Dairy calvings down in October

Published 4 December 18

In October, dairy calf registrations were down 3% on the year, despite a 0.2% year-on-year rise in the milking herd around the time of conception.

The previous two years saw an increase in calvings from August to October as a result of herds moving from all-year-round calving to autumn calving. The 2018 figures have reversed this trend, falling short of the 5 year average by 1% in September and 2% in October. Whilst the cause of this drop in calf registrations is unknown, it is likely that the adverse weather this year may have had an impact on reproductive performance. Moving into 2019, there is the possibility that there will be further repercussions of this year’s challenges in terms of fertility and consequently calvings.