Farmer Focus: Cull cows made £400 more than last year

Very wet here. Horrible. Dreich, as we say. That’s the weather covered.

Last month I mentioned how much it was costing to feed and bed the cull cows. I decided to sell most of them in early December.

The heaviest and lightest went direct to slaughter, and the whole lot averaged £1,168.

See also: Mince demand brings optimism on cull cows

About the author

Steven Sandison

Livestock Farmer Focus writer Steven Sandison farms 90 Simmental and Salers-cross suckler cows on the Orkney Islands in partnership with his wife, Lorraine, on 134ha (330 acres). They have a 150-ewe flock of Shetland cross Cheviot ewes. Maximising grass is a priority.

Read more articles by Steven Sandison

Nine feeding cows went through the ring to average £1,297 (after stoppages), which is a big improvement on the cows that went off at the same time last year at £892.

If only we had seen a similar increase with the calves.

The only time we’ve had a bad outbreak of pneumonia in the weaned calves was when a cold spell came after they’d had their backs clipped.

This winter, there was snow forecast when they were due to be clipped and dosed, so I left it until it was past, meaning it was nearly Christmas before they were done.

Now their backs are clean and they are on their full winter ration, they are fairly thriving.

Earlier in the winter we were out for a weekend to the island of Westray. My nephew farms on a peninsula there where you can see the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea from the same spot.

Every year he buys some heifer calves from us.

This winter he has given his calves salt licks and remarked on how much more the calves from us had been consuming compared with his home-bred calves, which have spent the summer by the sea.

Although you are never far from the sea in Orkney, our farm is about as far as you can get. 

It reminded me of what a feed rep told me last year. He said our downer cow issue in the run-up to calving might be connected to a lack of salt.

Rock salt was purchased quickly, and 87 cows have already licked their way through 100kg in a few weeks.

Last year, Orkney had its first two Christmas tractor runs. This year there has been a total of seven across different islands.

The main event in Kirkwall saw 179 tractors, and dozens more turning out to the smaller events to raise money for several local charities. It really is community spirit at its very best.