With the recent arrival of bad weather, we had to try to dodge the wettest days to get the last of our aftergrass grazed on our back meadows.

These fields have no running water and I know it’s very old-fashioned, but there was something very pleasant about drawing water out of the river with a bucket, while a semicircle of cows surrounded the drinker and watched with interest.

The cows, I’m afraid, had a love-hate relationship with this setup, so, most mornings, it was found out in the field as a plaything.

With winter drawing in faster than any of us like, it was time to start choosing which calves would stay with us until winter and which would be sold in the coming weeks as we passed our herd test with flying colours.

We also brought back some of the stock from our outfarm, leaving just two cows there and hopefully we’ll be able to trailer them home before November, as otherwise it gets too wet and they have to be walked home.

Taking advantage of the wetter days at the beginning of the month, we took the cows and calves in for a couple of days to weigh everything for the BEEP-S and give the calves a worm dose.

For the last few years, we’ve used a pour-on for worming, as we were able to do the calves in the field, meaning less stress on man and beast!

Little did I know he owned six of what must have been Leitrim’s most athletic heifers

This year, I have decided to drench the calves in case we’re building up a resistance to Ivermectin and perhaps next year I’ll inject them.

A lot of us can rely too much on one tried and tested product we’re happy with, but, if, like us, you’ve used it for almost 10 years, it’s time to switch around and ensure you’re getting the best out of dosing products.

After just two weeks back in the Teagasc offices doing the Green Cert, we resorted to having two groups to adhere to our distancing guidelines.

While we’re still learning at the same rate, I miss the social aspect of those days as one big group, as it’s been one of the few times I get away from the farm in recent times.

Face to face

Living in the middle of nowhere is great, but sometimes you just want to talk and laugh face to face with people you’ve not seen for months. And when you can’t get away from the house, you find yourself falling into the same routine each week.

So when an older neighbour knocked on my door last week asking if I was busy, I jumped at the chance to do something different.

Little did I know he owned six of what must have been Leitrim’s most athletic heifers.

Roughly two hours later, I’d ran about five miles up and down the same hill and I was seriously contemplating if I was crazy or not, as I was the only person trying to muster six heifers out of a small gate.

I’m sure the folks in the house next to the hill were having a grand time watching me, as well as all it was missing was the ‘Benny Hill’ theme tune.

I ran left, they ran right, I ran right and they scattered. The heifers would then regroup and mockingly saunter slowly in the direction I wanted, before taking off like scalded cats.

Finally, one of them saw sense and the gate and galloped straight through, bringing the rest of her harem along with her. I’m not sure I’ll be as quick to help out next time I’m asked, at least not without backup help.