Elwyn Jones farms at Dolderwen Farm, seven miles from Builth Wells in Mid Wales. It’s a beef and sheep operation — 40 suckler cows, Limousin and Blue crosses put back to Limousin and Belgian Blue bulls, alongside 600 ewes including Welsh Mules, Texel crosses, and a flock of Speckle Face ewes for replacements.
The aim with the cattle is straightforward: sell top-quality suckler calves at the April and May sales at 12 months of age, as strong and as big as possible.
“We want to take out all the negatives — so the feed intake is as good as we can make it and the daily liveweight gain the highest we can achieve.”
MuscleVite From Dehorning to Sale
Elwyn uses MuscleVite on the calves from dehorning right through to when they sell at 12 months old. Every time the calves are handled, they get a dose — keeping them thriving and driving forward through every stage.
“We don’t want them to level off. We want them as strong and as big as we can to sell them at 12 months of age.”
For Elwyn, the maths is simple. “The benefits of MuscleVite and the extra daily liveweight gain outweigh the cost and extra time of administering the product.”
Supreme Finisher for the Show Calf Sale
There’s a show calf sale in early February, and Elwyn uses Supreme Finisher for eight weeks beforehand. Around Christmas, he sorts out a couple of the best calves with the potential to go to that sale, and Supreme Finisher goes in to get maximum shine and condition.
“They’ve got to be in A1 shape for that sale.”
It’s the difference between a calf that’s doing well and one that catches a buyer’s eye the moment it walks in.
Loyal to What Works
Elwyn has been using Natural Stockcare products across his herd and has seen enough to know they deliver.
“We wouldn’t have started using the product if we didn’t think there was an improvement to be made, and we’ve been happy with the calves ever since.”
“As a farmer, if it works for you, you get pretty loyal to the product. Natural Stockcare — I’d recommend it to anybody because we’re so happy with it.”
To find out more about MuscleVite and Supreme Finisher for your own herd, get in touch with the Natural Stockcare team or visit the full Natural Stockcare product range.
