Basic HTML Version
WORKING
TOGETHER
FOR A HEALTHIER FUTURE...
11
LIVESTOCK MATTERS
F A R M S K I L L S
Sophie Throup
FarmSkills Training Co-ordinator
Dairy farmer Chris Simmons from Folly Farm in Gloucestershire, has worked
with his vet, Will Tulley from Tyndale Vets to put together a series of hands-on
workshops for the staff on his farm. Each course has tackled a specific topic
and is delivered on-farm using interactive and practical methods to train a
small and multi-national team of dairy staff – sometimes with the additional
help of a Polish interpreter.
Farm
Skills
Training
The
FarmSkills
series of training workshops
continue to flourish across the UK, adding
business benefits and improving practical
skills for farmers. Courses run for the
700 farmers who have attended a course
to date include advanced dairy fertility
management, sheep parasite control,
suckler cow nutrition, interpreting pig
records, veterinary health for poultry
keepers and practical foot trimming - for
cows and sheep. In many areas, the
courses are supported with grant funds
from Lantra LandSkills who channel DEFRA
and EU money to the training workshops
to help farmers benefit from veterinary led
courses at lower prices.
Chris wanted to invest in his staff with some
training, but wanted it specific to Folly Farm
where the herd is milked three times a day to
achieve yields of 11,500 litres.
Chris Simmons said: ‘I wanted a course which
taught my staff the way things are done here.
We have very strict milking protocols, milking
three times a day and achieving yields of
11,500 litres, so procedures must be to
a certain standard and be consistent. This
training ensured we were all working off the
same hymn sheet, and was also beneficial
in improving staff morale as everyone had
a better understanding of their role.’
‘After just the one session on milking routines,
everybody is now following exactly the same
routine, and milking exactly how I want them
to. It’s nothing supersonic; this training is
about keeping it simple and teaching people
how to do the basics well.’
Vet Will Tulley added: ‘As FarmSkills courses
are designed specifically for training small
groups of people, and take place on-farm,
they can be practical and highly interactive.
For all the courses, we assess the knowledge
levels of those attending the course beforehand
to make sure it is at a level that everyone
learns something – sometimes we may need
to run two courses to achieve this.’
Following the training on cow behaviour,
some changes have already been made on
the farm. Chris explains: ‘We can now get
cows in more quietly and the routines go more
smoothly and more quickly. Cows undergo the
same milking preparations and are calmer so
have a faster milk let down, which has an
overall effect of increased production.’
Limousin beef breeder, Fred Scott, from West
Farm, Alnwick attended a recent ‘Finding the
Right Beef Bull’ FarmSkills course run by vet
John MacFarlane of Alnorthumbria Vet
Practice. The course looked at why EBVs are
important and how they can be used to
improve beef herd performance. The course
also used information learnt to teach farmers
why semen testing is necessary, how to
measure scrotum size as a guide to fertility
and what to look for when checking
locomotion, eyes and teeth.
Fred Scott said: ‘Since going on the
‘Finding the Right Beef Bull’ course, I have
saved myself some expensive mistakes - like
putting a sub fertile bull out to run with the
cows for the season for example. I now
know how to properly check scrotum size
and why you do it - and I have learned
that size varies between the breeds, which
I didn’t know before. I have my bull’s
semen regularly tested and it makes you
realise that it’s more than just how a bull
looks on the outside that counts.’
Courses have also benefited
farmers in the
beef sector
Will Tulley
Tyndale Farm Veterinary Practice
Chris Simmons
Folly Farm
If you think we could work with you to help
tailor make a course for your farm staff - or you
would like to find out about the workshops we
are running across the country, please log on
to
www.farm-skills.co.uk
, call either Sophie
or Mina in the FarmSkills Office on 07748
805497 or e-mail farmskills@xlvets.co.uk