General Tips for July

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To make a good return and grow quality beef cattle, they must be in good condition. The Beef Cow Body Condition Scoring booklet has images and drawings to show you how to condition score accurately, and what different condition scores look like on the same animal. You can download it here:

www.beeflambnz.com – search for ‘beef cow body condition scoring’

For sheep, search for ‘ewe body condition scoring.’

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Mow down Californian thistles, which grow all winter. The optimum mowing strategy is to mow in the rain (which stirs up a fungus that infects cut stems). Do it every time the weed gets to the young, leafy stage. The more you cut it back at this stage, the more stressed the roots become (which is how the thistle spreads). Do this several seasons in a row, and you’ll have noticeably less thistle each time, no spraying required.

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Check for lice if stock are rubbing on fences – get vet advice on the best treatment.

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Prepare now for lambing and calving. Check with your vet about an effective vaccination programme for mothers (before they give birth) and babies.

• Check with your vet before drenching scouring, unthrifty young stock for worms as there may be other problems, such as mineral deficiencies. Drenching for worms needs to be based on a faecal egg count, and you need the correct product to avoid drench resistance.