Good morning everyone,
Considering the above and wanting to ensure all our animals are well looked after, we have decided to sell all our older steers and heifers which would normally grow through to finishing. We want to ensure all our cows and calves have good feed through the year, as who knows what “Super El Nino” will bring, so we are preparing for drought.
We have a fabulous herd of very precious breeding cows, and they are all staying. If conditions remain tough, we might sell their progeny as weaner calves (at 200+ days old). This is not our preference, though. If the young ones grow through to 12 months of age – when their mum has her next calf – they “self-wean” with no stress. That timing is important to us.
Interestingly, the market price for beef is still really high, and has not dropped at all, considering the above. I suspect the price might drop as we get closer to December.
All our animals have been weighed and tagged:
We had a big day in the yards on Saturday, weighing all the heifers and steers, and tagging all the new calves. We use Jumbo tags, and sometimes the newly born calves seem swamped by their large tags. They soon grow into them though. The results of the weigh-in were a little disappointing (hence the reason above to reduce our numbers). Although their growth normally slows during the winter, they are still maintaining reasonable cover. First-time calvers tend to lose more condition as they adjust to feeding their first calf.
Our Solar Panels:
They are working really well, producing a huge amount of solar energy, which we are exporting back to the grid. We have an “app” that reports on the solar energy produced, used, and exported back to the grid. It’s really interesting to understand how much solar energy is produced on a lovely cloud-free day versus a cloudy day. When we get our new EV vehicle and use the solar energy to charge it, the current scenario will change. It will be interesting to see just how much of a difference!
Our new EV:
We expect our new vehicle will be ready for pickup from Tauranga this week. We are getting the new BYD Atto 3 “EVO”. Ours is from the first shipment of the new model into the country. It has quite a few added features, so we have been happy to wait. It’s going to be a BIG change. Our current car is over 15 years old, so driving a vehicle with all the modern tech, and no motor noise will be quite different.
Farm maintenance:
We have had a bobcat on the farm this week, filling in some of the huge holes we dug on the farm to burn all the removed hawthorn hedging I can see we will get him back quite regularly, as we finish tidying the farm. There are still four more holes to fill, and we also need to reshape some of the laneways. What he has done so far has been great.
We have always been incredibly focused on breeding Angus animals with high marbling, as well as good carcasses and docility. Because we processed the animal, and sold the meat from it, “eating quality” was absolutely top of the list. Interestingly enough, because we are now paid “by weight,” the focus is now on breeding animals with a bigger (or better) carcass, good growth, and temperament, naturally. Whilst we are not dropping marbling from the equation, the sire we use in the future must have a great carcass. Our future plan is to breed two special bulls: one for marbling and one for carcass quality. We will then pick and choose which cows to breed these bulls to.On reflection, because I was inexperienced with cattle breeding and had no mentor to guide me, I naturally relied on the numbers – the “estimated breeding values” – to determine all our future steps. I probably looked at the numbers too much, and not at the animal enough! I’m not saying we did a bad job! I am very proud of what we have achieved. But I guess the adage is so true: “I wish I knew then what I know now.”
Last week we spotlighted a black/white faced cow, Bryar. Although we want to breed Angus (black) animals, we are just in awe of her progeny, who grow significantly better than their contemporaries. We have kept all her progeny so far. Last week we mentioned that just one of her progeny would be culled. In fact, as we reflected on our breeding program this coming year, we are definitely NOT going to cull Bella. She has the most magnificent carcass, and although her progeny will not be black, we can’t go past our modified breeding goals. She hits all of them. She really is a “keeper”.
