Learning new animal husbandry skills to bring back on the farm

MY name is Andrew Millar, I am from a beef and sheep farm just outside Antrim.

I am currently in the final year of the Level 2 Work Based Diploma/Apprenticeship in Agriculture at CAFRE. This is a two year course that allows me to work at home on the farm with my father while gaining a Level 2 qualification in agriculture at the same time.

I attend classes at Greenmount campus one day per week, which is very handy for me as it is just up the road, that’s one of the bonuses of the Level 2 Work Based/Apprenticeship.

CAFRE runs the courses in various locations which reduces the need for students to travel long distances. Current locations are Antrim, Loughry, Enniskillen, Markethill, Banbridge and Mag-hera.

We would typically spend half of our campus day in class learning the theory around various sub-jects such as animal health, grass management, housing and feeding livestock, animal welfare, production systems to name a few.

The other half of the day would then be spent outside on skills where we get to learn by doing and have the opportunity to put the theory in to practice.

We practice skills such as dosing, vaccinating, fencing, dehorning, lambing, milking, drying off cows and soil sampling.

I have found the course useful for learning new animal husbandry skills and it has also given me a great opportunity to see around a variety of different farms and systems, which gives me ideas to bring home. I have made good friends through the course who share similar interests.

I look forward to progressing onto the Level 3 Work Based Dip-loma/Apprenticeship next year.