Beef and sheep notes June 2007
Improve profit through careful spring management of cattle and sheep
Lamb growth rates
Target lamb growth should be around 300g per day up to weaning and 250g per day post weaning. Grass clover swards are the cheapest feed available. Move weaned lambs onto swards with 2200 KG DM/ha or sward height of 6-7 cm. Silage aftermaths make ideal grazing for lambs. Under grazing in early season leads to more stem and dead vegetation near the base of the sward and lambs will not thrive if forced to eat this type of grass. Overgrazing swards on the other hand, will not only reduce growth rates but also give rise to more internal parasite problems.
Internal parasites – these can have a huge impact on performance. The trend is now to use more persistent wormers which results in less handling.
Other points to consider :
- Check dosing equipment is delivering the correct amount of dose.
- Dose to the heaviest in the group- weigh if necessary.
- Restrict feed just before dosing.
If it appears that lambs are not responding to wormers contact your veterinary surgeon who can give you further advice as your lambs could possibly have wormer resistance or coccidiosis. Your sheep adviser could organise a Faecal egg count to test the efficiency of your dosing.
Coccidiosis- This is becoming a significant problem on virtually all intensive sheep farms where the same fields are grazed each year. In some cases the disease may show no symptoms of scouring, but will have a negative effect on lamb growth rates. In severe cases lambs suffer from a black bloody type scour which can result in death. Worm doses offer absolutely no control over this protozoa organism. Lambs which have had coccidiosis usually make a slow recovery after treatment and can quickly fall victim to other diseases.
Treatment Creep feed which has had Deccox added to it is usually very effective. Vecoxan is an effective oral dose and in extreme situations requires 2 doses three weeks apart.
Blow fly strike
It is good practice to keep the fleece clean with proper anthelmintic treatment and foot rot control and so on. Sheep dipping using Organo- Phosphate dip still offers the broadest coverage of external parasites including sheep scab. A certificate of competence is required to purchase and use OPs. Follow EHS guidelines when disposing of sheep dip. Pour–on products are more convenient to use and cover a range of external parasites with the exception of sheep scab (see table).
| Product | Active ingredient | Blow fly | Blow fly | Tick control | Meat witholding period |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crovect,Vector | Cypermethrin | Yes | 6-8 weeks | Yes | 8 days |
| Vetrazin | Cyromazine | No | 10 weeks | No | 3 days |
| Clik | Dicyclanil | No | 16 weeks | No | 40 days |
| Dysect | Alphacypermethrin | Yes | 8-10 weeks | Yes | 28 days |
Managing cattle at grass
- Liveweight gained from grazed grass costs up to five times less than gains from silage and concentrates.
- Aim for liveweight gains of 0.9-1.0 KG/day (200 KGs over the grazing season)
- Graze swards down to 5-7cm (2-3in) in the May-June period.
- Top swards that have run to seed to maintain quality from June onward - set the topper to 6cm (2.5in).
- Ensure a clean cut and fast recovery by having the blades or flails in good condition.
- Top immediately after moving cattle so that initial re-growth is not restricted.
Stitching in grass and white clover
Specialist grass seeders can successfully stitch in grass and white clover seeds into uncultivated soil. This is a quick low cost method of establishment compared to conventional reseeding and is a useful method of establishing clover in existing swards. However this will only work successfully in open swards with bare ground visible. It is not suitable for thickly matted grass swards. Sow immediately after a silage cut or into a sward that has been grazed closely (3-5cm). In dry weather roll with a heavy roller.
Meat Plant Focus
Heather Mackey, Foyle Meats, advises farmers to consider the Quality Angus Scheme offered through the plant. Currently 150 cattle are processed weekly with R and O grade cattle commanding bonuses of 28p/KG and 20p/KG respectively, with suckler bred animals due an extra 4p/KG. Tesco stores are the key market for this beef. For further details contact Eamon Kelly on 028 8225 8035.