British Simmental Review 2018

“The pedigree bulls have exceeded our
expectations in such a short time and it has
added another valuable income stream to
the business,” explained Mr Christie.
While the Christies clearly gain
enjoyment and satisfaction from their
pedigree cattle, the focus is undoubtedly
on maximising profit and efficiency in the
commercial herd.
“Heifers are calved at two years old
which gives us a quicker return financially.
Keeping heifers an extra year on the farm
without a calf is not cost effective. We also
find heifers are easier calved at two years
old and they have a better milking ability.”
A ten-week calving period for the spring
calving herd begins in the third week of
March and all spring calving is finished by
the end of May. Cows and calves are turned
out to grass around mid-May, depending
on the grass cover and weather.
Mr Christie explained: “The heifer
and bull calves are run in separate lots
once they are turned out. Creep feed is
introduced to the bull calves around mid-
July and to the heifers mid-August. Cows
and calves are grazed throughout the
summer and housed around the beginning
of November and calves are weaned three
weeks to a month later. When taken in for
the winter, cows and youngstock are fed a
total mixed ration which is made up for us
by SAC after the forage analysis is done.”
Weaning is delayed until there is a good
cold snap to help reduce the chances of
pneumonia developing in the calves. “By
weaning this way we rarely see issues with
pneumonia and do not find it necessary
to vaccinate calves as a result,” said Mr
Christie.
Health status is an important factor
and the farm has been a member of the
Hi-Health Scheme since 2007. The herd
has been BVD accredited since 2009 and
achieved Johnes Level 1 in 2014. Cows are
vaccinated against BVD, Leptospirosis and
Rotavirus.
The family also routinely select and test
12 yearlings from the group for IBR each
year and have never yet had an animal test
positive.
Post weaning, calves remain split by
sex with the bull calves taken through to
finishing as entire bulls at 12-15 months at
400-420kg deadweight.
Mr Christie said: “To maximise carcase
values we aim to get as close to the weight
limits as we can without going over. Bulls
are weighed every three weeks in the
finishing period and are selected when they
meet the correct specifications.”
He added: “We find selling deadweight to
be the best option for us, particularly when
selling prime bulls. We value the feedback
we get from the abattoir on our cattle and
regularly speak with procurement staff to
ensure we are producing cattle that meet
their requirements.”
The Christies keep some of their heifers
as replacements, and the rest are sold to
other suckler herds for breeding. “There is
always good demand for these and they
are sold privately to regular customers.
Heifers which are not suitable for breeding
are finished on the farm” said Mr Christie.
All herd records are maintained using
a software package, and the recording of
births, movements, deaths and weights
on the system gives them a clear picture
of herd performance at any given point in
time.
All stock bulls are checked by a vet
annually and are semen tested to ensure
that the bulls are fertile and healthy when
they are turned out with the cows.
In a bid to maximise profits further Gary
and Angela have recently begun using
digestate from a local anaerobic digester
as fertiliser for their grassland with a
predicted saving of 75% on annual fertiliser
costs.
“This is just one of a number of
032 www.britishsimmental.co.uk