Saturday, March 30, 2024

All the tips and tricks

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In South Otago and Southland wintering is a particular area of interest for many farmers, as weather conditions, heavy and wet soil types and minimum grass growth provide challenges for many months.
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With input from farmers in the region DairyNZ has recently developed the Reviewing your wintering system booklet to provide clarity around wintering options. It has two practical parts; an assessment of wintering risk and a guide to investigate alternative options.

The risk assessment reviews how a farm’s wintering system is performing, looking at the economics, animal welfare, feed supply, environment and people. The risk assessment helps farmers determine if areas of their system need to be changed, or if alternative wintering options should be considered.

In part two, a flow chart helps farmers work through different options and decide the best fit for their overall farm system. It also includes a checklist of factors for a range of wintering systems as well as a plan for managing risks.

To illustrate the pros and cons of each system, DairyNZ has collated case studies and farmers have generously shared tips and tricks based on their experience. These will be available on DairyNZ’s website in the coming weeks and will help farmers learn from other farmers who have already tried a wintering system.

DairyNZ’s research has shown that it’s important to plan ahead to ensure cows adapt well to the change to winter crops. It can take at least two weeks for cows to adjust to a crop diet and build up enough rumen microbes to cope with the different components of the crop. It’s important to keep that in mind to prevent weight loss and rumen imbalances.

If there’s a crop paddock on the milking platform, the last 10 days of milking can be used to graze the paddock for one to two hours a day. Another option for a smooth transition is to allocate more supplement and pasture for the first seven days of the winter grazing and slowly increase the crop to the desired level.

Interestingly, the research shows the yield of the crop and the drymatter intake are often over-estimated. When that happens, cows do not put on enough condition before calving. Assessing crop yield in May will determine how much feed is allocated and whether there is enough for cows to reach the condition they need.

It’s also important to build in extra feed for periods of extreme cold when cows will need more energy. Lighter cows are more affected by cold weather than fatter cows so it’s good to plan to put condition on cows early in winter.

If using an off-paddock system it helps to think about the stocking density and gauge whether cows will have enough room to lie down comfortably. The lying time is important for, and a sign of, a cow’s well-being.

Think ahead to the management of the lying surface during the winter to ensure it stays comfortable, clean, well-drained and dry. Surfaces should provide enough grip to support cows standing up and lying down but not be rough.

To minimise the risk of mastitis, drying off needs to be managed carefully. Using dry cow therapy and teat sealant can be helpful.

For more information on wintering, visit dairynz.co.nz/southernwintering.

Dawn Dalley

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