Pregnancy testing is getting underway. There’s still time to book in if you haven’t already done so. Remember the reliable ageing window is 40 – 90 days of pregnancy (otherwise we rely on AB dates and an element of guesswork), and empties can only be called six weeks after the bull has been taken out.
Clean & update your eartags & MINDA/CRV records - regardless of how you are pregnancy testing, knowing which cow is which is crucial!
Keep the cows cool – as the weather heats up, think of methods to minimise heat stress as much as possible, be it shade, fans or sprinklers. Minimising walking distances, especially at afternoon milking, can make a big difference. Consider changing milking times, or milking once a day, if this can be worked into your farm system.
Book the culls in ahead of time, to ensure you have one of the limited spaces at the works for yours.
Milk culture high cell count cows after herd test to make sure the bacteria present is not becoming resistant to the antibiotics you’re using, or that a new bug is appearing.
Fonterra have introduced a bulk milk zinc check to help see if your zinc supplementation is protective – let us know if you’d like to discuss the results.
Blaze pour-on can be useful for those of you struggling with nuisance flies, if your sprinkler isn’t cutting it.
Autumn calving dry off – plan the day and staffing, making sure you get those teat ends clean!
R2 HEIFERS:
Book in their pregnancy testing
Keep in touch with your grazier and ensure the communication is working to over come any feed shortages this summer.
Plan your zinc bolus for them, remembering the highest counts are often at the end of the season.
CALVES:
Keep an eye on the spore counts, over 20,000 = time to bolus with Faceguard.
Keep up with the drenching for worms as they love the warm humid weather.
