Brian McDonnell

Brian McDonnell Profile Picture

Technical Dairy Specialist

Brian McDonnell is from Raheny, Co. Dublin. He has an honours degree in Sustainable Agriculture from Dundalk IT. He has worked on dairy and beef farms in both Ireland and the UK, including Teagasc Grange and a large-scale 650-cow dairy farm which also had a 1,200 animal youngstock-rearing farm in Scotland. He has a keen interest in agriculture and particularly the dairy sector and in his spare time is active in local rugby and golf.

Winter milk: Grouping cows for greater feed efficiency

Dairy

Winter milk: Grouping cows for greater feed efficiency

Having good feed efficiency within winter milk systems is vital for a margin to be achieved on milk produced during...
Footbathing to keep lameness under control within your herd

Dairy

Footbathing to keep lameness under control within your herd

To control, manage and treat infectious lameness on farms, footbathing of herds is required – especially during the housed period...
Dairy advice: Organising the final milk recording

N.Ireland

Dairy advice: Organising the final milk recording

Ahead of drying-off taking place on farms you should be booking or planning in your final milk recording for the...
Autumn-calving: Dealing with scour in calves

Dairy

Autumn-calving: Dealing with scour in calves

Calving is underway on autumn-calving or winter milk herds and as a consequence, there will be issues with calf health...
John Deere and DeLaval create joint Milk Sustainability Center

Agri-Business

John Deere and DeLaval create joint Milk Sustainability Center

John Deere and DeLaval have joined efforts to create the Milk Sustainability Center (MSC),a digital ecosystem to help dairy farmers....
Judge for 2023 Baileys cow competition named

Dairy

Judge for 2023 Baileys cow competition named

The Baileys cow competition returns to Virginia Show once again for 2023, with this year marking the event’s 80th anniversary....
Prices reach 17,000gns at Summer Sizzler sale

N.Ireland

Prices reach 17,000gns at Summer Sizzler sale

The Summer Sizzler sale took place on Saturday (July 1) with some elite genetics on offer and a top price...
Time to get calf sheds cleaned and disinfected

N.Ireland

Time to get calf sheds cleaned and disinfected

With calves now at grass the calf sheds on dairy farms should be empty, which makes it a good time...
Are faecal egg counts aiding the spread of parasites on farms?

N.Ireland

Are faecal egg counts aiding the spread of parasites on farms?

Could employing faecal egg counts on farms to determine the correct time for dosing actually be aiding the spread of...
Killuragh herd the star of Pure Friesian Open Day

Dairy

Killuragh herd the star of Pure Friesian Open Day

The Co. Limerick-based Killuragh herd was the star of this year’s Pure Friesian Open Day. Based near Cappamore, the Maher...
Dairy Focus: Pure Friesian ticking all the boxes in Limerick

Dairy

Dairy Focus: Pure Friesian ticking all the boxes in Limerick

For this week’s Dairy Focus, Agriland made the trip to Co. Limerick to the Maher family farm. Gearoid and Sarah Maher’s...
Summer Sizzler: Elite genetic sale set for Saturday

N.Ireland

Summer Sizzler: Elite genetic sale set for Saturday

The Summer Sizzler sale is set to take place tomorrow (Saturday, July 1) for the third time, with 53 lots...
Grass measuring: Vital as growth returns

N.Ireland

Grass measuring: Vital as growth returns

Grass measuring will play an important role on dairy farms over the coming weeks as growth rates once again increase....
Did the dry weather expose your water system?

N.Ireland

Did the dry weather expose your water system?

The recent warm and dry weather increased the pressure placed on water system/supplies on farms – particularly on dairy farms....
8,000gns achieved at Promise of Protein sale

N.Ireland

8,000gns achieved at Promise of Protein sale

The Promise of Protein sale took place in Thurles, Co. Tipperary on Wednesday (June 21), offering farmers a chance to...
Ballyclider herd to feature in upcoming IHFA open day

N.Ireland

Ballyclider herd to feature in upcoming IHFA open day

The Ballyclider herd will be the featured herd at this year’s Irish Holstein Friesian Association (IHFA) open day. Peter and...
Precision fertiliser and ammonia emission reduction tool

Dairy

Precision fertiliser and ammonia emission reduction tool

Lely has developed what it has called the ‘Sphere’ to increase the precision of slurry as a fertiliser, but it...
Watch: Lely Exos in action on Dutch dairy farm

Dairy

Watch: Lely Exos in action on Dutch dairy farm

The Lely Exos is the first autonomous machine that can harvest and feed grass to cows on farms up to...
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