Robbie loves the fact that he has been able to raise his children on the same farm he grew up on. His children all had their own jobs to help out on the farm after school, including feeding the calves and helping with the milking.
Milk production revolves around the reproductive cycle of the cow.
As a mammal, a cow starts to produce milk after she gives birth to a calf, at about two years of age.
Cows are usually milked for about ten months and then stop milking (dry off) for two months as they prepare for the birth of their next calf.
Dry cows are usually grouped together in, fields or a separate part of the byre during this time.
Robbie has a list of when all his cows are due to have their calves, and about the week before they are due, looks for signs of impending calving. He likes to be there when they have their calves, just in case the Vet has to be called. Usually the calving goes without a hitch, and a healthy calf is produced without any assistance from him.
Calves are left with their mothers for their first three days of life, so they can receive the colostrum which is found in the first secretions produced by the cow’s mammary glands after calving.
Colostrum is essential to pass along passive immunity to common diseases from the cow to her calf.
It is then essential to take the calves away from their mothers. It then
becomes necessary for them to learn to feed from a bucket. For the first week or so they learn to drink from a bottle.
The Calves are fed a balanced diet of either cow’s milk or milk replacer (made from milk powder) until they are old enough for solid food, which is slowly introduced as part of the diet to prepare the calves for weaning. After weaning, dry hay or silage and some grains will be the main feed
On this farm, the newly born calves live in individual pens beside each other.
This allows calves to be fed individually and reduce potential infections from contact with other animals of various ages. This area uses lots of bedding to keep the calves warm and clean.
Silage is made of a mixture of grasses like rye grass, timothy and clover. The silage is cut, chopped and stored in a storage silo whilst it is still moist The grass is cut and harvested twice - early June and the middle of August
Feed is stored in silos to maintain the quality of the crops that were harvested during the summer. Silage is stored in cement bunkers throughout the winter and until the next crop.
Farmers usually cover the feed in plastic to protect it from rain and snow
It may be possible to have a tour of some parts of the farm: speak with Robbie to organise this.