Dairy farmers will be familiar with the concept of ensuring the comfort of their cows and thankfully the vast majority of farmers rank this as an important element of maintaining a herd. While making sure animals are well cared for should be a priority regardless of any additional incentive, there is plenty of evidence out there to support a direct correlation between a happy herd and increased profits so there really isn’t any reason to not prioritise it!
In this short informational piece, we’ll look at the potential benefits of a good bedding option, but we’ll also look at other ways you could improve herd happiness, even some of the more unconventional ones!
It’ll be no surprise that we have to start by shouting out the importance of animal bedding - improving the quality of the bedding currently on the market is core to our mission statement after all, and it can tick a few boxes when it comes to maintaining cow comfort without too much hassle. Here’s a rundown of the key ways bedding can improve animal welfare:
In short, a good bedding product and routine can increase cow yields from increased lying times and reduced risk of mastitis, this in turn can increase overall profits and reduce vet bills, ensuring a healthier cash flow and better turnover for your dairy business.
Housing is an obvious essential for a herd of any size, but ensuring the space and environment is suitable for your cattle is vitally important to maintaining cow welfare and comfort.
Cubicles and any other lying spaces you might use should be a suitable size to improve hygiene and avoid lameness, sheds should be set up to limit draughts and lighting should be appropriate to mimic natural behaviours.
It’s also important to regularly scrape cubicles and shed slats to keep the area as clean as possible and limit the spread of bacteria.
Lameness is one of the most common health issues you’ll find within your dairy herd. A lame cow can produce 2-4 litres less milk in a day with severe cases reducing the yields further. If lameness persists it can also impact calving intervals and the long-term productivity of a cow.
When it comes to preventing hoof issues, comfortable housing and surfaces along with routine hoof care are vital.
A single case of lameness could cost anywhere from €200-€400 minimum with lost milk, treatment fertility issues etc. and could lead to premature culling, so it’s not something to overlook.
There are a few other ways to further improve cow comfort from the well-known things like brushes and scratchers, to the slightly more uncommon like calming music being played in the shed, to the things I hadn’t even heard of myself until doing the research for this blog, like aromatherapy!
Other potential improvements include:
It’s been reported that these luxuries could even increase yields by 5-10% so maybe it’s worth firing a few yankee candles into the parlour, might be more pleasant for you too!
Whether it’s animal bedding, biomass wood pellets or cat litter, the Doherty Group product range has a variety of options to suit your business. All of our timber-based products are sourced from sustainably managed forests, helping us strive for a more sustainable future.
