I would like to start today by congratulating Shelly and Joe, my husband Brian’s daughter, on the birth of Isla - a gorgeous little granddaughter!

We have our grandson Alex for a day each week and he is not at all scared of the animals. On Tuesday, he went up to a cow and he tried to touch it. The cow’s head was bigger than Alex, but it didn’t faze him.

I am writing this at 10.45pm while Brian has gone to help a cow that calved this afternoon. The calf has not yet sucked, so we must help it by giving the calf colostrum - a highly nutritious milk essential in the first 12 hours after being born.

We put a tube down the calf’s throat and then we pour about two litres of the colostrum down the tube. By morning it should be strong enough to feed itself.

Some of the tups have been ‘let go’ with the half-bred ewes.

If we let the boys go to the ewes too soon they harass them - you know what lads can be like...