There are a number of benefits that can be gained from weighing livestock on a suckler enterprise.
Aine O’Riordan, Teagasc drystock advisor, discusses why you should implement this practice on your farm.
“Weighing is an essential management tool and should be carried out regularly on beef farms because beef farmers are selling kilos of beef, whether it be liveweight or carcass weight, so you need to know what you’re producing,” she explains.
ADG
The first benefit she eludes to is calculating the average daily gain (ADG) of your calves and weanlings. “In suckler herds, you can see what cows are producing the best calves and make informed management decisions from this.”
Selling animals
She also explains that stock can be selected for sale by their weight. Researching the demand in the market and supplying animals of an appropriate weight may reap better rewards.
Cost per kg
By weighing your livestock, you can calculate the cost of production per kg of meat produced.
Kill out%
The fourth benefit is, when slaughtering animals, you can calculate carcass kill out percentage from their liveweight.
Dosing
When dosing animals, if you have an accurate liveweight you can dose accurately, therefore reducing the risk of anthelmintic resistance.
BEEP-S
You can now receive payment for weighing cows and calves through the BEEP scheme.
Video source: Teagasc West Cork Facebook
