Farm Diary

- the big summer problem you’ve probably never heard of - jobs for December

DURING summer and autumn, young livestock should be growing at a steady rate – lambs 140g per day, calves 1kg+ per day – and adults should be staying in good condition.

But research shows 36 percent of cattle and 62 percent of sheep won’t be doing well.

‘Ill thrift’ is where stock grow more slowly than they should, or worse, lose condition.

The reason is usually a mix of causes. The two most common, in order of importance, are: poor quality pasture parasites (45 percent of young sheep, 30 percent of cattle)

Other reasons include facial eczema, endophyte toxicity (other fungi in grass), lack of trace elements, and pneumonia.

Raising the quality of pasture/feed and having an effective drenching programme (based on faecal egg count tests) through summer and autumn are the first two issues to address.

Talk to your vet about testing for trace element levels, and what ones may be naturally low in your region.

Sowing drought-tolerant, highly nutritious pasture will help long-term. Good options include plantain and chicory (which don’t carry facial eczema spores), and endophyte-free ryegrass.

‘Ill thrift’ is caused by a mix of issues, most commonly poor pasture and parasites.