It’s time to talk about animal housing

WHILE it is very early in the year to be talking about preparing for housing livestock, given the heavy rainfall we have experienced over the last 10 days, housing might be a reality on some farms currently.

This may be a temporary housing period or a more prolonged period, depending on the stock going in and the weather going forward.

On dairy farms, the practice of on/off grazing is easier to control than on dry-stock farms as cows are in and out of the parlour each day.

Selecting the drier areas for stock is important to minimise damage to grazing ground. On suckler farms, perhaps weaning suitable calves should be considered, if not already done so.

This will allow you to reduce stock numbers in the group and possibly house some animals or move to rough grazing land while still allowing weanlings to graze out fields.

Grass supply is still very good in most parts of the country, which is why housing in the main will be postponed as long as possible without impacting negatively on ground conditions. It is effectively the last resort at this time of the year.

If housing stock, it is important that sheds and facilities are washed, cleaned and disinfected from the prior winter period. If milking cows are to be housed, be it full time or just by night, cleanliness is paramount to control somatic cell counts.

If animals are to be housed temporarily, perhaps it might be an opportunity to treat animals for parasites.

Controlling parasites in all classes of stock at housing is extremely important to ensure that animals keep thriving during the winter period and that we get the maximum return from the feed that they are consuming.

Cattle pick up infections with worms and liver fluke almost exclusively while grazing at pasture, because the infective stages are located on the pastures and survive poorly on conserved forage.

Thus, when cattle are housed, they no longer pick up new worm and liver fluke infections until they are turned out onto grass the following spring. This means that effective parasite control at or during housing should keep the animals virtually free of worms and liver fluke until they return to pasture the next year.

The number of parasites carried by cattle at housing can vary according to several factors, including their age, as older animals generally become more resistant to some parasites; their health status; stocking rates and previous grazing management; and the level of previous parasite treatments.

As should be the case with all parasite control treatments, it is advisable that you consult with your vet in order to determine what level of dosing is required i.e. what you are dosing for; what products you should use; and at what intervals animals should be treated.

Another important task that should now be considered if housing or moving stock, if not already done by now, is weighting stock for both herd performance recording and the BEEP scheme. All recorded weights for the BEEP scheme must be submitted by November 1, and all completed 2018 carbon navigators for the BDGP scheme should have been completed by September 30.

If you have still not completed the carbon navigator do so as soon as possible.