Kaiangaroa Pastoral Shaping Up Well

Equity Manager Guy Melville is moving mountains at Kaiangaroa Pastoral, east of Taihape. He and his equity partners are investing in infrastructure which will allow the farm, purchased in 2010, to run more profitably. 

In 2010, as well as sheep and deer, the farm wintered 200 cows, 570 trading cattle, and 185 dairy heifers, with a permanent staff of three. This country can produce top stock. The dairy heifers, contract grazed from weaning for eighteen months are testament to this. AI and natural mating has produced a 98% conception rate for the 2010 heifers, and they look great. 

Laneways have been developed through the farm to improve access. And a set of Te Pari cattle yards have been erected to replace the existing wooden yards. Guy says his previous experience with Te Pari cattle handling equipment, and wanting steel over concrete made Te Pari the obvious choice.  So despite the August weather, a set of 200-head yards, complete with iDraft crush, were completed in four days. Weighing, vaccinating, drenching, preg testing, and drafting of the trading cattle, cows and calves, and dairy grazers is now a breeze. 

Guy points out the features which make these yards a  pleasure to work in........

• The layout of the curved pens and race make moving stock easy on cattle and staff.
• Cattle can be easily fed from the circular force pen, using the revolving gate, into the race. There's no need to get in the pen with them.
• The vet race has a wide catwalk ensuring safety of staff.
• The concrete surface means no mud!
• And the iDraft crush fitted with an eRail reader, with all it's amazing features and it's versatility.

Weighing is the most common reason for yarding cattle at Kaiangaroa. With the crush in auto mode, cattle can be weighed at well over 100 per hour by one person. And it's so easy!......  The operator feeds the cattle from pen to pen and into the vet race, while controlling the shute gate with a hand-held remote, splitting the line of cattle into singles ready to enter the crush. The crush then takes over the id / weighing / drafting operation. It operates the entry gate, identifies and weighs the animal, then releases or drafts it through the front or side gates. Drafting may be on weight ranges or other criteria such as mobs. At any stage the operator can switch to “manual mode”; and activate the squeeze, drafting, or headbail, using the remote.

Guy is very pleased not only with the end result, but also the Te Pari service before, during, and after construction. He appreciates the many benefits of efficient stock handling facilities. He knows that its a pleasure to work in yards which work well, where cattle health and growth can be monitored more regularly, where man and beast are less stressed and less likely to be injured, where there are significant labour efficiencies, and where stock performance reports can be readily produced for partners and clients.