The Fodder Support Scheme opened for applications this week and sheep specialist Damian Costello joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to explain more about it. Damian outlines the focus of the scheme and the potential payment and key dates involved. He discusses eligibility criteria and maximum payable area plus explains how you can submit an application under agfood.ie and when payments are expected to be made. For more episodes from the OviCast podcast, visit the show page at: https://www...
Jun 21, 2022•10 min•Ep. 132
Postgraduate student, Mark Dolan, and Dr Frank Campion join Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to discuss some of the results of an ongoing study between Teagasc and UCD examining the potential of using forage diets alongside conventional systems to finish hill bred lambs post-weaning. Mark outlines the project now entering its third year and discusses the different forages grown, carrying capacities and lamb performance on the crops. Frank outlines where these crops have a role as well as some...
Jun 14, 2022•13 min•Ep. 131
This week’s OviCast is joined by post-graduate student Lisa McGrane and Dr Philip Creighton to discuss some of the results of an ongoing study between Teagasc and UCD examining how companion forages – chicory, plantain, red and white clover - perform alongside a perennial ryegrass sward in sheep systems. With four years data collected, Lisa discusses what impact these forages have had on ewe and lamb performance before moving on to discuss the impact of this on drafting, concentrate supplementat...
Jun 10, 2022•14 min•Ep. 130
Dr Frank Campion joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast with an update on what’s been happening in the BETTER farm flocks. They discuss grass growth, surpluses and silage and some of the management challenges during the past few weeks. With the first round of weighing complete for the lowland flocks, Frank outlines how lambs are performing this spring. They discuss the variation among flocks and across years and discuss how early lamb performance can actually impact management for the rest of...
May 31, 2022•16 min•Ep. 129
Dr Natascha Meunier from Animal Health Ireland is on this week’s OviCast podcast to tell us more about the Targeted Advisory Service on Animal Health (TASAH) parasite control consult which is a new fully funded programme from Animal Health Ireland. Natascha starts by putting the challenge of resistance in context and why we need to proactively address it. The parasite control consult is available to cattle and sheep farmers and Natascha explains the aim of the programme and what it offers farmer...
May 24, 2022•10 min•Ep. 128
Following on from the previous episode, Ciarán Lynch is re-joined by Dr. Tim Keady to discuss some of the various factors that influence silage digestibility. Tim covers a wide range of factors from harvest date and pre-closing management to heading date and sward type and he also discusses the pros and some cons to wilting. Tim explains the potential to make high quality later in the season and offers some tips to achieve this. He discusses the impact of poor preservation and the role of additi...
May 17, 2022•22 min•Ep. 127
As silage season is kicking off, this week’s OviCast is joined by Dr. Tim Keady to discuss the importance of focusing on quality. Tim highlights why high feed value silage is essential for the coming year and the opportunities it presents. Tim sets the target of producing 75+ DMD silage to sustain high levels of performance and allow for concentrate saving in the coming winter. He discusses the impact of silage quality on the performance pregnant ewes and beef systems before then discussing the ...
May 10, 2022•18 min•Ep. 126
With clover more in focus than ever, this week’s episode of OviCast is joined by Germinal’s Dr Mary McEvoy to discuss in more detail. Mary outlines the role of clover in swards and its potential benefits and talks about the different establishment methods from a full reseed to over-sowing. She discusses field selection, sowing rate and a number of other key factors that will influence its success. Mary then takes us through pre and post-sowing management to ensure good establishment while in the...
May 04, 2022•18 min•Ep. 125
Maresa Sheehan from the Dept. of Agriculture’s Regional Veterinary Laboratory in Kilkenny joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast with an update on some of the issues she and her colleagues are encountering at the moment. The relatively mild winter and spring has helped many farms but it has also posed a risk for various parasite challenges from fluke to Nematodirus and Coccidia which are discussed in more detail. Maresa highlights how April tends to be a high risk period for clostridia issues...
Apr 26, 2022•18 min•Ep. 124
Dr James O’Shaughnessy from the Dept. of Agriculture Central Veterinary Research Laboratory in Backweston joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast podcast to discuss Nematodirus disease in lambs. James starts by describing the life cycle of Nematodirus and how it differs from other stomach worms. He discusses how it affects lambs and the symptoms to watch out for and he also discusses the limitations of faecal egg counts for this condition. With the recent release of this year’s Nematodirus for...
Apr 19, 2022•16 min•Ep. 123
Co. Kildare sheep and beef farmer, James Johnston, and his Teagasc advisor Dr Rachel Taylor join Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to give an insight into his system, grassland management and how he is addressing some of the challenges going forwards. James first outlines his farming system before discuss grazing groups and the use of temporary fencing, fertiliser and soil fertility. Rachel and James outline the plans for this year’s silage crop, the importance of completing a fodder budget an...
Apr 12, 2022•14 min•Ep. 122
The focus for this week’s episode of the OviCast podcast switches to grassland with Ciarán Lynch joined by Dr Philip Creighton to discuss the key priorities for April. Philip starts by discussing the current grazing situation before then moving on to discuss the key management tasks from grouping up to temporary fencing with Philip explaining the impact this has on grass growth and animal performance. He offers some advice on fertiliser application during April and the impact that this has on th...
Apr 05, 2022•18 min•Ep. 121
Dr Tim Keady joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to discuss the management of triplet rearing and yearling ewes post-lambing. Tim starts by highlighting the need to have a system to deal with multiples in prolific flock outlining the various options that are available. He takes us thorough the economics of rearing the third lamb on a ewe and discusses the energy requirements post-lambing with Tim outlining the supplementation strategy to make up the shortfall. Plus he outlines the role of ...
Mar 29, 2022•14 min•Ep. 120
With many farms in the middle of lambing, this week’s OviCast focuses on artificial reared lambs with Michael Gottstein Head of Sheep in Teagasc. Michael starts off by highlighting the need to have a system in place to deal with orphan or pet lambs on farms. He outlines the various systems available and the importance of getting them set up on the feeder system early. As this can be a costly system mainly due to the milk replacer input, we discuss the importance of grouping up lambs in weekly ba...
Mar 22, 2022•13 min•Ep. 119
Vet Tommy Heffernan, aka Tommy the Vet, joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to discuss joint ill infection in lambs. Tommy starts by explaining the condition in a bit more detail and then discusses the bacteria that can cause the condition and their potential sources. Tommy describes the presentation of the condition, routes of transfer and how that infection affects the joint. He also highlights how doubling down on the basics of hygiene and colostrum management have a big impact on reduc...
Mar 15, 2022•17 min•Ep. 118
Vet Cara Sheridan, ruminant technical advisor with MSD Animal Health, joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to discuss various aspects of dealing with orf on farms. Cara starts by explaining a bit more about the condition, where it typically occurs and some of the predisposing factors. She discusses the vaccination process detailing the timing of administration and interval until immunity is reached. Cara then takes us through the actual vaccination procedure highlighting some practical tips...
Mar 08, 2022•17 min•Ep. 117
As we head into peak lambing season we also start to encounter flock health issues on farms and on this week’s OviCast is Dr Shane Mc McGettrick of the Department of Agriculture Regional Veterinary Lab (RVL) in Sligo to discuss this issue in more detail. Shane starts by encouraging farmers to submit samples where they encounter problems with abortions or increased mortality this spring and to identify the cause and start to address the issue. Shane describes the common issues they see in the lab...
Mar 01, 2022•22 min•Ep. 116
Sheep Specialist, Damian Costello, joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast with a preview of the Teagasc Hill Sheep Conference that is taking place on Thursday, 24th February in the Clayton hotel in Sligo at 7pm. This marks the return of the conference to an in-person event but as Damian explains, there is also an option to join online via Zoom with registration - details are on the Teagasc webpage. Damian profiles the speakers and the topics that will be covered on the night and how they have...
Feb 22, 2022•5 min•Ep. 115
This week’s OviCast is the second part of the discussion on colostrum with Professor Tommy Boland and he discusses how colostrum impacts the lamb. Tommy starts by explaining the various roles colostrum has once it is consumed by the newborn lamb and how each of these affects lamb survival and performance. He highlights the importance of ensuring the lamb consumes sufficient quantities of colostrum quickly after birth and how this affects the transfer of immunity from the ewe to the lamb. Tommy d...
Feb 15, 2022•18 min•Ep. 114
Ensuring lambs receive adequate colostrum is vital to get them off to the best possible start and making sure ewes have adequate supplies is the starting point for this. In a 2-part special, Professor Tommy Boland joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to discuss this important topic in more detail. Firstly, Tommy focuses on the factors that influence colostrum production in the ewe and he explains the various functions of colostrum. Tommy discusses how production starts and the quantity a ew...
Feb 08, 2022•22 min•Ep. 113
Following on from last week’s OviCast, Michael Gottstein joins Ciarán Lynch on the latest episode to discuss planning a fertiliser budget for your farm this year. Michael starts by discussing the challenge that increased fertiliser prices pose on farms and why it’s important to take action now. He explains why it’s important to look at your overall fertiliser spend on farm now and take into account what merchant credit and alternative credit is available to avoid the situation of unforeseen debt...
Feb 01, 2022•26 min•Ep. 112
Grassland researcher, Dr Philip Creighton, joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast podcast to discuss various aspects of grassland management this spring. Philip starts by discussing current grass availability on farm with the higher than average winter growth. He moves on to the topic of fertiliser purchases this spring and Philip emphasises the need to complete a budget for the fertiliser spend on the farm this year. Philip explains the impact that timing, conditions and grass covers have on...
Jan 25, 2022•22 min•Ep. 111
With the Teagasc National Sheep Conference just around the corner, this week’s OviCast was joined by Dr. Fiona McGovern to give us a preview of what’s in store this year. Fiona starts by discussing the format and topics covered in this year’s conference which takes place online over two nights on Tuesday and Thursday the 25th and 27th of January at 8pm. Fiona and Ciarán discuss the line-up of speakers with Fiona giving the highlights of the papers on both nights. Finally, they finish up with Fio...
Jan 18, 2022•8 min•Ep. 110
Teagasc Advisor, Christy Watson, joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to discuss the importance of tacking soil fertility. Christy starts by explaining why now is the ideal time to take soil samples on farms to determine the fertility status and identify areas that need attention. Christy takes us through the soil sampling process from how many samples per hectare to the correct collection method and he discusses the importance of acting on the result with Christy highlighting potential sav...
Jan 11, 2022•15 min•Ep. 109
Shane Moore, a Teagasc BETTER Farm Sheep Programme participant who is farming outside Athleague in Co Roscommon, joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast. Shane starts by giving a quick re-cap on how mating went this year before discussing closing up his grazing ground this winter and housing the flock earlier than expected in December. Shane describes the new sheep house that he put up last year and how it left management of his flock a lot easier. He explains this year’s scan results and how ...
Jan 04, 2022•15 min•Ep. 108
Tomás O’Toole, a Teagasc BETTER Farm Sheep Programme participant, who is farming in Moyard outside of Clifden Co Galway, and sheep specialist Damian Costello, join Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast podcast. Tomás runs a split hill and lowland flock and a suckler to weaning system which he explains in more detail. He discusses the changes in his flock over the past number of years and his decision to run two separate sheep enterprises, his breeding decisions and the progress and challenges he h...
Dec 28, 2021•19 min•Ep. 107
Drs. Tim Keady and Bríd McClearn join Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to explain the EuroSheep project which is a thematic network involving eight partner countries. Tim gives some background to the project and its aims while Bríd explains how the project is being implemented, firstly by identifying the needs from each of the countries. Bríd also explains how they drew on the resources within each country to come up with solutions to these needs. Tim discusses how practical ‘tips and tricks’...
Dec 21, 2021•11 min•Ep. 106
Teagasc BETTER Farm Sheep Programme participant, Eddie Gavin, his Teagasc advisor Eoin Wolfe and Programme manager Dr Frank Campion join Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to discuss wintering on forage crops. Eddie, who is farming near Bagenalstown in Co Carlow, gives a bit of background to his farming system and flock. Managing a split flock, Eddie discusses the performance of the early lambing ewes and how mating has gone for the mid-season ewes. He moves on to discuss his use of forage crop...
Dec 14, 2021•16 min•Ep. 105
Dr Tim Keady joins Ciarán Lynch on this week’s OviCast to discuss various aspects of winter grazing and how it impacts ewe performance. Tim starts by discussing the potential mutual benefits of moving sheep to winter grazing both for the flock owner and host farmer and he also discusses the role of extended grazing before moving on to discuss the frequency of grass allocation with Tim offering his tips on managing grazing at this stage of the year. Tim explains the feed values of grass during th...
Dec 06, 2021•18 min•Ep. 104
Sheep Specialist, Damian Costello, is on this week’s OviCast to discuss the Sheep Welfare scheme. Damian starts by giving some background to the scheme before discussing the changes to the reference number for the coming year and what this well mean for participants. He also reminds us of the various tasks in the current scheme and the proposed changes for the planned next phase as well as the suggested payment rate. Damian reminds participants of the importance of maintaining records and necess...
Nov 29, 2021•10 min•Ep. 103
