Blackbourn Boer Goats – Customer Feature for #Farm24

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What is #FARM24 all about?

24 Hours in Farming is the agricultural industry’s biggest online event with an audience reach of more than 112 million. The annual event aims to showcase the brilliant work done by British land and livestock farmers all day, every day to produce the food we eat and drink.

Here at Dalton Tags we are committed to promoting and showcasing the hard work farmers put into feeding the nation with healthy and affordable produce 365 days of the year, as well as highlighting our appreciation to all within the agriculture sector.

To kickstart our support for #FARM24, we interviewed our lovely cattle tag brand ambassador Izzi Rainey to help gain an insight into her everyday life as a beef farmer.

Katherine Cross – Customer Feature

@blackbournboergoats

Can you give us a background to your farm?

Blackbourn Boer Goats was established in October 2021 by myself, Katherine Cross, as part of a small diversification to our family arable farm in Suffolk. The family have farmed here for 5 generations and the farm is 850 acres, and is split between two farms.

What breed of goats does the farm use and why?

We use Boer goats as they are one of the best breeds of goat meat. They have a kind and docile nature which makes them easy to handle, most of the time! They are used for meat production and breeding. Goat meat is becoming more and more popular due to it being low in calories and cholesterol. This means more and more people are getting into goat farming and it is definitely growing in popularity.

Why do you use Dalton Flexo Sheep Tags?

I use the Dalton Flexo Sheep tags because they are easy to apply and they sit nicely on the ears, as Boer goats tend to have big floppy ears and you can see that the goats don’t feel restricted or uncomfortable with them in. I am fairly new to tagging livestock as we are mainly arable and Dalton Tags have been extremely helpful when I’ve called the customer service team with any questions and queries that I may have, definitely a first class service!

Any interesting facts or information you would like to add?

I named my prefix Blackbourn because our farm was in the Blackbourn hundred when the counties were split into divisions a few hundred years ago. It is also the name of the river which runs through our farm, and when the farm used to have Suffolk Punches their prefix was also Blackbourn!

As well as goat farming, my main job is working on the arable side of the farm with my Dad. We do nearly all of it between the two of us with a bit of part time help when needed. It is a real family effort and I really enjoy this aspect of farming.

 

How to get involved?

YOU can take part on any social media platform, although Twitter or Facebook are the most popular channels on the day.
Simply tag your post #Farm24 and include @FarmersGuardian , @Morrisons and @daltontags.

Izzi Rainey Customer Feature for #Farm24

/in /by

What is #FARM24 all about?

24 Hours in Farming is the agricultural industry’s biggest online event with an audience reach of more than 112 million. The annual event aims to showcase the brilliant work done by British land and livestock farmers all day, every day to produce the food we eat and drink.

Here at Dalton Tags we are committed to promoting and showcasing the hard work farmers put into feeding the nation with healthy and affordable produce 365 days of the year, as well as highlighting our appreciation to all within the agriculture sector.

To kickstart our support for #FARM24, we interviewed our lovely cattle tag brand ambassador Izzi Rainey to help gain an insight into her everyday life as a beef farmer.

Izzi Rainey – Customer Feature

@batesmoorfarm

1) When was the farm established and how many generations?

My Dad is a first generation farmer and started with Highland Cattle in 1989. We moved to Bates Moor Farm in 1994 when I was 2 years old. 

2) What breed of cattle does the farm use and why?

I have Highland cattle and Lincoln Red cattle. My Dad originally chose Highland cattle in 1989 as he was still working full time and thought they would be a good breed to start with. They are a good doing native breed, that can stay out all year round, forage on rougher ground, as well as being an easy calving breed with great maternal instinct. In 2017 I introduced Lincoln Reds as they are also a native, hardy, good doing breed with similar characteristics as the Highlands. However they are larger, faster growing with more commercial appeal.

3) What is the growth in cow numbers over the years?

In 2014 my Dad wanted to step back from farming and sold most of the cattle. At the time he gifted me 3 cows plus followers (so about 12), and I now run about 70 head of cattle between the two herds.

4) Are the cows calved year round or blocked or seasonal?

I only calve in the Spring into early Summer.

5) What is the diet of the cattle?

I am still experimenting at the moment, with my vision to be grass fed. At the moment it is just my steers which are 100% grass fed, eating out on the meadows in the summer with hay and silage in the winter. This year I have secured more grass which means I can carry this throughout my calves as well.

6) Does your farm breed all its own replacement heifers?

In the last few years it has been a mixture to build up the numbers, but on the whole I am breeding my own replacements.

7) Why do you use Dalton cattle tags and what is your experience of them thus far?

I was approached by Dalton Tags in 2021, at which time I started using their DNA tissue tags for the Highland calves. Then in 2022 I started using the Dalton BVD tags to get quick results for my calves. Unfortunately early this year I had an encounter with a positive BVD case on the farm after 20 years of BVD free accreditation. Never having had this issue on the farm before, this is very much a steep learning curve for me. Going forward, all cows and heifers on the farm will be vaccinated before turning out and any calves will be BVD tissued tagged and tested. 

So far I have found the Dalton BVD tissue tags to be very efficient and will be 100% using them every year from now on. The BVD tags comes in one strip per animal, with only one applicator needed for the BVD tag and visual tag. Additionally, the turnaround time for the BVD lab results have been really quick saving me both time and hassle.

I cannot thank the Dalton customer service team enough. Whenever I have any queries surrounding the BVD cattle tags or animal identification tags in general they are super helpful and give specialist advice. The tags are also posted out within a short space of time which I also appreciate.

8) Any interesting facts or information you would like to add?

I don’t farm full time, I work in a local shop and run a design business with my best friend! This year I started workshops with the cattle on the farm to run alongside my other diversification of beef boxes.

 

Izzi Rainey will be doing a takeover on our Instagram page on Thursday 4th August to discuss all things farming! Be sure to tune in where you will get the chance to ask Izzi questions as well as seeing image and video footage of Izzi’s life on the farm!