October 2001

More than one cause of mismatched twin lambs
When one of a set of twins is twice the size of his mate you’ve got problems - especially when the ewe decides she only likes the big lamb.

Little Lepto risk in south
Leptospirosis is a serious disease and a real threat to both animals and humans. But, due to heightened media attention, farmers could be forgiven for thinking it is only a matter of time before their farm becomes infected with the disease.

Rrrrrrrrrotavirus...

Footrot no longer just a merino problem
Presently, footrot is thought to cost the merino industry in excess of $3m but is estimated to cost the sheep industry as a whole (in this country) between $80m and $100m.

Getting rid of that ticking
A bad rural internet connection is like a deadly disease - you hope you don’t get it and that if you do that there’ll be a cure for it.

Rural lines
It’s ironic that while so many farmers are having troubles with basic phone and internet connections Telecom is busy promoting more technologically advanced services.

Making the most of your computer mistakes
We’ve all done something we knew we shouldn’t have and kicked ourselves afterwards - especially where a computer is concerned.

US loss is NZ sheepfarmers' gain
The American Sheep Industry Association (ASI) is trying to rally the troops to fight a giant American grocery store chain over their decision to stock only New Zealand lamb.

Worm eating fungus could soon benefit NZ farmers
Early in July Farmnews reported that some Australian and British researchers had made a breakthrough in the war against worm parasites in sheep.

Magpie elimination
Quiet Spring - not much to do? Try a bit of Magpie trapping! One trap in just one day bagged 22 magpies at Mokotua recently.

Dairy land sales starting to even out
Charlton Farm Consultant Peter Hook believes the dairying boom in Southland may have reached a plateau for conversion properties for sustainability and financial reasons.

Balers better than sheep trucks in UK!
Another month and still a trickle of FMD cases in the north of England. The cordon around this area has been pulled tight and the roads are patrolled by police and trading standards officers who will pull over and stop not merely farmers, but anyone whose car looks dirty.

When the neighbours' gorse starts to jump the fence...
If you're in Southland and your neighbours gorse and broom is starting to cause you problems then it's time you called Environment Southland.

Increased production brings increase in health problems
With higher production comes higher costs - not just in increased fertiliser but also in animal health.

A couple of easy dry matter and moisture tests
So you don’t have a pasture probe or a rising plate meter but you want to know how many kgs of dry matter per hectare you have? Or you want to know what the moisture content of your grass is?

A couple of accounting tips
If you are a self-employed farmer and not covered by ACC CoverPlus Extra you might want to consider it.

Worm eating fungus draws inquiry
The article “Worm eating fungus could soon benefit NZ farmers” in the last issue of Farmnews raised the question by one subscriber as to “why a commercial company like Ancare was spending money on researching the issue when MeatNZ or WoolPro should be undertaking the research work.”

An update on treating cobalt deficiency

Sheepish
There is a limit to what sheep farmers should be allowed to suffer. Whatever it is ... they have just been pushed over that limit by actions of almost blinding stupidity ...

SMARTshot - the pros and cons
This time last year we printed an article illustrating the pros and cons of using SMARTshot. At that stage the product was promoted as lasting ...

Click here for our Archive