Management of Females

Heifer calves receive a small amount of concentrated feed at housing in late October/early November until weaning in mid January. They have ad-lib silage and barley straw.

Most heifers are bulled to calve at 3 years of age, as this suits our spring calving pattern, although they could comfortably calve at 2-2½ years of age if required.

From weaning, females rarely receive concentrate feed again. Cows, bulling heifers, in-calf heifers are over-wintered on limited big bale silage and straw and housed in cubicles.

Replacement females are selected on structural, fleshing ability and femininity. The milking ability of a heifer’s dam and sire’s dam is also taken into account.

A strict culling policy has been carried out for many years.

This has resulted in a herd of hard working cows that produce quality stock time and again with it not being unusual for cows to keep breeding into their 18th year.

Most cows weigh between 600-700 kilos at maturity and at weaning most calves weigh in excess of half their dam’s weight.