Bryn Farm, Tremeirchion, St Asaph
Focus Site Project: Manipulating dry matter intake to reduce night time calvings and manage dry cow health and performance
Aim of the project:
The project will aim to look at two aspects, firstly to investigate the importance of the dry cow’s blood mineral and metabolic status on her subsequent health, production and reproductive performance and secondly to reduce night time calving instances through the manipulation of her dry matter intake. The impact on calf colostrum quality will also be studied as the cow will be milked sooner in the calving pen post-partum and colostrum fed to the newborn calf quicker than if born at night.