Tailoring feeding levels to ewe nutritional requirements

The focus for lowland flocks in the Northern Ireland Sheep Programme is firmly on late pregnancy feeding. The timing of introducing concentrates and supplementation is based on the results of silage analysis and litter size.

Programme adviser Senan White says lowland farmers have also started to get facilities ready for lambing. This year, there is more attention being placed on performance recording and identifying potential replacements at birth.

This ranges from farmers adopting electronic reading equipment to hardcopy records.

The benefit of the process, irrespective of the method used, is identifying potential replacements born to high-performing ewes and to particular rams.

Hygiene remains a priority where turnout of ewes and lambs is being delayed

A couple of flocks have commenced lambing, and as can be expected, are facing challenges due to current weather.

Hygiene remains a priority where turnout of ewes and lambs is being delayed, with feeding levels increased accordingly to ensure milk yield is not compromised.

Senan says farms with hill ewes are also reviewing their feeding programme, in light of recent scanning results and current weather being tough on out-wintered ewes.

Scanning rates are higher in many of the hill flocks and this may require a tweaking of facilities to deal with a higher than normal number of twin lambs.

Location: Slaughtneil, Maghera, Co Derry.

Farm system: Hill sheep, along with a suckler herd.

Land type: Hill grazing, marginal ground and improved pasture.

Dermot McCullagh runs a flock of 300 ewes and 30 suckler cows across a land base extending to close to 90ha (222ac) in Corlecky Hill, a short distance from Slaughtneil in Co Derry.

Land is all classified as severely disadvantaged (SDA) and is a mixture of hill grazing, marginal ground and some improved pasture.

To minimise disease risk a closed flock policy was established several years ago

The areas highlighted while drawing up short, medium and long term goals as part of the farm plan all complement one aim – to safeguard production and leave the farm in a more viable position to generate a significant contribution to the business, independent of land-based payments. There are a number of areas addressed in this objective.

To minimise disease risk a closed flock policy was established several years ago.

Breeding in Scotch ewes has traditionally compromised Lanark breeding

Older Scotch ewes are mated with Bluefaced Leicester genetics to produce maternally bred Mule ewe lambs for the replacement market and male lambs with better conformation for slaughter.

Breeding in Scotch ewes has traditionally compromised Lanark breeding, but for the last four years Swaledale genetics have been used, with the aim of improving hybrid vigour and reducing barren rates.

These ewes are now feeding through and greater use will be made of performance recording via electronic identification to see if this is delivering significant benefits.

Attention will also be placed on eight week lamb weights to gauge ewe milk yield and this, along with more records around lamb mortality, will help identify poor-performing ewes for culling.

Grazing

As is the case on most of the participating farms, there is also a greater focus on improving grazing management and increasing the volume of forage grown and utilised annually.

This will be achieved through addressing soil fertility and implementing a reseeding programme and rotational grazing system, where applicable, while still ensuring the environment is maintained to a high standard.

Through this avenue, the farm is aiming to cut concentrate usage by 10% by making better-quality silage, extending the length of the grazing season and weaning heavier lambs.

Labour efficiency is another area highlighted for improvement

The latter will feed into another target of improving lamb quality and being in a better position to finish higher numbers on-farm.

Labour efficiency is another area highlighted for improvement.

In recent years, Dermot has been working on modernising housing facilities, while new sheep handling facilities are also being constructed to cut down on the labour input and to streamline performance recording.

Location: Loughgiel, Co Antrim.

Farm system: Upland and hill sheep and a suckler-to-weanling enterprise.

Land type: Mixture of hill and upland ground.

Dermot McAleese operates a sheep and suckler enterprise on a mixture of hill and upland ground in Loughgiel, Co Antrim.

The ewe flock has in the region of 500-head lambing down this spring. Within this, about 330-head are run on a large enclosed hill, extending to about 282ha (700ac). The hill is challenging, with productivity limited by vegetation, comprising of mainly heather.

Ewes run on this hill are bred pure with breeding mainly comprising Lanark genetics. In recent years, Swaledale has been used across a small percentage of the flock.

The aim is to identify ewes and lambs that are excelling on the hill and use this information to select replacements

Recording has always been important on the farm, with Dermot’s father Patsy retaining scanning records that go back over 20 years. Dermot wants to continue this even further and implement recording from birth.

The aim is to identify ewes and lambs that are excelling on the hill and use this information to select replacements. He is considering increasing this flock by 40 to 50 head in the coming years to bring about a further reduction in the barren rate, which was recorded at 8.8% this spring.

There is a happy balance in terms of litter size in the hill flock, with twin-bearing ewes requiring preferential treatment for longer and putting pressure on lowland ground. This year’s ewes scanned an average in-lamb rate of 150%.

The upland area, comprising about 56ha (140ac), is all classified as SDA land along with a 12ha (30ac) block at the yard which is cut for silage.

About 24ha of the upland area is semi-improved, with the remainder marginal in nature. The flock, run on upland ground, comprises about 60 Scotch ewes and 110 Mule and Texel x Mule ewes.

Bringing aged ewes off the hill and into this flock for another year has worked well in recent years, with Bluefaced Leicester genetics used to increase the value of progeny.

The upland ewe flock is run alongside a 34-cow suckler-to-weanling enterprise

The main aim on improved pasture ground is to improve grassland output. The upland ewe flock is run alongside a 34-cow suckler-to-weanling enterprise.

Dermot is a big believer in the merits of mixed grazing and operates a rotational grazing system during the main grazing season. Depending on paddock size, fresh grass is offered daily, or at least every two to three days.

Steps are already underway to increase grass output through grass measuring, reseeding, weed control and improving soil nutrient levels.

A high percentage of lambs were traded as stores in 2019

This is seen as integral to improving silage quality and reducing concentrate supplementation, along with having better-quality grass available for lambs. A high percentage of lambs were traded as stores in 2019, with finishing decisions based on a financial budget.