In 2001 the father and son team of Herbie and Wayne McMurray of Scarva, Co. Down, made the life-changing decision to invest in a milking unit, where they now run a dairy herd of 90 cows. With this decision came the need for the farm to be adapted and a site was acquired to facilitate a new cubicle house and parlour. The enormity of the McMurray’s resolve to pursue a future in dairying is emphasised by the fact that prior to this they ran a beef sucklers and sheep farm.

8 years later; the herd which is mostly British Friesians, Holsteins and approximately 10% Dutch Red, present a rolling herd average of 7780 litres, with a butterfat of 4.02 percent and protein of 3.31 percent. The flip-side of having to house the cows at night – due to land restrictions – ensures that milk quality can be regulated throughout the year.

Cows are currently fed a flat rate of 5 kilos in the diet feeder of;

Thompsons Wagon 21% protein and topped up in the parlour with 0.5 kilo per litre of an 18% Maizelink Nut. In the forthcoming weeks the cows will be fed a transition diet in the parlour prior to the higher protein winter diet. Weather depending, it is likely that the cows will be housed for the winter period within the next 10 days.

With the winter period imminent, the first step will be to assess both silage quantity and quality. 1st cut silage was taken on the 10th June followed by a late 2nd cut in early September due to the wet weather. In addition to this baled silage has also been made. Initial assessments of the McMurray’s silage quantity, removes the need for the option of alternative feeds such as Brewers Grains or Vitagold as silage stocks will be adequate to cover the herd requirements.

Core silage samples will now be taken from the clamp and sent to Hillsborough for analysis. In line with the results from Hillsborough, winter diets will be selected to ensure cows are balanced for both energy and protein. This may result in the requirement of a winter ration such as Dairygold 19 or Cremets which have the added benefits of the inclusion of the Thompsons Protected Vitamin & Mineral Pack, Megalac, Biotin and Levucell. A customised blend is also an option, but all suggestions will be dependant on discussions between the Thompsons rep and the farmer following the silage analysis results.

Currently the herd follows an all year round calving pattern, with artificial insemination and the use of a sweeper Limousin bull. When selecting the bull for AI, consideration is given to ease of calving, in addition to milk quality. Ease of calving selection has paid off, with very few difficulties in this area. Conception rates are also good with the majority of cows being back in calf following their first service.

Healthy calves at birth are the result of effective dry cow management, with all dry cows receiving between 1-2 kilos of Thompsons Pre-Calver in addition to forage. Calf rearing as with any farm is important to ensure target growths of 0.8 kilos DLWG are achieved with the majority of heifers calving down at 24 months. Animals that have been born later in the year generally take slightly longer but are calving down at approximately 26 months of age.

The long-term vision of McMurray’s farm is to improve herd performance whilst maintaining the strong herd health that they currently have.

Herd lameness is kept to a minimum with routine foot-bathing. Currently cows are not batched over the winter period but this may be an option in the future. This will ensure stale cows are not over fed which makes sense in terms of economics.

With the current milk price, expansion of the herd is not feasible, but maximising the potential of the current herd is.

For further information on how you can maximise the potential of your herd contact your local Thompsons representative or Thompsons on; 028 9035 1321