Cattle

The bacterial disease, brucellosis, costs the local livestock industry millions of rands every year. In the first of a new animal health series, Dr JH du Preez and Dr Faffa Malan, discuss this impact.

The winter months lie ahead and additional nutritional supplementation should be given to animals in time.

Choosing the correct stocking rate is the most important grazing management decision in sustainable livestock and wildlife production, says Dr Mias van der Westhuizen of the Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development at Glen.

Jannie Breytenbach’s Goedvoor Nguni Stud near Marble Hall is best known for setting a South African record price for an Nguni cow and calf sold for R86 000 in 2007. Mike Burgess visited Jannie on his 403ha Goedvoor farm recently to find out why his Ngunis remain so sought-after.

Heifers, first-calvers, maiden ewes and first-lambers need to be managed properly to reduce risk in terms of productivity versus production costs. Dr Francois van de Vyver, livestock nutritionist with Voermol Feeds, offers advice on this situation.

KZN can become SA’s leading dairy supplier, but industry challenges must first be addressed.

Inadequate and slow service delivery, tight regulations, increased imports and high feed costs are contributing to an increasingly sluggish poultry industry in KwaZulu-Natal. Despite this, opportunities do exist.

February, March and April are the peak months for insect- and tick-transmitted diseases. The unavailability of the blue tongue vaccine resulted in serious losses to smallstock farmers and everything should be done so that this never happens again.

For Moorreesburg Merino stud breeder Johann Kotze, careful selection based on performance testing, BLUP values and strict visual selection of wool and conformation traits are all essential for a successful breeding programme.

Germinated grain produced in a closed system is a highly nutritious fodder, but factors such as the high cost of production and the high moisture content may make it uneconomical, says Prof Tertius Brand.

A burgeoning warthog population indirectly benefited smallstock predators on James Faber’s farm in the Northern Cape. The problem was so severe that he converted his farming operation from sheep and goats to a Brangus and Nguni stud. Annelie Coleman investigates the background and outcome.

OAD milking is becoming increasingly popular in New Zealand, but can it work in SA?