Disease? Not On My Farm! Ambassador - William Westacott
Disease? Not On My Farm! Ambassador
William Westacott
- Tenant dairy farmer on the Chevening Estate in Kent
- Herd of 190 Holsteins
- Tight Autumn block calving system
- Extensive grazing to suit the HLS scheme
- Bull calves sold at 10 days and heifers at 12 to 14 weeks
- Average yield of 9,700 litres per cow, supplying milk to Freshways
For William, buying in 40-50 in-calf heifers from Germany every spring remains a profitable approach and allows him to maintain a strong disease-free herd health status.
Germany is bTB and BVD free, with IBR also close to eradication in the Osnabrück region where William works closely with his selected breeders.
He has developed a robust quarantine and herd health programme in partnership with Westpoint Vets to ensure the herd remains disease-free once new heifers are integrated. This includes vaccination against leptospirosis and BVD.
