Tuesday, 24 February 2015 14:55

Happy to pay for good grazing

Written by 

Dargaville dairy farmer Bob Franklin is happy to fork out money for top heifer grazing if he gets a product worth $20,000 more over its lifetime.

 He has been dairy farming for four years after switching from sheep and beef and is still building his dairy herd, he told the field day at the Northland heifer grazing focus farm of John and Geraldine Taylor. 

Last year Franklin sent undersized heifers to the Taylor’s farm which did an excellent job of them, he says. R2 heifers observed at the February 12 field day were the second lot sent to the Taylor farm. The mob averages 430kg -- about 80kg above target -- and all were pregnant except two needing retesting.

Franklin says he put these heifers somewhere else initially but then switched them to the Taylors who are now getting the same great results for him as last year. 

Grazier John Taylor bought the 139ha farm in 1967 and ran a breeding ewe operation for 15 years. They then diversified into cattle and started with 50 head of dairy grazers. They now run 190 head with 30 plus weaners and 157 R2 heifers; sheep numbers are 700 ewes.

They do some private grazing but now mostly work through the New Zealand Grazing Company.

Calves are oral drenched and the heifers are getting Cydectin every eight weeks based on dung samples. 

Winter is a critical period, particularly in Northland. The heifers are run in their ownership mobs with their own rotation. Taylor allocates 3 heifers/ha for yearling heifers (750-800kgLW/ha).

Heifers are shifted at least daily through winter – twice a day in wet weather with 50 heifers allocated 0.4ha a day on a 40 day rotation. Through autumn they are shifted every second day. The farm relies on balage – it is not geared up to feed PKE – made in January because gear and labour is available.

“This land is pretty responsive…. The worst thing is the wind; that might be helping us with lower spore counts.

“Calves are on a two day shift… To get growth rate you’ve got to move them before they need to be moved and you just keep going. September is our worst month because the lambs are starting to eat – the land is so cold its takes a while to come on.”

Heifer grazing is sensitive to feed deficits: heifers need to gow at 0.6-0.7kgLW/head/day to reach their 22 months liveweight. Any periods lower than this creates risks of missing liveweight targets. 

Some pros of working via New Zealand Grazing Company, rather than private arrangements, include dealing with one person, secure paying, regular weighing, and a dung and FE testing regime, calves must be 100kg at trucking to the grazier, and extra payments for winter, drought and animal health costs.

However Taylor thought the $500/head plus grazing feeds refund penalty for death was steep when it was not the grazier’s fault.

More like this

Shelter a key necessity

Mature grazing livestock are generally very well-adapted to maintain a comfortable body temperature regardless of the weather.

Easing cows into winter crops

Successful grazing of crop paddocks is achieved by good management of people, cows and the environment, says DairyNZ.

Minimising winter grazing damage

While winter feed crops are crucial in Simon O’Meara’s farm system, the West Otago sheep and beef farmer is making changes to cut their damage to the environment.

Featured

Sheep drench resistance costly

Analysis by Dunedin-based Techion New Zealand shows the cost of undetected drench resistance in sheep has exploded to an estimated $98 million a year.

Dairy sheep and goat turmoil

Dairy sheep and goat farmers are being told to reduce milk supply as processors face a slump in global demand for their products.

Hurry up and slow down!

OPINION: We have good friends from way back who had lived in one of our major cities for many years.

National

Govt urged to reduce ETS units

The Climate Change Commission wants the new Government to reduce NZ Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction volumes as son as…

Dairy sheep, goat woes mount

Dairy sheep and goat farmers are being told to reduce milk supply as processors face a slump in global demand…

Machinery & Products

All-terrain fert spreading mode

Effluent specialists the Samson Group have developed a new double unloading system to help optimise uphill and downhill organic fertiliser…

Can-Am showcases range

Based on industry data collected by the Motor Industry Association, Can-Am is the number one side-by-side manufacturer in New Zealand.

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

Papal visit

OPINION: European farmers are going to extreme lengths to have their message heard.

Thai egg tarts

OPINION: The hustle and bustle of one of Bangkok's most popular fast food outlets may feel a world away from…

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter