Cow health management changes help secure future for next generation dairy farmer

Putting systems in place that reduce the risk of poor herd healthis key to sustainable milk production at a Gwynedd dairy farm.

Father and son Mervyn and Rhys Roberts milk 140 cows at 153-acre Hendy, a part-owned and part rented farm at Pontllyfni, near Caernarfon.

In a change of direction, the herd is now predominately Fleckvieh, a breed selected for its ability to produce high value calves and milk with high constituent levels.

The Fleckvieh was first introduced in 2016 with the purchase of six calved heifers from the Netherlands – five of these are still in the herd – and all cows and heifers are now served to Fleckvieh genetics.

For ease of management and to capitalise on the winter milk price, the calving pattern is also changing – transitioning from all year round to an autumn block, with calving from August to December.

The Roberts’ have also changed the way they manage cow health, first introducing Animal Health Vision (AHV) solutions in February 2022.

They have since worked with AHV Consultant Aled Evans-Hughes. He monitors and analyses their monthly milk recording data to keep a proactive check on herd health.

“Aled can spot issues on the report with individual cows and help us tackle them straight away because if those underlying issues are ignored the problem only gets worse and can affect the rest of the herd,’’ says Rhys.

Cows exhibiting udder health or milk quality issues are given AHV Aspi liquid and AHV Extra Tablet, both of which support the immune system.

“The improvement in udder health and milk quality is obvious, we can see the benefits of these early interventions when we go through the milk recording report with Aled in the following months,’’ says Mervyn.

How do they work?

AHV Aspi liquid supports the immune system during recovery periods, including regulating temperature and promotes the well-being of the animal while the AHV Extra Tablet is for sustained enhancement of the immune system & works by cleansing the udder tissue from deep within.

Mervyn admits that he was at first skeptical about changing the way things were done traditionally. “But we thought we should at least give the products one go, to see if they worked, and they did,’’ he says.

“It is a nice feeling when a cow calves and you have nothing to worry about, it makes management so much easier. We need a cow to be firing on all cylinders when she has calved and we can fully support her to do this using the AHV solutions and protocols.’’

Supporting the new lactation

Cows that need extra support also get an AHV Milk Start Tablet at calving, to provide an intake of magnesium, calcium and phosphorus, and AHV Booster Tablet too, to promote the animal’s metabolism in the liver and rumen, and to provide sustained or fast additional energy.

“It really kick-starts the lactation,’’ says Rhys.

The herd is producing an annual milk yield average of 7,550 litres/cow at 4.4% butterfat and 3.38% protein and a rolling annual cell count average of 190,000 cells/ml. Milk is sold to South Caernarfon Creameries.

Milking is in a 12:24 herringbone parlour with all cows passing through a footbath every milking, in a solution of formalin which is changed daily.

Since the custom-made footbath was installed in the summer of 2021, with support from the farm vet, AHDB and foot trimming at drying off, lameness has virtually been eliminated.

Cows are at grass from early April to late October. During the winter they are housed in cubicles topped with a lime product and yard-fed grass silage, wholecrop and blend. Concentrates are fed in the parlour to a maximum of 8kg/cow.

Rhys, who combines his time on the farm with a job at a machinery repair company, has recently become a partner in the business.

“With his input we are developing new goals and ideas for how we run the farm,’’ says Mervyn.

These include making AHV solutions a central part of the Herd Health Plan and applying the protocols in Fertility and the Udder.

This adaption has improved the longevity of cows within the herd. It means fewer cull cows and more milk to sell too since there is no requirement for a milk withdrawal period.

“By having more cows and keeping them healthy and in the herd for longer it is sowing the seeds for Rhys to farm full time,’’ says Mervyn.