Farmer Focus: Feed bills to follow weaning small lambs

I have just returned from a day at the Royal Welsh Show.

Most of it was spent in my role with the Charolais cattle, watching some fantastic, pampered bovines.

The show was incredibly well supported by farmers and urbanites.

See also: How cobalt deficiency tests led to higher lamb weights

About the author

James and Belinda Kimber

Livestock Farmer Focus writers James and Belinda farm 850 commercial and pedigree sheep and 30 pedigree Simmental and Charolais cattle in Wiltshire across 95ha (45ha owned). James also runs a foottrimming business and Belinda has a B&B.

Read more articles by James and Belinda Kimber

Now, it’s back home to reality. Weaning Easter lambs yielded awful weights and numbers, although lambs chewed the cable on our new weigher, so accuracy was out.

Anyway, it’s a slap in the face for all our efforts. I can hold off from buying all the finisher pellets, as I’ll have a lot of long-keep lambs. It means I can buy pellets as and when needed, rather than buying them all now.

We have spent time and money again on diagnosing and analysing losses. The vets can’t answer whether lambs born with Schmallenberg virus are surviving immunocompromised.

It can’t be all down to weather or management.  

Our health plan didn’t include the ewes getting hit by fluke in June. I suppose if we are facing different weather patterns, we will have to prepare for everything. 

As usual there are some farmers that have done well this spring, but most so far aren’t managing 4t/acre of lambs or 200% grain (or whichever way round it goes).

Our maize finally hit the growth turbo button after some rain and a bit of heat. We measured 60cm of growth in nine days. It should fill the pits.

We chopped first-cut hay and put it in the pit as sun was forecast. The second cut is now earmarked for hay. I only managed to secure half our normal straw acreage. Lower yield, but excellent quality.

Ground conditions were wonderfully moist, almost begging for some turnip seed, however, after the flooded turnips last year, I didn’t want to risk it.

We have extra hay ground for feed which should be less of a gamble.

My neighbour and I have become useful fencers over the years and have just finished another 1.6km.

The Stewardship grant just about covers all, including labour, which is brilliant – and long may it continue.

Hopefully, the new Labour government will have important things such as the NHS to sort out and leave agriculture alone for a bit.