017.

We spoke to them to find out how they do it. text Rachael Porter

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t’s no mean feat – topping NMR’s annual production report for three out of the past five years and, even when not taking pole position, remaining in the top three. So what’s the Harveys’ secret to success? And is it something the family set out to do?

“Not really – it’s just a happy side effect of managing the herd as well as we possibly can and always looking to improve,” says John Harvey. “We are very driven – we’re not for sitting back a little when things are going well. We always want to do things better.”

This past year has certainly demonstrated that. The 335-cow herd, based at Beeswing in Dumfries, increased its production by 15kg of fat and protein to

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an average of 961kg and by 583kg of milk to 13,662kg, on three-times-a-day milking. And there’s quite a gap between them and the producers in second place – DJ and KL Leadbetter, who run a 56-cow herd in Derbyshire. Their herd’s fat-andprotein average for 2017 was 911kg, with 12,656kg of milk on twice-a-day milking.

Top yielders The Harveys’ Killywhan pedigree herd also boasts 46 out of the top 50 highest yielding Holsteins in Scotland, as well as many more in the top 100. And the top five cows in the list are all from the Drum Farm-based herd. The star performer, leading the ranking, is Killywhan Bolton Fenella. She produced

20,388kg of milk at 4.0% butterfat and 2.89% protein, in her third lactation.

The herd is also home to Scotland’s top heifer on the production list – Killywhan Maxigoat Virtue, who produced 17,228kg at 3.28% butterfat and 2.92% protein, in her first 305-day lactation.

The herd is permanently housed except for one group, of around 100 midlactation cows, which is turned out to graze at the end of May, if conditions are suitable. The unit’s 260 head of young stock also graze during the summer.

The herd is fed a TMR, offering maintenance plus 36 litres, and individual cows are topped up to yield with concentrates fed through the Table 1: Harveys’ herd performance on three-times-a-day milking, 305-days

year

F+P (kg)

2017 2016 2015 2014 2013

961 946 937 903 878

milk position in NMR (kg) APR ranking 13,662 13,079 12,789 12,252 11,779

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Harvey family Brothers John and Stuart, and their mother Margaret, have topped NMR’s annual production report for an impressive third time and we find out how.

Herd size: Herd average yield: 100-tonne cows: Calving interval:

with their dairy ‘juggling’ because all three of them – brother Stuart and mother Margaret – work closely together to make sure nothing is ‘dropped’ or overlooked. “We all have our own strengths but we all know exactly what’s going on in every area of herd and business management. There’s good teamwork. I know we’re lucky in that respect. And we make sure that we don’t stand still and we’re moving forward.

We always want to improve on the previous year, but we never know if we have until the year has passed and the figures are in, so to speak.

“So all we can – and do – do is focus on the job in hand and do our best.”

Beeswing

335 milkers 13,929kg three 404 days

Team approach John adds that if some area of performance isn’t as good as the previous year then they analyse it and look at how to turn things around. “We relish a challenge and we’ll quickly work out why something isn’t working and how it can be improved – particularly when there are three heads to come up with solutions.”

Management aside, he says that breeding has also played a role in the herd’s continued success. “Our aim is to breed good, strong cows. When it comes to sire selection, we avoid using bulls that are too tall and always look for a positive milk yield,” explains John.

Health and fertility are key too – they want a robust cow that will ‘get herself back in calf’. “We have a voluntary waiting period of 60 days and prefer not to ‘interfere’ until cows are more than 100 days in milk. So it’s quite tight if

What’s surprising is that, despite the phenomenal yields and overall herd performance, the Harveys’ herd doesn’t feature in the UK’s top 10% based on genetic data. John explains that the reason the herd doesn’t feature high in the PLI table is because its maternal data doesn’t go back very far.

“We just don’t have much dam data and

our cows’ PLIs are, on the whole, based on sire data. But this is improving – we’ve been adding more dam information during the past decade and we’re beginning to move rapidly up through the PLI rankings.”

The Harveys only began milk recording in 2006 and 2016 was the first year the family saw cows officially reach the production milestone of 100-tonnes of milk. “We had six hit the target that year,” says John, adding that that was just the start. “In 2017 we had six more cows reach the magical milestone and so far this year we’ve had one and several more are expected.”

Dairying is like juggling, according to John, and there are always a lot of balls in the air. He says that his family do well

Brush up: a cow enjoys some grooming

Cow comfort: cubicles are clean, soft and inviting at the Beeswing-based unit

parlour. Cows and heifers calve all year round, to ensure a level supply of milk for buyer Lactalis.

PLI ranking

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H E R D

R E P O RT

Next generation: the Harveys plan to breed fewer dairy heifers and use more beef semen on their herd

we’re going to keep our calving interval down. It’s around 404 days now and we like to keep it between 395 and 405 days,” he explains. “Our genetics and our management means that we’re on track to do that. And our cows have the fitness traits needed for longevity.”

In fact, they’ve one seventh lactation cow in the herd at the moment and two cows that have just calved for an eighth time. “Longevity is good and I

think that this is also because we focus on dry cow management and aim to get them through this, the most stressful period in a cow’s production cycle, as smoothly as possible.”

Critical time John says that this, alongside calving and the immediate post-calving period, is the critical time for all dairy cows. “So we work hard to manage the cows through

Milking herd: cows are housed all year round and fed a consistent TMR

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this ‘hump’ and safely out the other side.”

The Harveys run a transition group of fresh-calved cows within the milking herd. “It pays to have them together in one place. If there are any problems then they can be easily spotted and we can intervene early. They’re not hidden in a larger group.”

So what have the Harveys been focusing on during the past year to keep the herd forging ahead? “We’ve started treating the cows with the Startvac vaccine. This has resulted in a marked decrease in somatic cell count, as well as improving cow health. It should also reduce our antibiotic use in terms of both mastitis and dry-cow therapy.

“We’ve also invested in more rapid filling water troughs in cow housing, particularly for the transitional group.

And we’ve also added two cow brushes – cow welfare is so important. We’ve also taken a general look at possible cow comfort improvements.”

Quite a few heifers in milk have been sold this year – around 70 head. John says that this has been a welcome additional income stream: “Going forward, we’re using a lot more beef semen and are only really intending to carry the young stock we’re likely to need, mainly to reduce workload.

Our replacement rate currently sits at between 25% and 30%.”

He says that the family’s focus will remain on optimising and improving herd management. “It’s about looking at the small things, as well as the bigger picture. And it’s great to do well in production reports and other rankings.

It serves to underline that what we’re doing is being done well and it spurs us on to keep management on track and to strive to do even better.” l

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F E E D I N G

Focusing on the dry period has resulted in multiple benefits

Fresh approach to the transition period Taking a more holistic approach to the transition period has led to significant improvements for one Dorset-based herd.

Changes to management and feeding mean that cows and heifers now have a better start to their lactation. text Lauren Goringe

F

rom the moment his cows and heifers are confirmed in calf, one Dorsetbased producer is working to ensure that they are in the right condition to calve down. With 290 cows calving all year round on John Baggs’ family-run farm, based at Worgret Manor near Wareham,

either as replacements or beef stores. The herd is split across two dairy units, with early and mid-lactation cows milked at one and late-lactation cows at the other.

The ‘fresh’ cow dairy was fitted with outof-parlour feeders three years ago and it was at this time that John became more involved in the management of the cows.

Body condition he has spent the past three years honing transition management and is seeing results.

The herd grazes on the 325-hectare unit during the summer and is fed a ration comprising maize and grass silage in the winter. All young stock is reared on-site,

“By splitting the cows up in this way, we can feed a flat rate in the parlour and then feed the earlier lactation cows to yield through the out-of-parlour feeders,” John explains.

“I body condition score regularly to track individual condition so we can adjust feed accordingly. For me, as soon

Calves at John Baggs’ Wareham-based unit

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as a cow is PD positive, I am thinking about how we are going to manage her into the next lactation.

“Prior to this, our protocols for drying off weren’t clear. We didn’t have set time frames for dry periods and were feeding hay, grass and standard drycow rolls. We were seeing many cases of milk fever, as well as toxic mastitis, and other issues such as retained cleansings and metritis.

“As a result, we tended to keep a cow in with her calf for 48 hours before we milked her to reduce the risk of her going down in the yard. This was, in turn, then impacting on colostrum quality and calf health, and we realised that it was time to change our approach to tackle the root of the issues rather than trying to manage the problems once they had occurred.”

Working with ’ Dave Hunt, John focused on improving late-lactation body condition and protocols for the dry period. “Cows are now dried off at 60 days and stay in a far-off group kept on rough grazing in the summer and silage in the winter,” explains Dave. Three weeks before calving they move into the transition group and are fed a dry-cow nut (Translac Extra) together with maize and straw. This high-protein (26%) concentrate is formulated to encourage tissue repair and maximise colostrum quality. It also produces a milk DCAB effect, which helps to control the risk of milk fever and associated problems.

“And it contains high levels of vitamin E, plus bio-available selenium and zinc, to enhance cow immunity and health,” he adds.

Longevity benefits The heifers receive the same feed and are kept with the cows, although they are given slightly longer to transition – between three and four weeks – to allow them to get used to socialising with the older animals and eating concentrate again. Conditioning the rumen at this stage is crucial because when they start in-parlour feeding they could be eating as much as 10kg of concentrate per day.

“I’m particularly pleased with heifer performance in the new system,” says John. “They are certainly popping calves out more easily and by mixing them with the rest of the herd in a safe, lesscrowded straw yard they seem to do better. Heifers would typically be in the final few lines to come into the parlour for milking, but now it’s not uncommon for half of the first two lines to be

ForFarmers’ Dave Hunt (left) and John Baggs

heifers. Three years on, we have also reduced the age at first calving to 26 months, down from between 30 and 32.”

The benefits of longevity are also starting to creep in, with surplus heifers providing a welcome stream of additional income and allowing John to cull cows based on health. This has reduced the herd’s Johne’s rate from 10% to 2%. “We now have 40% of the herd made up of heifers and haven’t dropped back on our average yield of 8,100 litres. So, in this instance, standing still has probably been progress. As our heifers move into subsequent lactations, we hope yields will increase further.”

Health performance is also better, with milk fever down from an average of seven cases per 100 cows to just two.

And assisted calvings are down from 18 to 10 per 100 cows. Ketosis cases are down to 3%, metritis to 2%, retained cleansing to 3%, and displaced abomasums to 2%. With fewer milk fevers, cows are milked within 24 hours of calving and this, in turn, has increased colostrum quality from around 17% on a Brix refractometer to around 30% for some cows.

Healthier calves Calves are also healthier with fewer cases of scours and John attributes this to the better-quality colostrum they are receiving and the fact that they move into the hygienic environment of the calf house sooner. “We are now feeding calves two three-litre feeds of colostrum.

So we need to get cows milked as soon as possible to get the quantity and quality of colostrum back to the calf, to give them the best possible start. Yields have also improved with the best cows now reaching around 55 litres at peak yield compared to 45 litres previously. It really is one big cycle,” says John.

Proactive management “The time that we take proactively managing the transition period certainly saves us time further down the line.

With around 850 head of stock on the farm, time is precious and even one sick animal or difficult calving can really stretch us – we can’t afford to have lots of health problems.”

“For me, the dry period really is the most important period to get right,” adds Dave. “We know that milk fever is a gateway disease to many other issues, but when you have a lot of cases it’s difficult to see that they are interlinked.

Now that we’ve reduced milk fever, the cow-health data clearly shows that the cows that do go down with it are typically the ones that have the other issues, such as older cows with difficult calvings and cows that have twins.

“The herd used to be in the ‘average’ category for health, according to Kingshay benchmarking figures. But the latest data puts it in the top 25%. John has followed recommendations to the letter and it just goes to show that a few changes to feeding and management can pay dividends in the long run.” l

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F E W

W O R D S

F R O M

R O G E R

E VA N S

Shropshire-based producer and award-winning columnist Roger Evans remembers when he was happy to pay his water bill and wonders where all the ‘free’ water on his farm has gone.

Water woes I

’m flicking through the pages of my weekly farming magazine, looking for dairy stories. I always do this first and I save the best until last. The best for me are the classified adverts for tractors and machinery, particularly if the advert carries a photo. Kids looking through a sweet shop window is the analogy that comes to mind.

I can’t afford the second-hand stuff, let alone the new!

Here we go, here’s a dairy story about water. It’s encouraging us to cut back on water use. I didn’t know that the UK dairy industry, including milk processors, uses 21% of the UK’s fresh water. About 40 billion litres of water are used to produce 14 billion litres of milk.

We are all being encouraged to cut our water use by 20% by 2020, which is closer than you think. It’s all in the remit of sustainability, which is the buzz word of the decade.

I think about our own water use. When we came to live here the natural water supplies we relied on were precarious. In dry summers we had to carry water from a nearby river to wash the parlour and we had to take churns of water into the house to flush the toilets. When we eventually went on to mains water I said that the water bill was one bill I would never object to paying. That idea lasted until we had our first leak under some concrete and we had a water bill that ran into thousands.

Our biggest water guzzler is probably our plate cooler, but we collect all that and use it to wash the parlour, so we use that water twice. We don’t harvest rain water off rooves, but we intend to. Too much rainwater ends up on concrete and becomes ‘dirty’ water. We’re planning to divert some of this to water courses and to keep it clean.

I know this won’t cut our consumption, but it will be a good thing.

You know what I mean.

It is ironic (you know how I like irony) that, although I think we have a responsible attitude to water use, we are using more mains water than ever before. We live and farm in a valley. A small stream runs down the valley and we have three fields on one side of the stream and four on the other. We have a cow track that runs parallel to the stream.

The cows used to cross the stream in two places and there were about six other places where they could drink. We also have five round water troughs dotted about because the stream gets very dry in the summer.

The fords where the cows used to cross and drink are now culverts and the drinking places are fenced off, so the cows can now only drink mains water. This because we are in a catchment area where there are fresh water mussels and mussel conservationists don’t like cattle in water courses. So all the water that we have had for free, courtesy of gravity for more than 50 years, now flows down hill unimpeded.

Presumably they get it back out at some point downstream and pump it back up, via my meter, for the cows to drink.

There’s talk of solar-powered pumps to fill the water tanks out of the stream and even building a permanent reservoir at our highest point that would fill from the stream. None of these have turned up yet. The only things turning up are bigger water bills.

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H E A LT H

‘Niche’ approach shines new light on mastitis prevention and control

Udder treatment options for progressive herds In some circumstances there is potential to reduce antibiotic use when treating milking cows for mastitis. Two vets, who spoke at the recent MSD Mastitis Panel meeting, shared their views and experiences. text Rachael Porter

S

o far, much of the effort to reduce antibiotic use in UK dairy herds has focused on the dry period, with a proportion of herds now practicing selective dry cow therapy. But with a dairy sector target to cut antibiotic use by 20% by 2020, the industry must also look at how mastitis is treated during lactation.

“Clearly the best way to reduce antibiotic use for treating mastitis is to prevent the disease from occurring in the first place,” says Synergy Farm Health’s Evershot-based dairy vet Rachel Hayton.

“There are still plenty of ‘big wins’ to be made here. And we’re seeing a continuing drive on many units to get down below

22

the UK industry average of about 40 cases per 100 cows.”

Of the practice’s herds – comprising 46,000 cows and based in Devon, Dorset and Somerset – most are already meeting and exceeding that target. And she’s working with 5% of their dairy clients to reduce antibiotic use even further, with a more selective approach to the treatment of milking cows.

Veterinary supervision “But, and I must stress this, selective lactation therapy is not for all units – not even, necessarily, those with exceptionally low mastitis rates,” says Mrs Hayton.

“And it’s something that must be done by working extremely closely with your herd vet.”

But other ‘conditions’ must be met first.

Not only should the mastitis rate be below 35 cases per 100 cows a year (a figure that instantly rules out more than half of UK herds), but knowing the pathogen profile of your herd is also vital.

Mrs Hayton adds that this profile is something that many progressive herds should know anyway, if they are achieving good mastitis control – whether they plan to take this route or not. “Knowing what mastitis-causing pathogens you have on your unit is useful for both reducing the incidence of, and treating, the disease. This would include knowing the percentage split of gramnegative and gram-positive bacteria.”

She stresses that a requirement before even considering taking a selective treatment route, in a bid to reduce antibiotic use, is that the pathogen profile is predominantly gram negative, since these infections tend to clear up without intervention. “Ideally it should

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Rachel Hayton and Peter Plate spoke at the 2018 MSD Mastitis Panel, which brought together around 20 vets with specialist interests in udder health

be at least 70% gram negative and with an environmental mastitis pattern. If contagious mastitis is prevalent within the herd then that’s a huge red light.”

She adds that good mastitis detection is also essential, with sound protocols in place for picking up infected quarters early. “Then it comes down to the producer or staff member charged with monitoring and managing mastitis. They must be motivated and passionate about making a change. I really can’t stress that enough.

“On our units where a more selective approach to lactation mastitis treatment is working, the producers involved relish the challenge and are genuinely curious about this approach to managing and

treating the disease. Personality and commitment count here, as does the ability to work closely with their vet.”

Decision tree If a herd is considered suitable to adopt a selective system, producers are given a bespoke check list or ‘decision tree’ to work from, once a case of mastitis has been identified (see Figure 1).

“The cow-side test or culture is relatively basic in that it simply determines if the mastitis causing bacteria in an individual case is gram negative or gram positive,” explains Royal Veterinary College’s Peter Plate. “And if it’s gram negative the vet may decide, if the cow isn’t unwell or mastitis isn’t recurrent, to recommend

Figure 1: Decision tree for lactating-cow mastitis treatments

MASTITIS NOT SICK

SICK

Grade 1 (milk clots only) Grade 2 (milk and udder

Grade 3 (milk, udder, cow)

TREAT

VETORAPID

as per protocol

No Vetorapid culture Submit samples to lab if necessary

CULTURE

GRAM+VE TREAT AS PER PROTOCOL GRAM–VE NO ANTIBIOTIC TREATMENT

NO GROWTH NO ANTIBIOTIC TREATMENT

Selective lactating cow therapy check points • Low mastitis rate – ideally fewer than 35 cases per 100 cows.

• Environmental mastitis pattern with predominantly gram-negative bacteria infection (ideally >70%).

• Good mastitis detection on farm.

Early detection of cases, certainly

from day one. This is typically easier in herds using milk conductivity software.

• Producer and staff motivation to reduce antibiotic use and commit to on-farm testing protocols and taking ownership of the ‘project’.

treatment with a non-steroidal antiinflammatory drug only.”

“Work both with our herds to date and in trials shows that cure rates and the time taken for the infection to clear are the same as when antibiotics are administered,” adds Mrs Hayton. “The benefits are reduced antibiotic use and a much shorter milk withhold period.”

It’s vital that these cow-side tests keep things simple: “We don’t want to bombard producers with too much information – just what they need to know to help us, jointly, to make the correct management decision. It works on a ‘red’ or ‘green’ light basis,” says Mr Plate. Such tests, including Vetorapid, are already in use on a small number of UK units. He stresses that the plates used to culture the bacteria must be properly handled and disposed of.

Cow-side test “A simple cow-side mastitis test, called mastDecide, that uses a closed test tube rather than a petri dish, could soon become available in the UK. Other tests are currently being developed,” Mr Plate says. The tests are important. But pathogen profiling is something that many producers will need to do first, and must be done by a specialist laboratory, either in the veterinary practice or externally. Not only will this give them insight into what bugs are causing problems in their herds, it will also help them to prevent and treat mastitis more effectively. And, if the mastitis pattern and bacteria profile allows it and mastitis detection is good, selective lactation therapy could be an option.

But Mr Plate and Mrs Hayton agree it’s still very much a ‘niche’ practice – for the few rather than the many. “That could change, as more producers get a tighter grip on mastitis prevention and control. But it will never be for everyone, simply due to the variation in pathogen profiles between individual herds. This is very much an individual approach – there’s no one size fits all,” says Mr Plate.

“And I really can’t stress it enough, but it must be done by working closely with your vet. This will dictate the success of following a selective lactation mastitis therapy programme, just as much as any test kits or decision tree. There are many pieces that need to fit together perfectly for this to work,” adds Mrs Hayton. l MSD Animal Health sponsors the UK Mastitis Panel as part of its commitment to work with the industry to establish best practice in antimicrobial usage.

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Self-propelled wagons: what are the pros and cons of investing in a one-stop-shop machine? Page 26 Feed pushers: we look at the benefits of adopting automatic technology. Page 28 What’s new? A selection of some of the latest kit to be launched to market. Page 30

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Can one machine be more financially viable than three?

All-in-one feeding revolution After a prolonged winter, with many herds fed TMR rations well into April, machinery has been put well and truly through it’s paces during the past six months. Could it be time for an upgrade? text Rachael Porter

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self-propelled feeder wagon would, without doubt, have made life a little easier for some producers during the past few months. And, contrary to popular belief, just such a piece of kit could be financially viable for many producers – reducing feeding time and costs, as well as improving ration consistency and accuracy, and reducing feed waste.

So says Opico’s James Woolway. His company has just held a series of farm open days to showcase the Strautmann self-propelled feeders that it now supplies to UK producers.

“Like a lot of new tech, producers worry about reliability and cost. The question they usually ask is ‘what if it goes wrong at 4.30 in the morning’? I think we have both bases covered now,” he says. “Reliability is good because that’s what producers need and expect. We also offer a service package. If a machine is serviced regularly then potential breakdowns should be avoided – just like any machine or vehicle.”

Capital outlay A self-propelled machine requires a similar captial outlay to a more conventional tractor/loader/mixerwagon combination. “As dairy units have expanded and continue to grow, livestock and feed storage may be some distance apart. Some loaders and tractors are travelling great distances to fill mixer wagons and feed cows and young stock.

This all takes time and fuel and that also needs to be considered,” he says.

Labour – or rather the shortage of it – could be the clincher for many producers.

“It’s certainly not just about herd size.

Using a self-propelled feeder will speed up feeding – some producers are saving two hours a day. That’s time that can be spent on other areas of husbandry and the dairy business.”

He says that herds larger than 350 cows should certainly give a self-propelled feeder serious consideration. “Unless your system and set up is already fantastically organised, it’s likely that opting for a selfpropelled machine could stack up.”

Sussex-based producer Matt Ford bought his first self-propelled diet feeder in 2003 and he’s not looked back since. His interest was sparked when he saw a machine in action during a trip to Europe.

“I saw how easily it did everything – filling, weighing, mixing, transporting and feeding out – without the need for several different pieces of kit.

“I came home and did some sums, and the figures stacked up – helped by the fact

that we feed 1,000 head of cattle each day. It’s a big job, so investing in some big kit to do it was easier to justify – particularly when you consider the other nutritional, feed efficiency and costsaving benefits,” he says.

Matt recently replaced his feeder, which mixes and delivers the ration for the unit’s 600 milkers and 400 followers, and this time he bought a tub mixing model with an integral straw chopper.

“Straw is ground by the mixer, so that’s one less machine we need on farm.

Without it we’d need a straw chopper and it would be yet another job to do when adding ingredients to the mixer.”

His current model is a four-year-old Sgariboldi. “For us, the machine simply has to do what we need it to do.”

Four-wheel steering is a must: “Particularly when feeding our young stock because space is a little tighter in their housing. We can get in and out easily and there’s also a reversing camera on the model we have now.”

Matt also insisted on a hardened mixing tub this time: “So that it didn’t wear too quickly. We are feeding a lot of cattle here, compared to some dairy units.”

Reducing waste Matt likes the accuracy of feeding, which not only helps to eliminate feed waste – particularly at the silage clamp face – but also ensures that a consistent ration, both in terms of nutritional value and particle size, is put in front of the cows.

“Reducing waste saves money and optimises feed costs and efficiency. And a consistent ration is good for the rumen.

A balanced pH increases feed conversion efficiency, but also avoids any digestive upset or ‘stress’ that can have an impact on milk yield, cow health and fertility.”

Reliability is also obviously important.

Matt says, like any machine, there are breakdowns. “ And that’s the only downside. If this kit breaks then it’s a big problem. If a tractor pulling a mixer wagon breaks down, you can hitch up another tractor.”

Michael Smith, who farms near Haverford West in Pembrokeshire, has used a self-propelled machine to mix and feed a TMR to his 420 milkers and 300 young stock since December 2017. And for him the decision to switch from a tractor-driven wagon was very much about the machinery. “We were changing our telehandler and tractor every three years. When you take a step back you can see that it’s taking three pieces of kit to do one job.

James Woolway: “If a machine is serviced regularly, breakdowns should be avoided”

“The tractor was hitched to the feeder wagon pretty much all year round. And the telehandler’s work life was also dominated by feeding. A tractor, feeder wagon and telehandler require a smiliar outlay to a self-propelled machine that does it all.”

Michael then looked at accuracy. “We were feeding a ration that was within 1% of what it was on paper – precision was good. And we wanted to maintain that and reduce waste.”

The self-propelled machine he was looking at – a Trioliet – has a block-cutter on a telescopic boom at the front that takes silage direct from the silage clamp face. “It just takes what’s needed and, if it does take too much, it puts it back.

And it can reach high up too, so it doesn’t create an over hand – which is not only wasteful but could also be dangerous.”

Since making the switch feeding time has fallen by an hour to just two hours and 10 minutes: “And that includes young stock on another farm, which is 1.5 miles away.”

Fuel efficiency Michael’s also pleased with fuel efficiency. “Our self-propelled feeder uses 12.5 litres of diesel per hour. A tractor/feeder wagon set up would use between 18 and 20 litres per hour. Over 10,000 hours – which is the expected life span of such a machine – that’s a fuel cost saving of around £50,000.”

He says that he’s happy with the ration too. “It’s consistent – just as precise as the one we were feeding through the mixer wagon. The whole TMR is ready in a few rotations – not 20 – so it’s more efficient.

There’s less wear and tear on the machine and the ration isn’t over mixed.”

An added bonus is what he describes as an immaculate silage face. “That’s always a pleasure to see – we know that there’s minimal waste.” l

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Feed-pushing frequency drives intakes and milk yields

Push-up exercise Pushing up feed, several times a day, is vital to maximise dry matter intakes and milk yields, and reduce feed waste. But it’s also an area of dairy management where some producer could do better. And could an automatic system be the answer? text Rachael Porter

H

ow many times a day do you push up feed? And is it often enough? Two key questions that any nutritionist worth their salt should be asking their dairy clients – particularly if the dry matter intakes and cow performance seen on paper are not being seen at the feed fence and in the bulk tank.

“The truth is that many producers don’t push feed up often enough or at regular intervals. They may do a sterling job in the day, but they’re not going to get up at 2.00am

to push feed,” says Stamford Agricultural Service’s Dave Turner. “Some will also admit that during busy periods, such as silaging, it’s a job that’s often overlooked.

Yet ensuring that cows can reach the feed – at all times – is the final piece of the nutrition/performance puzzle.”

Neglected job A lot of time and effort is spent on sourcing and growing ration ingredients, formulating a balanced ration, checking its consistency and mix quality, and feeding it out. If the cows can’t actually

Dave Turner: “It’s a job that’s often overlooked, particularly during busy periods”

reach it, then that work is compromised.

Yet he says that some producers tell him that they only push feed up three times a day: “And many admit that it’s a job that gets neglected during busy periods.”

Time and labour are becoming

Moov it: the Joz robot pushes up feed for Neil Evans’ herd 12 times a day

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Bas van Santen: “The payback period could be just over a year”

Job done: more than 200 Juno systems have been installed on dairy units

increasingly tight on many units. With that in mind – and the additional dry matter intake and milk yield potential that can be realised with regular feed pushing – Mr Turner says that installing a robotic feed pusher is a ‘no brainer’.

“Our first UK customer, who by his own admission was already fanatical about pushing up feed, still saw an extra litre of milk per cow per day from his herd after installing a feed pusher. Imagine the possibilities if you already know that feed pushing leaves a lot to be desired on your unit.”

More milk Shropshire-based producer Neil Evans installed the Joz Moov feed pusher on his unit, near Bronington, in December 2017. He’s pleased with the results he’s seen in his 180-cow herd.

Averaging 10,000 litres, the cow are grazed during the day in the summer and housed at night – where they are buffer fed on a TMR that comprises grass and maize silages, a protein blend and crimped barley.

“Because so much effort goes into the formulating the cow ration and feeding the cows, I am really obsessive about pushing up feed. Before we installed the robot feed pusher, I’d do it at least six times a day,” he says.

“I don’t live on the unit, so I’d often come back to the farm after an evening out and push up feed, while the taxi waited! I’d also make a point of pushing up feed every evening at about 10pm.”

The Moov now pushes feed twice as often – 12 times a day. The robot requires a five-hour charge window, and Neil has set this for between 4:30am and 9:30am.

“For me, installing this automated system is about driving intakes. It

stimulates the cows to eat more. I only feed the herd once a day and this offers an efficient solution to keeping feed in front of them at all times.”

Neil used to push up just before and after milking. And his relief milker says that he saves 30 minutes every day through not having to push feed up.

“Cows are more settled and although additional dry matter intake is marginal, they are producing an extra one litre of milk per cow per day.”

Installing the system also means that the farm’s telehandler can work elsewhere. “It’s available for other tasks and pushing up is not neglected when we are busy with other things.”

Reduced waste Mr Turner says that there are other additional benefits, such as reduced feed waste. “Neil says that when he goes to feed up each day that the cows have cleaned up – there’s none of the previous day’s ration to sweep up. And this also saves on labour.”

And there are health and fertility benefits to ensuring that cows achieve the dry matter intakes they require to minimise the negative energy balance in early lactation and to maintain body condition score, as well as producing good milk yields.

In terms of return on investment, Mr Turner says that a payback period of two years is quoted, but he feels it could be shorter. “That’s based on a 200-cow herd producing an extra litre of milk per cow per day at 26ppl. It’s not taking into account the saving on labour and feed waste. Or any improvements in health, fertility and longevity.

Lely’s UK farm management support manager Bas van Santen agrees that

producers should see a quick return on their investment.

Third-generation model The company has just launched the third-generation model of it’s robotic feed pusher – Juno, which will be available in the UK from August. “It’s easy to install the system in a variety of farm buildings and set ups. And it can travel from shed to shed, and open and close gates and doors. So it’s also capable of pushing feed in several livestock houses across the unit,” he says.

He adds that increasing feed-pushing frequency stimulates feed consumption – up to 2.8% more in some herds. “In situations where feed-fence space is limited, frequent pushing can reduce stress and aggression by ensuring feed is always within reach for every cow.

As well as reducing labour costs, automatic feeding also reduces fuel costs. “Electric motors make automatic systems cheaper to run that dieselpowered tractors and feed pushers.

Mr van Santen says that he expects that producers could, potentially, see payback in just over one year. “It will depend on herd size and yield increase.

But additional milk production alone will pay for the robotic system. Savings on reduced labour and fuel costs and less feed waste will also significantly shorten the payback period.

“The system also offers peace of mind – producers can get on with their daily work without having to stop – several times a day – to go push feed. It’s taken care of and it’s being done regularly.”

He says that feed should be pushed up between 10 and 12 times during a 24hour period. “That’s something that automatic pushers can take care of.” l

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We take a look at the latest dairy kit to hit the UK market

Time for an upgrade?

These products have all been improved and relaunched in the UK and they claim to offer greater ease of use – for both livestock and producers – as well as more durability. text Rachael Porter

1 Cow brush has start-function upgrade

2 Group hutch with rear bedding door

3 Next-generation robot sets the standard

Energy savings and greater cow comfort are on offer following an upgrade of a popular cow brush. A small brush rotation, rather than a more forceful push, will now start the SCHURR cow brush.

This simplifies operation and, according to the company, allows cows – of all sizes – to express their natural ‘scratch’ behaviour. They no longer need to lift the brush to trigger the motor, they just need to rub against one of the model’s two brushes to start the motor that rotates them. The cow brushes, made from 100% nylon for durability, no longer need to be pressed forcefully by the cow to start the motor and the company adds that this means no more broken switches.

All SCHURR C12 cow brushes are fitted with an energy saving motor as standard. The EC motor is used since 2012, is proven thousands of times, saving up to £175 in electricity costs each year – that’s 35% less energy compared to other models.

One brush is enough for 120 milkers.

Contact your local SCHURR dealer for more information.

A group hutch for calves with a rear bedding door has been launched by Intershape. The Calf-Tel MultiMax’s door is easy to handle with large, sturdy plastic catches, and this, according to the company, makes bedding up easier, faster and more efficient.

The bedding door now comes as standard on all new hutches, and can be retrofitted to older hutches. The hutches are designed for housing groups of four or five calves, from weaning until they are four or five months old.

They minimise disease and maximise growth by combining a draught-free, low-humidity, moderate temperature shelter with the benefits of outdoor living. This new development means that all the hutches in the company’s calf hutch range – for single, twin and group rearing – now have rear bedding doors.

The hutches are an immediate, flexible option for calf housing. No planning permission is required, they are easy to move, and they often last for more than 20 years and have a very high secondhand value.

For more information visit: www.intershape.com

A leading automatic milking system manufacturer has launched its next generation robot. The Lely Astronaut A5 combines proven automatic milking principles with reliability, ease of use and cost efficiency. And it offers stress-free milking for both producers and their cows, according to the company.

Cow comfort has been optimised with the development and introduction of a hybrid robotic arm, which Lely says is silent, faster, energy efficient and more accurate. This results in consistent milking. The arm follows the cow’s every movement during milking and remains close to the udder, quickly correcting itself if there are any unexpected movements. This ensures a fast and thorough process, even when milking heifers.

The A5 also has a new teat detection system (TDS), offering improved postmilking teat spraying. The machine’s user interface has also been redesigned, making automatic milking easier. All information is available to view on a single page.

For information about the A5’s other new and improved features, visit: www.lely.com

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B R E E D I N G

Breeding plays a key role in improving milk quality – and price

Adding value to milk Improving and altering milk constituent levels can increase the size of your milk cheque – particularly when supplying milk to a cheese processor or other dairy manufacturer. And genetics have an important role to play here. text Rachael Porter

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half of this (0.105%) is given to the daughter. So his daughters should have the potential to produce 3.51 + 0.105 = 3.62% protein.

Mr Mullaart says that producers should also select cows and heifers in their herd that yield the highest protein percentage.

“Adult animals can be selected on their own performance and, in the case of calves and young heifers, selection can be made based on genomic selection.”

M

ilk constituents are increasingly under the spotlight, as producers look to add value to their milk cheque by supplying their buyer with the butterfat and protein levels that they require – be that for cheese production or other dairy produce.

So how can producers increase milk components and add value? There are three key ways to add value to milk: increase fat and protein (percentages) in the milk; increase the level of specific compounds in the milk, for example more casein for cheese production or less saturated fat; and by producing ‘specialist’ milk, such as A2.

In the Netherlands, the average blackand-white cow produces 9,856kg of milk at 4.32% butterfat and 3.53% protein each year. The higher protein percentage, compared to the average cow yield in other countries, is the result of years of breeding and selection on protein percentage.

According to CRV’s senior researcher Erik Mullaart, breeding has a much bigger role to play in boosting milk components, compared to feeding. “The factors affecting the protein content of milk include genetics, which accounts for 66% of variation, and the environment, feeding and management, as well as the cow – her age, lactation and lactation stage, as well as her health.

This all makes up the remaining 44%,” says Mr Mullaart.

So, how can producers breed for higher components? “Taking a genetic approach is important, since this has such a huge influence on fat and protein yield and percentage. So producers must select sires with the highest breeding value for protein percentage.”

The sire average of 3.51% is set at ‘0’. A cow gets half of her protein-producing genes from her sire – the other half she will get from her dam. If a sire scores 0.21% more than the average for protein,

Young stock at Downton Estates

The 190-cow herd is managed and fed as two groups – high and low yielders

Cheese-making protein Another way to add value to milk is to look at breeding to increase specific compounds in the milk, such as more casein for cheese production or less saturated fat.

Both kappa-casein and beta-lactoglobulin are important here, particularly for herds producing milk that will be processed into cheese. Within total protein the casein proteins are the most important for making cheese. A higher percentage of casein means more cheese will be produced per kilogram of total milk protein.

All CRV Avoncroft sires’ status for both beta-lactoglobulin and beta-casein is known and this allows producers to select sires that transmit high levels of both proteins (BB) and higher levels of protein overall.

One herd that is focusing on milk components, in order to secure a better

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name

milk

fat%

protein%

Delta Bouncer Delta Moutard Red Manders Dazzel Horst Allard RC D’n Driehoek Nilson

+402 +130 +585 +308 +125

+0.11 +0.25 +0.17 +0.14 +0.17

+0.14 +0.16 +0.05 +0.17 +0.14

Table 1: High-component sires available from CRV Avoncroft

milk price both now and in the future, is based at Downton Estates, near Ludlow in Shropshire.

High components Herd manager Graham Whatmore says that CRV Avoncroft’s top red-and-white Holstein genetics have been used on the pedigree herd for more than 20 years.

The 190-cow herd, based at Downton on the Rock, calves all year round and is managed as two groups – high (more than 26 litres per day) and low yielders.

The herd is currently averaging 8,720kg of milk with constituents levels of 4.1% butterfat and 3.3% protein.

Graham is particularly proud of the high component yield, some of which is down to feeding and management. But much of it is the result of breeding.

He says that most of the herd is red and white – the herd was founded with Ayrshires back in the 1970s and the owner stipulated that it must remain ‘red and white’ in appearance. “We started using Holstein bloodlines in 1989, in a bid to push up milk yield,” explains Graham, adding that the focus is now not only on yield but also compositional quality.

High-protein sires Delta Fidelity, Topspeed Kodak, and Kian daughters are

Farm manager James Latham (left) and herd manager Graham Whatmore (right)

all currently milking well in the herd, according to Graham. “It’s important that we use sires that offer the milk constituents that we’re looking for.”

Balanced breeding CRV Avoncroft’s Richard Williams, who works closely with Graham and also uses SireMatch to help them to optimise herd matings, adds that sire selection at Downton also focuses on bulls that produce long-lasting cows with functional type.

Graham says that udders, feet and legs are all important too: “If a cow can’t walk of be easily milked then she’s not really a cow.” He looks for good udder attachment and teat placement. “We used Lilac for a while because our udders

were so bad. Now they’re nice and tight again and that’s certainly helped with milk yield, fat and protein, as well as udder health and milk quality.”

Bulls currently being used extensively include Kingfarm Holsteins’ Anreli, as both sexed and conventional semen. “He will sire daughters that have superb longevity, as well as excellent feet and legs and udders, with good milk yield and components at +0.16% fat and +0.11% protein,” says Richard.

Delta Webmail is also in use. Graham is also impressed by his daughters’ longevity, feet and legs and udders. “And milk yield and components – at +0.11% fat and +0.06% protein – are also exactly what we’re looking for to keep the milk cheque looking as healthy as possible.” l

The majority of the all-year-round calving herd is red and white

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FORAGE FOCUS

Young stock roadshow report The ForFarmers Young Stock Roadshow ‘Fit for the Future’ brought together industry experts, earlier this spring, to look at areas crucial to successful calf and heifer management.

Performance from forage

Race against time Denkavit’s Peter van ’t Veld spoke about the importance of colostrum on calf performance. “The first 50 days of a calf’s life are crucial to its organ and tissue development, health and growth rates, and subsequent longterm performance. And colostrum is the motor that drives it.”

He explained that Dutch figures show that nearly 10% of calves born alive are lost within the first year of life and 7.7% of these are between three days and three months old. More than 70% of that mortality is due to digestive disorders.

“High quality colostrum, in the correct amounts and at the optimum time, is crucial to giving the calf the start it needs and building immunity.

Antibody levels in colostrum start decreasing from the onset of calving, not from when the calf is born, so a long calving can have a huge effect on the quality of the colostrum produced.

“Add to this the calf’s gut, which also loses the capacity to absorb colostrum – six hours after birth it has lost nearly half the initial capacity – and it’s easy to see why timing is everything.”

He added that producers should ensure that calves receive colostrum in quantities adapted to the volume of its abomasum, so no more than 5% of the calf’s body weight per serving. “Ideally colostrum should be delivered in three feeds, so the calf receives 15% of its body weight in the first 24 hours. And, Steven Morrison

The first 50 days of a calf’s life are crucial

preferably, this should be administered by teat but weak or dull calves can be tubed. Colostrum also needs to be of sufficient density – more than 50g/l IgG but preferably closer to 70g/l IgG – to achieve a blood serum level of 10g/l serum IgG,” he concluded.

Setting the right targets Steven Morrison, from the Agri-Food and Bioscience Institute in Northern Ireland, spoke to delegates about achieving target age at first calving.

“We have a target of 24 months for first calving, but growing young stock to meet that target is crucial,” he explained. “A heifer needs to be about 45% of her mature weight to show signs of puberty. You also want her to have two or three cycles beyond puberty in order to get the highest conception rate. So, you need to start to breed heifers at 13.5 months in order to have them calving at 24 months old.”

Maximising weight gain also needs to be achieved without allowing heifers to become over-fat or too big. “While larger heifers may produce more milk in their first lactation, they are harder to get back into calf and develop more lameness issues,” he stressed.

“We often find that producers underestimate the weights of their heifers, leading to delayed breeding, overfeeding and incorrect dosage of medicines and vaccines. If you don’t have scales then use wither height or a girth tape to measure weights. This information can be used to monitor changes and put together a targeted growth and nutrition plan.”

As producers aim to maximise milk from forage – either by growing grass as efficiently as possible or cutting more often to maximise yield and quality – using a silage additive is one of the most important factors to help reduce losses and improve performance. Energy losses from field to feed-out in a wellmanaged system can typically be up to 25%. Around half of these losses happen before opening the clamp and half occur after.

Fermentation is an important but potentially wasteful process in energy and protein terms.

Better quality forage is at greater risk of losses, as feed for livestock is also feed for bacteria, yeast and mould within the silage.

Rapid clamp filling, appropriate compaction, effective sealing and consistent top weight, followed by shear grab use on a fastmoving face, are the basic requirements to minimise losses.

Most silage additives can help to speed up fermentation, reducing protein breakdown and energy loss before opening. Some inoculants have been shown to reduce potential dry matter losses by up to 50%. The benefits of using an inoculant can be at least an extra litre per cow per day, or up to an extra 10% live weight gain.

To find out more, contact ForFarmers on 0845 070 6280 or email info.forage@forfarmers.eu

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H E A LT H

HerdWise Best Practice award 2018 highlights achievements of four producer-and-vet teams

Johne’s award highlights ‘top four’ Mark Knight, New Spittles Farm Mark Knight from Ilchester, Somerset, found that he had a proportion of infected cows in the herd when he started screening through HerdWise in 2011.

“Numbers were too high to use culling to clear the infection,” explains his vet Alex Perkins, from Shepton Vets. “But the results did call for an overhaul of

Farm facts • 220 Holstein Friesians • Summer grazing/winter housing • All year, moving to autumn-block calving • Average yield 8,900kg at 3.9% fat and 3.2% protein • Staff – two full time, one part time

the Johne’s plans we had in place. We found one high-cell-count mastitic cow whose milk was being fed to the calves, who was subsequently identified as a high-risk Johne’s cow.”

As a result, all calves are now fed powdered milk and all colostrum is labelled, dated and stored for six months prior to use. After every Johne’s test, the store is checked and reserves from any cow that has turned Johne’s positive is discarded.

“We’ve also stepped up the management of ‘red’ cows,” says Alex, who stresses that the whole team follows the protocols to the letter. “Additional accommodation has now been provided for high-risk cows around calving, and they are now bred to a beef bull and culled as and when concurrent issues

Mark Knight

are identified. We review results and adapt protocols regularly,” adds Alex.

“High-risk animals in the herd have halved. Colostrum management and ring-fencing ‘green’ calves, keeping infected cows well away from them, have been major contributors to the improvements.”

Laura Elliott, Tedion Farm Laura Elliott, from Lawrenny, in Pembrokeshire, is a young and progressive producer who is open to new ideas that she combines with great attention to detail.

Vet Rob Davies, from Allen and Partners, reviews the quarterly Johne’s screening reports regularly with Laura, her mother and herdswoman Lisa Bassett. “We all sit

Farm facts • 270 Holstein Friesian and Jersey crossbreds • Grazing based • Spring calving • Average yield 6,300kg at 4.3% fat and 3.5% protein • Three full-time, plus part-time staff

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round the table specifically to talk about Johne’s results and plans,” says Rob. “This is key to Johne’s control and management.”

When it comes to practical control, Rob is straight-forward: “It’s a mucky disease in all senses and it’s vital that any muck is kept away from the calves. All cows with ‘amber’ or ‘red’ test results are a risk and we keep these cows separate from three weeks prior to calving, to ensure there’s no carry over of muck from infected cows to newborn calves from ‘green’ cows.”

‘Amber’ cows are bred to a beef bull and from week four of the breeding period so they don’t calve down when the dairy replacements are being born. ‘Red’ cows are not bred.

Five years ago, in 2013, 19% of cows here

Laura Elliott

were ‘amber’ or ‘red’. Levels are now 4%. “Johne’s is a slow burner,” adds Rob. “You have to take a long-term view.

This herd is closed and biosecurity is high at every junction – that’s how we’ve managed to put a lid on the disease. If you keep to strict protocols then you can win.”

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With national targets set at 95% of UK dairy farms to declare, through their vet, that a Johne’s Disease control plan is in place by October 2018, NMR is encouraging all producers and their vets to embrace a structured approach to Johne’s control.

Team effort, monitoring, and consistently adhering to protocols are key to the success of the four finalists in the 2018 HerdWise Best Practice Award.

See NMR news page 47 for the winner of this award! text Karen Wright

Andrew Hall, Hale Hall Farm Andrew Hall, from Wharles Kirkham in Lancashire, has made exceptional use of data since joining HerdWise in 2012.

His, and his family’s, efforts have been rewarded. Since 2015 the proportion of Johne’s infected cows has fallen from 45% to 18%. Vet Tracey Towers, from the Oakhill Farm Vets, cites this as a fantastic example of team work.

Farm facts • 200 Holstein Friesians • Fully housed • All-year-round calving • Average yield 9,200kg at 4.15% fat and 3.37% protein • Family farm – three full time

“They all use the records and stick to the plan, keeping each other going,” says Tracey, who is an integral part of the team. “There’s seamless communication between the breeding adviser, producer and vet. We use the HerdWise records to the full – too many producers don’t, and they’re wasting time.”

Stringent identification of infected cows after every screening is routine. All ‘red’ and ‘amber’ cows are tagged and separated at drying off. Their calves are sold off the mother and never enter the calf shed where only the offspring of green cows are allowed. All cows with a HerdWise test reading of more than 60 are culled immediately, to reduce the risk of keeping a super-shedder.

“I produce a list of ‘amber’ and ‘red’ cows and these are bred to a beef bull,”

Andrew Hall

adds Tracy. “There are no exceptions.

And we breed heifers on dam status, so if a dam turns ‘red’ or ‘amber’ after the calf is born both she and her offspring will be bred to beef. Sexed semen is only used on green cows.” Control procedures are reviewed and strategies modified so progress is maintained.

James Smith, TWF Hawking, Oldfield Farm James Smith, herdsman for TWF Hawking, from Chippenham in Wiltshire, has five years’ HerdWise data under his belt. Good progress and encouraging results has held the team’s enthusiasm for Johne’s control.

“There’s definitely an overwhelming commitment to address Johne’s disease,” says vet Ian Cardiff from The George

Farm facts • 240 Holstein Friesians • Organic • All-year-round calving • Average yield 9,200kg at 4.1% fat and 3.2% protein • Two full-time, several part-time employees

Farm Vets in Malmesbury. “We’ve worked on strategies and control protocols to drive this progress and looked at the whole Johne’s picture rather than just concentrating on single areas.”

“We’ve all taken the national Johne’s campaign on board and looked at the recommended protocols,” adds Ian. “And evaluated management practices and worked out the best ones for this farm.”

Changes were made, such as a dedicated Johne’s calving pen and treatment of all ‘amber’ and ‘red’ cows as high risk.

And good communication between staff allowed these changes to be made to ensure a robust and consistent approach.

“We have been particularly pleased with the introduction of the colostrum pasteuriser,” says Ian, adding that the farm topped their practice’s ranking with

James Smith

the highest levels of calf total proteins in a benchmarking study. There has been a 50% reduction in infected cows with a 28% decrease in ‘red’ cows since 2016.

“The success is the result of James’ attention to detail,” adds Ian. “He has ensured that the agreed changes have been implemented without compromise.”

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BREEDING INFORMATION

First Ovalert system installed on Welsh dairy unit CRV installed the first Ovalert system in Wales in April. An increase in the scale of the dairy businesses and a drive towards greater efficiency make it a constant challenge to keep account of individual animals. Ovalert allows producers to keep an eye on individual cows, 24 hours a day. It detects and

identifies health and fertility signals earlier and more effectively than the human eye.

If you would like to see an Ovalert system working in practice, please contact the CRV Avoncroft sales staff.

Find their contact details at: www.crvavoncroft.com/contact-us

Fleckvieh catalogue Take your chance to profit from the Fleckvieh breed. Fleckvieh cows are healthy and adaptable to different geographical and climatic conditions.

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Red-and-white debutant takes centre stage The recent index run saw CRV Avoncroft add some impressive new sires to its portfolio. One of the bulls, who takes centre stage, is debutant Delta Moutard, an interesting redand- white genomic bull with extreme components (+0.25% fat and +0.16% protein). He also passes on super udders and legs and great longevity (855 days).

Moutard sires medium-sized cows with excellent udders. He is an easy-calving sire with an outcross pedigree (Bram RC x Cupido x Jerudo).

Delta Moutard transmits extreme components

Manders Dazzel (Bouw Finder x Bube xDelta Titanium) is another addition to the portfolio. Dazzel is a black-andwhite genomic bull with extreme production figures: 585kg of milk with +0.17% fat and +0.05% protein. With these figures it is no surprise that he scores +17% for Better Life Efficiency.

If you are looking for cows that have high robot efficiency, then Dazzel is a good choice. Dazzel daughters also have excellent locomotion and above average teat length. Dazzel and

Moutard are both priced at £24 per straw.

Daughter-proven sire D’n Driehoek Nilson also demands attention. He is a Delta G-Force out of Boxer daughter Commandeur 763. Easy-calving sire Nilson combines extreme components (+0.17% fat and +0.14% protein) with excellent udders (110) and good locomotion (108). His breeding values are based on 184 daughters in 143 herds. Conventional Nilson semen is available priced at £15 per straw.

Nilson daughter Margreet 99

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24-04-18 15:11

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F E E D I N G

Alternative forage crop can boost milk quality and reduce protein costs

Lucerne makes the cut A high-protein forage crop, suitable for growing on UK dairy units, can not only help to reduce bought-in feed costs but also boost dry matter intakes and milk quality. text Rachael Porter & Karen Wright

W

ith a crude protein content of around 20% and yields of up to 18 tonnes of dry matter per hectare, lucerne is a crop that more producers should be growing, according to Limagrain’s Ian Misselbrook.

With a lower cell wall content than grass, lucerne is highly digestible and intakes tend to be high. “Protein and mineral contents are also high, which makes lucerne a valuable alternative forage. It is particularly suitable as a complementary feed when fed alongside maize silage.

“And it’s ideal for cutting and clamping or making into big bale silage,” he says, adding that it can also be zero-grazed.

“It can significantly reduce the reliance on bought-in protein and many users report an improvement in milk quality when lucerne is included in the dairy herd’s diet.”

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“As a legume, it’s also a nitrogen fixing crop – as much as 250kg of nitrogen per hectare. It leaves a nitrogen-rich soil behind it. A following wheat crop would require up to 70% less applied nitrogen than a wheat crop in a cereal rotation.

Some nitrogen benefit will be seen for up to three years after the lucerne crop.

Producers can expect to take four cuts each year, on a 40-day cutting cycle,” adds Mr Misselbrook.

and using a silage additive is often advised. If the crop is clamped it should be well wilted to reduce fermentation problems.

Variety selection Mr Misselbrook stresses that choice of variety is important: “Not all lucerne varieties will be able to adapt to the cooler wetter climate of winters in northern Europe. So varieties grown in UK need to be carefully selected for high winter dormancy, as well as maximium dry matter and protein production.”

One such variety is Marshal, which has Ian Misselbrook: “Lucerne grown in the UK must be selected for high winter dormancy”

Protein levels As with grass leys, lucerne’s protein levels are at their best pre-flowering and delaying cutting until the flowers have emerged will typically see protein levels drop by 3% or 4%. Cutting pre-flowering will yield between 20% and 22% protein.

This falls to between 17% and 18% once flowers emerge.

Lucerne is low in soluble carbohydrate

CC VO O E EW WT M M E EAALN NT AA JG GAEENM MUEEAN NRTTI AS1 P E/ P R2 TI L2 E /M 0M 0B9AE YR 22 00 10 89

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trait

value

average dry matter yield (tonnes/ha/year) average fresh yields (tonnes/ha/year) dry matter (%) crude protein (%) digestibility value (D) metabolisable energy (MJ/kg DM)

10-12 35-40 30 18-21 70 10

Table 1: Typical lucerne analysis

been grown successfully in the UK for several years. Its high dry matter yields, persistency and good drought tolerance makes the variety ideally suited to UK conditions. It also has particularly thin stems, which make it ideal for baling and wrapping.

Lucerne (alfalfa) has been a staple forage on French dairy units and plant breeders have pioneered new varieties – the latest from Limagrain, Mezzo, was introduced to the UK market this spring. It has produced record-breaking yields of 18t DM per hectare in trials – that’s 5% more than other varieties on the UK market.

“Mezzo will be popular in the UK not only for its improved yields, but also because it is disease and nematode resistant and has a dormancy rating of 3.6,” says Mr Misselbrook. “This means it is more winter hardy and persistent than many other varieties.”

Good performance Producer David Morgan, who runs a 205cow herd near Usk in Monmouthshire, has been growing lucerne on his unit for the past four years. And he’s pleased with both crop and herd performance.

“It’s drought resistant, although that does seem somewhat irrelevant after all the recent wet weather, and it’s also high protein – that was a big draw for me. We’re looking at lucerne silage that analyses at around 19% protein and it certainly helps to reduce our bought-in feed costs.”

Mr Morgan also likes the variety that it adds to the dairy ration. “We feed three forages in our TMR – grass, maize and lucerne silage. Our cows have bread, butter and jam,” he says.

The stemmier nature of the forage also add the ‘scratch factor’ to rations – David doesn’t have to feed chopped straw. “And to prevent sorting, we chop the lucerne silage to 10mm pieces.”

His grows 24 hectares of lucerne – spread across four light, loamy fields – was sown in early September 2015 after wheat. It was cut for the first time in early June 2016 and since then Mr Morgan has averaged four cuts a

year. He expects the lucerne leys to last for another year and then, when yields begin to fall off, he’ll follow it with another wheat crop.

“The crop needs very little fertiliser.

It’s nitrogen fixing, but I have applied potash – 250kg per hectare in 2016 and 360kg per hectare in 2017.”

When establishing the crop, which he says costs around £650 per hectare, he says that a good seed bed is a must: “And make sure you use an inoculant too – lucerne requires rhizobia to grow well.

Other than that, it needs little attention.”

Lucerne accounts for 20% of the forage in the herd’s TMR. The latest analysis of the 2017 crop showed that it’s 40% dry matter with 19.15% crude protein and an ME of 9.7 MJ/kg DM.

Milk quality Mr Morgan is very pleased with how the cows are milking on it. “They don’t sort it from the ration and they like it. It’s palatable and I think our dry matter intakes have increased, as well as yields.”

The herd average is 11,268kg of milk, at 4.07% fat and 3.19% protein, with inividual cow yields, for the all-yearround calving herd, up at around 37 litres per day. The herd has been milked through three Lely A2 robots for the past 18 years. Mr Morgan says that milk

Lucerne benefits • High-protein forage • Drought tolerant • Highly digestible • Between three and four years continuous production • Good mineral content • Nitrogen benefit for subsequent crop

quality is creeping up. “Some of this is due to breeding, but feeding plays a role here too – particularly lucerne.”

Dairy nutritionist John Parker, from Select Nutrition, agrees that feeding lucerne can help to boost milk quality.

“This is partly because lucerne silage adds bypass protein to the ration and these amino acids help with milk quality.”

He says that cow health can also benefit from adding lucerne silage to rations.

“Dry matter intakes typically improve, because the additional forage in the ration makes it palatable and adds the scratch factor. In my experience, producers who feed lucerne see fewer LDAs and a reduced incidence of SARA in early lactation because they have good intakes and achieve good rumen fill.” l

Alternative crop: lucerne is nitrogen fixing and adds home-grown protein to cow rations

COW MAN AG E ME N T

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IDENTIFY HEALTH EVENTS BEFORE THEY BECOME A PROBLEM! “We now exactly know a cow’s eating behavior after calving. Before we just had to guess. Now we use the rumination and inactivity features to analyze a fresh cow’s health and will keep a cow separated longer if needed. We are now able to monitor our fresh cows better, resulting in 2 additional litres per cow per day in the first 60 days of their lactation.”

Marcel Rijkers (Manager Koepon dairy farm)

OPTIMUM TIME PER DAY SPENT BY A COW

EATING & RUMINATION HOURS RUMINATION MEALS

HOURS EATING

7-10 9-14 4-6

STEPS & LYING TIME

12-14 11 2500-3000 HOURS LYING

LYING PERIODS

STEPS

Grant, R., Albright, J.2001. Effect of animal grouping on feeding behaviour and intake of dairy cattle. Journal of Dairy Science. 84(E. Suppl.): E156-E163

INTERESTED?

Call 01727 884534 or mail george.collins@altagenetics.com

20180117-Alta_UK_Ad_Health-def.indd 1 CM01_p08.indd 4

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DAIRY MANAGEMENT NEWS

Gold Cup date NMR/RABDF Gold Cup 2017 winners Chris and Rich Norman are hosting an open day on June 14 at The Leen, Pembridge in Herefordshire.

Starting at 10.30am, the Normans will introduce visitors to the award-winning farm.

Visitors should pre-register on line: rabdf.co.uk/gold-cup-open-day Winner: James Smith

Runner up: Laura Elliott

New NI manager

Wiltshire herd wins Johne’s award The 2018 HerdWise Best Practice Award for Johne’s control has been presented to James Smith, herdsman for TWF Hawking at Oldfield Farm near Chippenham. He was presented with £500 of Johne’s testing vouchers, a silver salver and a luxury hamper.

The herd’s veterinary practice, George Vets from Malmesbury, under the guidance of vet Ian Cardiff, also received a trophy to recognise its contribution to the herd’s Johne’s control programme. Runner up Laura Elliott, Tedion Farmers, from Lawrenny in Pembrokeshire received £250 of HerdWise vouchers.

Certificates were awarded to two further finalists: Mark Knight, from

Yeovil in Somerset; and Andrew Hall, from Preston in Lancashire.

The judges, Lyndon Edwards and NMR vet Karen Bond, looked for producers who are working with their vet and using risk assessment and screening services to develop a control plan specific to their herd. “But equally important is a unit demonstrating best practice in Johne’s disease control where the team is engaged in planned protocols. And we look for evidence that sound progress is being made,” says Mrs Bond.

Working closely with the Johne’s Action Group, she highlights the group’s target of 95% of herds having a signed declaration by their vet confirming that a robust Johne’s control plan is in place on the farm by October 2018.

NMR has appointed Ivor Hyndman as field business manager in Northern Ireland, with responsibility for the operation of milk recording services and the promotion of milk testing and health monitoring through the province.

Based near Maghera in County Londonderry, Ivor has many years of practical farming experience prior to working in the livestock feed industry. He has worked for NMR since 2007.

Ivor Hyndman

NMR wins tender in AHDB bTB Advantage project NMR has won the tender to carry out 10,000 genomic tests on female Holstein animals in UK dairy herds, as part of a project for the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).

The genomic results, and ancestral data on each animal, will be used to expand the national database of genetic evaluations looking in more detail at the TB Advantage trait, developed by AHDB Dairy, and in a new genomic prediction tool.

TB Advantage helps producers to identify bulls with higher resistance to bTB. NMR is selecting between 60 and 70 herds to test in bTB-affected areas.

“Tissue samples will be taken from all the milking animals in the herd – milkers and dry cows – and these will be genomically tested through our GeneTracker service,” says NMR’s Justin Frankfort.

NMR will be providing the results and data to AHDB. The significant increase in genomic data will be fundamental in

the development of the new tools that will enable producers to identify animals that have a higher natural resistance to bTB. “Producers participating in the project will also have access to the genomic results on the NMR Herd Companion web site,” adds Mr Frankfort. “This will give them a herd genomic base, which is an ideal starting point for benchmarking animals and for introducing genomic testing through services like NMR GeneTracker.”

For more information on NMR products and services contact customer services, 03330 043 043, NMR web address: www.nmr.co.uk, NMR email address: customerservices@nmr.co.uk COW MAN AG E ME N T

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B U L L

P R O O F S

New number-one proven sire and joint genomic leaders top lists

High flyers and outliers Renowned pedigree breeder and runner up in the 2017 NMR/ RABDF Gold Cup competition, James Tomlinson shares his thoughts on the latest daughter-proven and genomic sire proofs text Rachael Porter

I

t’s all change at the top in the daughterproven rankings, for the April 2018 bull proof run, with a new numberone sire taking the lead. Morgan son Mocon is a German-bred maternal grandson of Snowman and his Predicted Transmitting Ability (PTA) features high milk production (826kg), low somatic cell counts (–23) and a very favourable Maintenance Index (–22), which indicates that his daughters have relatively low maintenance costs for feed. With a PLI of £689 he’s not to be ignored. But James says he’s not a sire he’ll be using on his herd.

“He’s a really great sire – he wouldn’t be at the top if he wasn’t. But I’m looking to increase chest width, body depth and rump width in my cows. He scores low here, so he’s not for me. But he’ll be on many wish lists across the UK.”

Impressive sires

Second in the ranking is Lavaman, with a PLI of £684. “He’s ‘Mr Consistency’,” says James. “And again you can’t really fault him.” Particularly impressive is his high score for Lameness Advantage – a new index introduced by AHDB this month, which is based, in part, on actual lameness events recorded on farm and digital dermatitis recorded by Holstein UK classifiers. This positive score of +6.7 indicates 6.7% fewer Lavaman daughters are predicted to have lameness incidents than a bull with a score of zero.

Positions three to seven are taken by bulls that have all featured previously in the top 10 and whose daughter performances continue to support their impressive indexes. These include, in third position, S-S-I Shamrock Mystic (£654 PLI) with a very high daughter Fertility Index (+19.8).

In fourth is high protein (30.6kg) sire De-Su 11236 Balisto, who now has 473 UK daughters contributing to his production figures. Balisto progeny also display greater TB resistance than their cohorts, indicated by his TB Advantage of +3.3.

Rounding off the daughter-proven top 10 is another new entry, Apina Norman. And he’s got James’ attention. This former number-one genomic young sire also has the highest Type Merit of the top 10 £PLI sires at +2.15. “That appeals to me, as well as his longevity and he’s also high on milk at +520kg. I’m looking at prices for him.”

An outlier, in eleventh position, has also captured James’ imagination. EDG

Not wishing to detract from the achievements of the two young sires that share top place in the genomic table, James says that Mr Rubi-Agronaut and the De-Su 13050 Spectre son ABS Outback, each with a PLI of £814, are impressive sires. Agronaut retains the position he previously held, with an index which features high milk quality (PTA +0.24% fat and +0.10% protein) and the highest Type Merit, at +3.12, among the top £PLI bulls. Meanwhile, Outback stands out for low feed costs for Maintenance (–2) as well as a strong rating for the newly released Lameness Advantage at +2.3.

“But they’re not for my herd, due to their teat length. There’s been a trend towards sires that shorten teat length and ours are short enough.”

James much prefers the number-three sire ABS Crimson (£784 PLI). Crimson is a production specialist, transmitting 952kg milk with 49.7kg fat. “He’s not so high on

Apina Norman

Peak Alta Depot

Mocon

‘Mr Consistency’

48

James Tomlinson

Rubicon offers 44.8kg fat and a Type Merit of +3.08, which means that he’s on James’s wish list for this proof run. “He has a strong linear with nothing too extreme, which makes him one for us. I’ll certainly be making some enquiries.”

Looking to the genomic young-sire list, it’s a similar story. James says that the 11th bull on the list, just missing the top 10, is the one that he’s most excited about. He’s the UK-bred Prehen Lancaster, who has favourably low maintenance costs (–5), a PLI of £754 and +620kg of milk. “There is a degree of patriotism in this too – he’s a UK sire holding his own in the rankings, which is no mean feat.

The competition is fierce. And I think it’s important to support British breeding,” says James.

C OWM ANAGEMENT

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New Holstein indexes Three new genetic evaluations – Lameness Advantage, Calf Survival and the Dairy Carcase Index – were launched

by AHDB Dairy in April and are now published for bulls who either have progeny in the UK, or who have had their genotype submitted for assessment by AHDB Dairy.

list for CS is on AHDB Dairy’s website.

CS is published on a scale of about –5 to +5. It represents survival between tagging and 300 days. Each percentage point represents a 1% improvement in survival of a bull’s progeny.

LA is published on a scale of about –5 to +5. For each percentage point, 1% fewer daughters go lame.

Dairy Carcase Index (DCI)

This PTA has been developed using close to three million animal records from the British Cattle Movement Service (BCMS), which show that calves of some sires are more likely to survive their first 300 days of life than those sired by other bulls.

CS has not yet been incorporated into the UK’s national breeding index, Profitable Lifetime Index (£PLI), but is planned for inclusion later this year. A stand-alone

This is calculated directly from on-farm lameness incidents recorded by the milk recording organisations, NMR and CIS. This information is combined with existing data for locomotion and feet and legs, together with bone quality scores and digital dermatitis records from the National Bovine Data Centre (NBDC) type classification system.

LA will be incorporated into £PLI later this year. A stand-alone list for LA is also published on the AHDB Dairy website.

This is primarily based on average daily carcase gain and carcase conformation calculated from weight and age data from most major abattoirs in the UK. The DCI will be of particular interest to dairy farmers producing young stock for the beef supply chain or rearing their own beef. The DCI is not included in £PLI. A stand-alone list for DCI is published on the AHDB Dairy website.

DCI is published on a scale of about –5 to +5. For each percentage point, an improvement is predicted in both carcase conformation and average daily carcase gain in a bull’s progeny.

type, but everything else is ‘right’, so I’m looking at prices for him.”

James is also making enquiries about fifth-place Peak Alta Depot (PLI £781), a health and fertility specialist. His life span looks good – we’re trying to increase that in our herd. I’m just

not sure about his pedigree – there are a couple of Good Pluses in there. But I’ll take a closer look and I may give him a go.”

New, in eighth place, is the Jedi son Bomaz Skywalker (£760 PLI). And this high protein transmitter (PTA 32.7kg),

who scores well for Calf Survival at +2.5, is the next sire to catch James’ eye.

“I think he’s my pick of the list. He’s good for fat and protein and I’m keen to get some Jedi blood into the herd. He has a balanced linear and is a modern ‘appealing’ sire.” l

Calf Survival (CS)

Lameness Advantage (LA)

Table 1: Top 10 genomic and top 10 daughter-proven sires available in the UK, ranked on PLI (source: AHDB Dairy and Holstein UK)

conformation

sire

mat. grandsire supplier

milk

fat kg

protein

fat%

£PLI

maint.

SCC

lifespan

fertility

dCE

F&L

udder

TM

genomic sires Mr Rubi-Agronaut 73287 ABS Outback ABS Crimson VH Balisto Brook Peak Alta Depot Westcoast Perseus Claynook Casper Welcome-Tel Bromley 3195 Bomaz Skywalker Progenesis Doctor Pb

Rubicon Spectre Spectre Balisto Hotshot Penmanship Hang-Time Alta Spring Jedi Superhero

Shotglass Troy Rubicon Denim 646 Montross Doorman Bombero Jacey Cabriolet Delta 1427

Cogent Genus Genus Viking/AIS Alta/Global Genetics Semex WWS UK WWS UK Genus Semex

68 67 67 69 67 67 67 68 67 67

+399 +781 +952 +447 +528 +654 +659 +688 +783 +776

+35.3 +37.4 +49.7 +38.8 +27.3 +33.4 +31.7 +23.3 +37.9 +33.7

+21.5 +30.1 +32.5 +23.7 +18.8 +29.5 +28.1 +25.7 +32.7 +28.5

+0.24 +0.08 +0.14 +0.25 +0.08 +0.09 +0.07 –0.04 +0.08 +0.04

+0.10 +0.06 +0.02 +0.11 +0.02 +0.10 +0.08 +0.04 +0.08 +0.04

814 814 784 783 781 766 764 764 760 757

4 –2 8 3 2 13 15 6 2 –5

–29 –19 –18 –36 –37 –26 –21 –28 –13 –23

0.7 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.9 0.6 0.6 0.8 0.5 0.7

11.9 0.1 10.1 1.3 8.9 0.5 8.2 1.0 17.1 0.6 9.8 0.6 11.7 0.2 13.5 –1.3 7.5 0.9 8.9 –1.1

2.51 1.59 1.22 0.68 1.06 0.98 1.21 1.67 1.61 1.07

2.02 1.60 1.00 0.88 1.18 1.89 2.75 2.51 1.87 1.88

3.12 2.07 1.62 1.41 1.77 1.64 2.13 2.94 2.66 1.90

proven sires Mocon Morgan Gen-I-Beq Lavaman Man-O-Man S-S-I Shamrock Mystic Shamrock De-Su 11236 Balisto Bookem View-Home Littlerock Cashcoin Teemar Shamrock Alphabet Shamrock VH Cole Clark D Cole Larcrest Commend Balisto Co-Op Robust Cabriolet Robust Apina Norman Numero Uno

Snowman Goldwyn Shottle Watson Robust Ramos Lambad Robust Planet Ramos

Bullsemen.com Semex WWS UK Genus Semex Genus Viking Genus AIS CRV Avoncroft/AIS

82 99 83 99 82 83 81 77 96 92

+826 +333 +593 +495 +674 +514 +449 +192 +716 +520

+25.8 +19.1 +23.0 +29.7 +25.8 +14.9 +2.3 +28.2 +38.9 +31.7

+28.1 +25.1 +19.9 +30.6 +24.6 +17.0 +16.5 +20.3 +25.9 +19.1

–0.08 +0.07 +0.00 +0.12 –0.01 –0.06 –0.18 +0.26 +0.12 +0.13

+0.02 +0.17 +0.01 +0.17 +0.03 +0.00 +0.02 +0.17 +0.03 +0.03

689 684 654 652 646 636 636 633 628 622

–22 –8 0 11 –17 –22 –22 -5 –16 6

–23 –4 –20 –21 –18 –-3 –4 –-19 –8 –10

0.7 0.3 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.8 0.8 0.4 0.4 0.6

6.0 0.6 15.7 0.9 19.8 –0.8 1.4 0.3 8.7 0.6 18.5 2.4 21.2 2.5 7.2 –0.3 3.8 1.0 12.0 0.5

protein

%

name

reliabil ity

ind.

functional traits kg

production

COW MAN AG E ME N T

CM03-bull proofs.indd 49

0.35 0.96 0.89 0.98 0.79 0.64 –0.04 0.56 0.85 0.92 1.01 1.41 0.81 0.95 0.65 0.65 –0.30 –0.08 1.23 –0.57 0.52 0.60 1.00 1.13 1.26 1.11 1.86 0.75 2.06 2.15

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C O N TA C T S

SHOWS AND EVENTS

2018

Spring grazing: cows are out and enjoying fresh air and green grass Picture: Mark Pasveer

May 7: May 16-19: May 23: May 30-June 2: June 7-9: June 12-13: June 14: June 21-24: June 28-29: July 4-5: July 10-12: July 23-26: September 12:

North Somerset Show, North Somerset Showground, Bristol Balmoral Show, Balmoral Park, Lisburn Oxen Herd Competition and Farm Walk, Buston Farm, Banbury Royal Bath & West Show, Shepton Mallet, Somerset Royal Cornwall Show, Royal Cornwall Showground, Wadebridge, Cornwall Holstein UK Celebration and AGM, Yorkshire RABDF Gold Cup Open Day, The Leen, Leominster Royal Highland Show, Ingliston, Scotland British Friesian Breeders Club Summer Herd Visit, Cumbria TotalDairy Seminar, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Stratford-upon-Avon Great Yorkshire Show, Harrogate, North Yorkshire Royal Welsh Show, Builth Wells, Powys UK Dairy Day, Telford International Centre, Shropshire

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COMING UP

F e r t i l i t y sp ecial June/July (June 29) – Fertility will be the topic in this issue’s special. We’ll also feature an article on pain relief, as well as the third article in our series on staff-shortage solutions.

Illustrations/pictures

Photographs by Veeteelt Photography, Mark Pasveer (6-7), Jennifer Mackenzie (12-14), Richard Stanton (32-33) .

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