PHR 429D

Dairy facilities and Cow Comfort

Jim Reynolds DVM, MPVM

Veterinary Medicine Teaching and

Research Center, Tulare, CA

Goals:

• Describe dairy facilities with systems

approach

• Integrate the needs of the cow and calf

(husbandry and welfare) with the

production and economic needs of the

dairy

• Describe basic facility types

• Describe some assessment tools

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• The Animal

Agriculture Industry

in the US is not

uniform

• Facilities and

management varies

between region and

within regions

Types of Dairy Facilities

• Pasture

• Drylot

• Freestall

• Tie-stall

• Combinations

Cow Comfort

The basic needs for the cows and calves:

• Feed and water

• Shelter

– Should be kept clean and dry

• Safety

• Milking

• Observation and treatment

Cow Comfort

There are 2 reasons for cow comfort:

• Animal Welfare

• Economics

• They both are served when the dairy

provides appropriate facilities and

management

Take-Home Message:

• The main management goal for a dairy is

to facilitate Dry Matter Intake

• All cow comfort strategies are based on

maintaining or increasing dry matter intake

• DMI associated with:

– Immune functions

– Milk production

– Reproduction

Challenges to Maintaining Dry

Matter Intake in Dairy Cattle

• Environmental

– Heat

– Rain/snow

• Muddy corrals

• Physiological

– Transition period

– Calving

– Social interactions/grouping/moving

– Disease

Cows and manure are not supposed to be together

Facilities and Cow Comfort

• Dairy facilities should be designed to keep

the cows and calves comfortable in order

to maintain DMI and thus maximize

economic production

• Dairies are groups of systems that interact

Some of the Facility and

Management Systems on Dairies

• Housing – cows and replacements

• Feeding

• Milking

• Manure

• Special needs

– Maternity

– Fresh cows

– Hospital

Calving Milking Dry lot

Heifer calves Growing replacements

Feeding system

Manure system

Crop production

Storage Mixing Delivery

Storage Distribution

Dairies are groups of systems

Daily time Budget for Dairy Cows

• Milking 2-4 hours (3)

• Eating/drinking 2-4 hours (3)

• Socializing/standing 2-8 hours (3)

• Lying 12-14 hours (14)

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Cow Comfort and Milk Production

• Standing cow circulates 60 gallons of

blood/hour through her udder

• Lying cow circulates 90 gallons of

blood/hour through her udder

Issues for Cow Comfort on

California Dairies

• Heat Stress

• Sanitation/manure

• Freestall design and maintenance

• Walking surfaces

• Walking distances/parlor milking times

Bovine Thermal Neutral Zone

• Thermal neutral zone: the environmental

temperature range that needs neither

extra heat generation nor heat loss

• Adult cow:

– somewhere between 10° and 68°F

• Calf:

– 50 to 85°F in still air

Heat stress

• Combination of temperature and humidity

that negatively impact cow health and

performance

• Temperature Humidity Index > 72

– THI = dbt – (0.55 x RH) (dbt -58)

– dbt = dry bulb temperature (F)

– RH = relative humidity (%)

THI and Stress as Function of

Temperature and Humidity

20

40

60

80

100

75 80 85 90 95 100 105

Mild Stress

Stress

Severe

Stress

THI 70

THI 80

THI 90

THI 100

Outdoor Air Temperature (F)

RH

Physiologic Effects of Heat Stress

Increases:

• Respiration rate

• Rectal temperature

• Water intake

• Sweating

• Salivation

Decreases:

• Dry matter intake

• Rate of feed passage

• Blood flow to internal

organs

• Rumen buffering

• Milk production

• Reproduction

DMI can be decreased 6-16%; Milk production by up to 20%

Table 1. Effect of Heat Stress on Dairy Cattle

THI Stress Level Comments

< 72 None

72 – 79 Mild Dairy cows will adjust by seeking shade, increasing respiration rate and dilation of the blood vessels. The effect on milk production will be minimal.

80 – 89 Moderate Both saliva production and respiration rate will increase. Feed intake may be depressed and water consumption will increase. There will be an increase in body temperature. Milk production and reproduction will be decreased.

90 – 98 Severe Cows will become very uncomfortable due to high body temperature, rapid respiration (panting) and excessive saliva production. Milk production and reproduction will be markedly decreased.

> 98 Danger Potential cow deaths can occur

Adapted from information provided by Monsanto

Total DMI and pounds dry matter required for maintenance

with increasing environmental temperature (dew point =30)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

68 77 86 95 104

DMI

Maint. Req.

Lbs DM

Temperature

Holter, West and McGilliard. 1997. JDS 80:2188

Milk Production Losses with THI

-10

-8

-6

-4

-2

0

70 72 74 76 78 80

30 lb/day 40 lb/day 50 lb/day

Loss in milk

(lb/day)

Temperature Humidity Index

Hahn and McQuigg, 1967

Heat Loss in Dairy Cattle

• Conduction

– Heat flows from warm to cold

• Convection

– Warm air near skin is replaced with cool air

• Radiation

– Temp. difference between environ. and cow

• Evaporative Cooling

– Sweating and panting

Two Ways to Reduce Heat Stress

• Provide cooler environment

– Reduce direct solar radiation (shades)

– Decrease cow density

– Cool the air (misting systems)

– Create air movement (draw out hot air)

• Cool the cow

– Soak the cow (sprinklers) and dry the cow

– Maximize the number of wet-dry cycles/hour

Where can we cool cows?

• Holding pens

• Feeding areas

• Freestall barns

• Shades

Priorities to reduce Heat Stress

(lactating and dry cows)

1. Provide plenty of

water

2. Shade

3. Reduce walking

distance

4. Reduce time in

holding pen

5. Improve housing

ventilation

6. Add holding and exit

lane cooling

7. Cool close-up cows

8. Cool fresh and early

lact. Cows

9. Cool mid and late

cows

10.Cool far-off cows

Summary of Spray and Fan

Systems (cow cooling)

• Fans alone do little to reduce heat stress

• Water is the key

• Increasing soaking frequency reduced respiratory rates

• Increase soaking as temp. increases

• 1 lb of water evaporated 1,000 BTU

• Milk production responses 4-12 lbs/cow/day

• Net income of $1-1.50 cow/day

Brook, Smith, Harner KSU Cow Comfort Consortium 2001

Recommendations for cooling dairy

cows with fans and water

• Fans on at 70 F

– Over freestalls and perhaps feedline

• 3 ft fans every 20 feet; 4 ft fans every 40 feet

• Sprinklers/ soakers on feedline

• Cycle water on 2-4 minutes

• Fans on 4-10 minutes

Freestall Housing

• Can provide improved

comfort in winter and

summer

– Improved cooling ability

– Can support increased DMI

• Necessary where rains or

snows

• More expensive to build

than drylots

• May create difficulties for

reproduction

Freestall barns

• 2 row or 4 row

• Provide shelter

(shade) and

ventilation

• Cross-ventilation

important

Lying down in a free stall

Each cow needs to lie down for at least 12 hours a day, with an optimum of 14 h a day.

Need for a free stall that enables a cow to lie down

And.. a stall that makes the cow WANTING to lie down!

Head to Head Freestall

Holsteins A B Min. Width

First Lactation 68" 46" 46"

Milking Cow 70" 59" 48"

Dry Cows 70" 48" 50"

Sand Bedded Freestall

Cow Pen Description Dimension

A B C

First Lactation Milking Pen 70 48 A-D

Mature Cow Milking Pen 72 50 A-D

Pre-fresh Mature Cow Pen 72 54 A-D

Mattress Bedded Freestall

Freestalls

4 reasons freestalls fail:

• Lunge space

limitations

• Lack of

comfort/cushion

• Neck rail placement

• Lack of fresh

air/vision

Stall size and lunging

Normal lunge Abnormal lunge

(short beds)

Weight is transferred off rear legs

by lunging forward, using the knees

as a pivot point.

Majority of weight is lifted by rear

Legs due to inadequate lunge space.

Excess bedding kicked out and less

Stall use.

7.5 to 8 feet Less than 7.5 feet

Freestall bedding

• Absorbs moisture

• Provides cushion

• Dissipates heat

Types of bedding:

• Sand

• Dry manure

• Mattresses

• Rubber mats

• Sawdust/shavings

Sand Freestall Bedding

• Can be most hygienic

– Inorganic

– Supports lower bacterial

growth

• Comfortable for cow

• Hard on flush systems

– Need sand traps

• Can be expensive

– Use 40 to 70 lbs/stall/day

Manure Bedding

• Commonly used in California

• Less expensive

• Comfortable for cows

• Should use composting system

• Acceptable when kept dry

• Can have high bacteria counts when wet

Cow Preferences for Free Stalls

• U of Wisconsin study (100% stocking density)

• % of time stalls have cows lying in them

Washed sand 69%

Rubber-filled mattresses 65%

Foam-filled mattresses 57%

Waterbed 45%

Rubber mat 33%

Concrete stall base 23%

Freestall Comfort Items

• Concrete flooring

– Can be hard on feet

(esp. new concrete)

– Can become slippery

• grooving

• Rubber belting/mats

– Reduces wear on

hooves

Freestall Comfort Items

• Manure moved as solid or liquid

• Flush system – Determines amount of

manure and water at feet

– Associated with hygiene scores and lameness

– Volume X velocity

– Vacuums

http://svmweb.vetmed.wisc.edu/dms/fapm/fapmtools/stalls.htm

Cow Housing: drylot or freestall

• Drylot:

– Lower capital investment (3 to 4 times less)

– Easier to maintain

– More forgiving for hoof health

– Facilitates reproduction

– Requires dry environment

– Provides less cow comfort in heat and rain

Dry lot dairies

• Moisture deficit > 20 in./year

– MD = evaporation – precipitation

– Cow = 12 inches of precipitation

• 500 – 700 sq. ft. / cow

• Shade

– 50 – 60 sq. ft. /cow (North-South)

• Slope

– 2-3% slope

Dry Lot Facilities

• Shade

– should be provided for all milking cows, dry cows and

replacement animals from 0 to 5 months of age.

– In areas of extreme heat-stress, shade should be

provided for all replacement animals.

– In an AZ trial, a 6% increase in milk production was

observed from providing 3.7 sq. m of solid shade/cow.

– An additional AZ trial indicated that shade over the

feed line increased milking production 3% because

feed intake increased.

Drylot cooling systems

• Evaporative type cooling systems under

the shade has increased milk production 6

to14% depending on the stage of lactation,

level of heat-stress and the design of the

cooling system.

• Evaporative cooling systems for corral

cooling can vary from $150 to $450/cow.

Dry Lot Facilities

• Walking distance of cows from the corral to the milking parlor should be minimized in the dairy design.

• Observations in hot weather indicate one-way lane walking distances from the corral to the milking parlor should be:

– less than 365m for 2X milking

– 274m for 3X milking

– 183m for 4X

Dry Lot Facilities

• Corrals need to have a 2 to 2.5% slope to

provide adequate drainage

• area of 46 to 70 sq. m/cow. depending

upon the annual evaporation

• corrals need to be maintained by removing

excessive dry manure from the corral.

Maternity/Calving Areas

• Goal is to have calf

born in clean, dry

place

• Options:

– Individual pens

– Bedded packs

– Corrals

Milking Parlor

• Want cows to spend less

than 1 hour away from

pens at any time

• 3 hours total per day

• Calm cow flow

• Types of milking parlors:

– Parlor

– Herringbone

– Parallel

– Rotary

Water and Feed Availability

• Must have constant access to water – 2” water trough/animal

• Want 1:1 headlocks to cows

• Can crowd to 110%

• Drylots more forgiving when overcrowded

• Overcrowding reduces DMI

Techniques for assessing facilities

and welfare

2 basic methods:

1) outcome based

Use animals to see if standards are

met

2) protocols

Create a system or facility that should

result in the desired outcome

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Assessment of Key Welfare

Parameters on dairies

1) Nutrition – feed and water • BCS: % of cows < 2.0 and > 4.0

2) Housing –clean, dry, comfortable housing • Hygiene scores

• Hock scores or lesions

• Locomotion scores: % > 2.0

3) Health – disease prevention, recognition and treatment, euthanasia

4) Animal behavior and social interaction

5) Minimal stress – calm handling and secure housing

6) Management – is management committed to the welfare of the animals?

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