Calf registrations have reached 1,915,453 head for the year to date, based on the latest data from the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF).
The latest data from the week ending May 27, shows that 40,491 calves were registered on farms in the seven days prior; this is 4,434 head behind the same week in 2021.
Overall, calf registrations are behind those from 2021 by 363 head.
Calf registrations
Looking closer, we can see that 23,485 calves born to beef dams were registered in the last seven days.
This is 3,082 head behind the same period in 2021.
Overall registrations for calves born to beef dams is also behind 2021, with 511,662 registered so far this year compared to 533,115 at this point in 2021.
This accounts for a 21,453 head reduction in calves born to beef dams for the year to date, when compared to 2021.
Some 17,006 calves born to dairy dams were registered in the last seven days. When compared to the same week in 2021, this is a reduction of 1,352 head.
Overall births to dairy dams is ahead of 2021, with some 1,403,791 registered for the year to date.
This is 21,090 head more than 2021, when 1,382,701 calves had been registered to dairy dams at this point.
Total calf births have surpassed 1.9 million, with 1,915,453 head registered so far in 2022. This is 363 head behind the same period in 2021, when 1,915,816 head had been registered at this point.
Calf registrations up to and including the week ending May 27, 2022:
- Dairy calf births: 1,403,791 (+17,006);
- Beef calf births: 511,662 (+23,485);
- Total births: 1,915,453 (+40,191).
Breeding season
As the breeding season progress and enough cows have been served or are in-calf to dairy sires, some farms will now turn out the bull.
But having a bull running with the cows is a safety issue, as a bull’s temperament, as every farmer is aware, can quickly change.
No matter how quiet a bull may seem they should never be trusted.
When herding the cows, it is advised to know where the bull is at all times. Ideally a vehicle should use be used, and at the least a stick should be carried.