Rainfall over the past week amounted to 25 mm , with 18.5 mm of that falling one day mid-week. All week it has been breezy , but there has been a mixture of sunshine and clouds , with a few short sharp showers falling as the week ended. The rain has arrived in time to help the late-planted spring crops to grow and newly planted maize to germinate. But warm spring showers would be appreciated as on rainy days the temperature really drops .

Our agronomist has recently had a good look at all our cereal crops and found that there are a few bare patches, which have appeared in a field of spring barley,caused by slugs.

It is usually winter cereals that are more likely to succumb to slug damage, as in the spring there are usually fewer slugs and they are less active. Also spring cereals tend to grow more quickly through the early growth stages when the young plants are particularly palatable for these slimy predators. The problem is that we have recently had wet winters , which will have boosted slug numbers.

The rainy day during the week also led to a few large flat areas of grass in our new rye grass ley. When I mentioned this to Ian he said that the grass was just resting! Having taken a look recently, the patches don't look quite so flat. It won't be long now before we start making grass silage so during the week Ian and Kevin have started putting the silage sides on the trailers. Ian, with Jenny's help, has also been erecting some more new fencing. Another paddock will need grazing and the fence around it was not secure enough to prevent our young Angus cattle from escaping.

Kevin and his family have recently been sorting out fields with sheep fencing for all the different groups of sheep.The older rams, used for breeding last year have been checked and turned out onto grass . The yearling ram lambs, born spring 2019, to be used for breeding this year, have also been checked and turned out. As have all the ewe lambs born spring 2019 that will either be kept as replacements for the main flock or sold if they are surplus.

Vaccinating of ewes and lambs has been on going work over the last few weeks. The lambs, born this spring, have been receiving their initial vaccination against a number of clostridial diseases. After birth the lambs all drink colostrum, which is the first milk produced by the ewes. The colostrum contains antibodies that can be absorbed by newly born lambs. However this immunity is only short-lived so the lambs are given an initial vaccination at three weeks of age, followed by a booster at six weeks.

The ewes have all been given an initial vaccination to protect them from footrot. Footrot is a highly infectious disease caused by a bacterium and is picked up and spread via the ground or bedding.

Once infected a sheep can spread the disease for up to 10 days, so it is essential for shepherds to use both preventative and therapeutic approaches to control this painful condition. So good management , biosecurity and vaccination all play a part in control. Different strains of the bacterium can also cause footrot in cattle, goats and horses.

When one of the flocks were gathered for vaccinating, and to treat any that were lame, I went to watch. All the collies were used as well as Kevin and his family, his father Francis, also Ian and Jenny. First of all a pen was made out of hurdles before the race and holding equipment were attached, with the ability to shed the sheep into different groups if necessary.

The handling equipment was set up in minutes. Then the sheep were gathered using the collies. Young collies Winston, Star and Fern have made good progress with their training, which is essential so that when working they are under control . It was a great to watch and soon the ewes and lambs were safely held in the temporarily constructed pen , waiting for all the procedures to be carried out.