Cow Comfort: A Hot Topic In Dairy Industry
✔️ Cattle spend their most of time feeding or laying. Cow mostly spend most of the time in laying position and do 70% of Rumination in this position.
✔️If a cow spends more time while standing or socializing it means cow Comfort is disturbed.
Result;
📌It will ultimately lead to less Rumination, Less saliva production, less Digestibility, less feed intake, and less milk production.
📌The cow will stand more time on their hooves and hard floor to hoof contact time will increase, causing stress to cows, leading to the release of cortisol hormone, and ultimately dropping in milk production.
How can we guess that Cow Comfort is disturbed?
☑️Free stall sand level, If the sand level is less then the cow will not lay down properly and spend time in a standing position and will be uncomfortable.
☑️Overcrowding leads to no availability of free stalls for a cow to lay down and the cow will be uncomfortable
☑️Increase the chance of Sub Acute Ruminal Acidosis (SARA) as animal rumination will be less, Uncomfortable for cow again.
☑️More Standing time, More hooves to hard floor contact time and stress, and Cow will be uncomfortable again.
Are our free stalls comfortable for Cows or not?
📍A free stall which always remains empty, Not Comfortable for cow
📍Cow standing half in and half out of the free stall, Not a Comfortable cow
📍Cow laying backward in Free Stall, Not a Comfortable cow
📍Cow making abortive attempt while laying down, Not a Comfortable cow
📍 Cows sit back on their hanches, Not a Comfortable cow
📍Cows not resting more than 30℅, 2 hours post evening milking, Cows are not Comfortable.
📍Injuries at the neck area, neck hock injuries, Free Stall or Cubicle designs are Not Comfortable for cows.
