Content
Keeping dairy cows on farms requires compliance with certain feeding standards and special growing and care conditions. A dairy cow is a source of meat, dairy products, manure as organic fertilizer, and leather. Successful cattle rearing largely depends on the choice of breed of dairy cows, proper care, and type of cow keeping. Initially, you should determine the expected result of the activity: obtaining meat, dairy products or breeding calves.
Features of keeping cattle on private farms
Keeping dairy cows must start with choosing the right breed. After this, it is necessary to create conditions for keeping the animals: build or repair a building, ensure an uninterrupted supply of water to the drinking bowls and daily removal of manure.During the winter period, you need to take care of heating the barn, as well as installing electricity.
If you plan to build a large farm for keeping dairy cows, then you will need a feed supply line, milking machines, and a conveyor for collecting waste. In addition, milkmaids and a veterinarian will be needed. It is advisable to purchase a vehicle.
You also need to include additives in the diet (feed, grain, silage). Clean water should be freely available.
Systems and methods for keeping cattle
Methods and systems for keeping cattle mean a number of measures of zootechnical, zoohygienic, sanitary and organizational nature, with minimal material and labor costs.
Depending on geographical and economic conditions, several systems for keeping dairy cows are used: stall, stall-walking, stall-pasture. Each system has its own subtleties and norms.
Cattle housing systems
The cow keeping system has a huge impact on the quality of cattle breeding. An important condition for its intensification is taking into account the biological and physiological needs of cattle for keeping on a private farm. Therefore, the main task of the farmer is to use technology to create optimal housing conditions under which the productive capabilities of dairy cows are fully demonstrated.
Cattle housing system
Stalls for keeping young animals, bulls and dairy cows differ in size.The animal must be given enough space to sleep, stay awake, eat, and also need to create space for an employee to serve the cow.
Requirements for a stall for dairy cows:
- natural ventilation to avoid drafts;
- for heating, the barn is insulated by laying thermal insulation;
- the presence of windows for a natural light source, electricity;
- autonomous water supply;
- manure removal system.
Typically the stall is made from metal frames and planks. Since the stall is the only habitat for dairy cows, care must be taken to ensure the correct positioning of the animal. The cow should stand with her head towards the feeder and her back towards the gutter.
If the farmer plans to keep cattle in stalls, then the width of the pen for young animals is 1 m, for adult dairy cows - 1.2 m, for calving cows - 1.5 m. On small farms, they usually make a medium-sized universal stall with a width of 1.2 m .
The stall housing system has disadvantages: lack of animal activity and insufficient consumption of fresh grass. Accordingly, such cows have low immunity and milk productivity.
Stall-pasture
Stall-pasture keeping of dairy cows involves keeping the animals in stalls in winter. In the summer, from morning to evening, cattle graze on pastures and are driven into stalls at night.
This system of keeping cows on a private farm gives high milk productivity due to the activity of animals during walks. In addition, the costs of feed and vitamin supplements are significantly reduced, since they receive all the necessary substances from the green mass.
Advantages of stall-pasture housing of dairy cows:
- natural complete nutrition;
- motor activity of cows;
- reducing the cost of maintaining dairy cows in the summer;
- reduction in the amount of land occupied by pastures.
Before going out to pasture, dairy cows undergo a mandatory inspection, and the udders are treated with a protective agent against insects. If there is no body of water nearby, then it is necessary to ensure the delivery of water by vehicle.
The transition to winter occurs gradually, starting in September, when there is less food on the pastures. At this time, winter feed - straw, haylage, root crops - begins to be added to the diet. Thus, by the end of the summer season, the diet of dairy cows should consist of 90% winter feed. When kept in stalls in winter, it is especially important to follow the feeding and milking regime.
Keeping cattle outside all year round
Rules for keeping cattle outdoors require taking into account the climatic conditions of a particular region and the presence of natural ventilation. Air exchange should occur through a long hole in the covering, cornice and walls. A favorable result of maintenance depends on proper ventilation equipment. To avoid drafts, wind barriers must be provided.
Sufficient barn space is also important. Each cow requires approximately 7 square meters. m.
As for the optimal temperatures at which cows are comfortable, this is -27 °C maximum. At lower temperatures, intensive nutrition will be required, which is not economically viable.
This method of keeping beef cows does not negatively affect productivity.Keeping dairy cows in cold conditions reduces milk yield only in severe frosts and only slightly.
Typically, straw, sawdust and peat are used for this purpose. It is important that the bedding material is dry - this way the blood flow to the cow’s udder increases by 50% and milk yield does not decrease. In winter, once a week a new layer is laid on top of the old layer, which, together with the cow itself, allows you to maintain a certain temperature in the barn.
Types of cattle keeping
Methods of keeping livestock: tethered and loose. Each has its positive and negative sides.
Experts know how beneficial grazing affects the milk production and health of cows. The intensification of dairy cattle breeding directly depends on the type of animal keeping. This system is used on farms where it is possible to allocate areas for grazing.
Tethered method of keeping cows
The tether method is one of the most popular methods of keeping cattle. Based on dairy cows living in stalls with good conditions. Each room is equipped with devices for securing animals using leashes. This method allows you to monitor the viability of each individual and automate the processes of milking, feeding and cleaning.
Separate feeders are required for feeding dairy cattle. Calculation of the amount of feed depends on the weight and milk production of the animal. Water is also supplied automatically to each stall. The animal is resting on a special flooring.Milking with portable machines greatly simplifies and speeds up the production of dairy products.
Animals are constantly tethered and live in groups or alone. The method is popular among private farms, as the productivity indicators are quite high.
Advantages of the method:
- feed is issued strictly according to the norm;
- collisions between animals are excluded;
- reduction in feed costs up to 10%;
- increase in milk productivity by 15%;
- facilitating zootechnical accounting and monitoring of physiological and clinical indicators of the condition of cattle.
However, this method significantly increases labor costs. To reduce them, it is recommended to use a milk line during milking.
Untied
The technology for keeping cattle in a free-stall method involves the use of resting boxes and combined boxes equipped with feeders and drinkers. Milking takes place on specially equipped areas. Manure is removed using a tractor, and mobile feed dispensers are used to distribute feed.
With this type of housing, dairy cows independently approach feeders, drinkers and milking platforms at certain times. This allows you to reduce manual labor costs.
The main advantage of freestall housing for dairy cows over tethered housing is the increased productivity of workers. This happens with the help of various installations, milking systems and methods of manure removal. Of course, this method is suitable for large farms with a large number of dairy cows.
Negative aspects of the method:
- we need qualified personnel for modern equipment;
- constant veterinary control over the cattle population;
- stressful situations in the herd;
- increase in feed consumption.
The herd must be divided into physiological groups to reduce tension between animals.
Combined method of keeping cows
The method is used quite often, as it includes elements of the tethered and untied method. Allows you to control the quality of food and diet, but at the same time provides the animal with sufficient mobility.
Keeping young cattle
The technology for raising cattle at home is simple: newborn calves must be separated from other animals and from their mother. To feed and maintain young animals, large farms create a kind of dispensary for calves. It requires:
- the room is bright, spacious, without drafts;
- avoid temperature changes;
- The calf barn must be equipped with drinking bowls, feeders, bedding and cleaning tools.
Not only proper maintenance, but also feeding of calves is of great importance. Fattening occurs in several stages.
The first is the milk period, which begins from the moment of birth until six months. In the first few days, the calf should actively absorb colostrum and mother's milk, without mixing with other types of feed. From the 5th day of the milk period, the baby is accustomed to water. Hay is added from week 3, and then feed and concentrates are added.
The second stage is the suction stage. During this period, the volume of feed is gradually increased. It lasts about 8 months. At this stage, the breeder must decide on the purpose of the young stock (meat or dairy production).
At the third stage, intensive growth of calves occurs. The weight gained directly depends on the quality and quantity of food. After this, the transition to the fattening stage occurs.
Modern technologies for keeping cattle
Dairy farming is becoming more profitable every year. Modern cattle management systems allow you to increase profitability and achieve maximum profit at minimum cost. Experience shows that the increase in milk yield and increase in offspring on private household plots improves after a month of using the modern approach. Reducing human labor has a positive effect on the entire process, as it eliminates the risk of errors made by staff, reduces the time required to perform all types of work with dairy cows and the farm, and also represents serious savings on labor costs.
Automation is applicable:
- during the milking process;
- feed preparation;
- livestock washing;
- control over the animal's condition.
Many processes run independently using a timer.
One of the new products allowed many farms to abandon preservatives, which often led to deviations in the development of calves, affected milk productivity and reduced the positive characteristics of milk. New technology includes an ultraviolet stabilizer in silage storage bags. It allows you to reduce harmful microflora and significantly increase the shelf life of dairy products.
For the milking process, innovations provide for the presence of a special milking platform, where the mechanism for removing milk products is much more efficient. The milking platform allows you to keep records of each cow, collect information for the period of interest, monitor the quality of dairy products on site, and identify diseases at an early stage.
Changes also affected milk processing.If previously primary processing was carried out at the dairy, now immediately after leaving the milking parlor the milk is cooled to 4 °C using special equipment. At this temperature, the development of bacteria stops.
One of the technologies that is important and pleasant for any cow, used on farms in Europe and Russia, is pendulum brushes. These brushes rotate in different directions and speeds. They only work when the cow is in contact with the device. Main functions: cleansing the skin, improving blood circulation, massage, preventing mastitis.
Veterinary rules for keeping cattle
Keeping cattle on a private farm has some rules, since cattle breeding requires a serious approach. Control authorities check compliance with the standards, but careful attention to them on the part of the owners is important.
Owners are obliged:
- timely register and register each purchased or newborn animal;
- get vaccinated on time;
- notify veterinary services about mass deaths of cows and calves;
- carry out sanitary measures for keeping cows;
- do not allow animals to appear in public places.
It is necessary to remember about veterinary documentation, which is regulated by federal law. You need to prepare documents both when working with the herd and when selling products from the farm.
Sanitary standards for keeping cattle
Sanitary rules for keeping highly productive cows apply to the design, construction and operation of livestock complexes and farms for dairy cows.They contain requirements for preventing negative impacts on workers and for sanitary environmental protection.
To disinfect shoes, the entrance to the barn is equipped with mats at least 1 m in length with special impregnation.
Disinsection, decontamination, and deratization are carried out once a year, as well as upon visual detection of pests.
Employees must wear clean clothing and shoes while working in barns. Feed and additives must comply with veterinary and sanitary requirements.
Rules for caring for cattle
The basic conditions for keeping and caring for a dairy cow at home are a room where it should be light, warm and dry. To do this, it is necessary to carry out daily cleaning in the barn and clean out the feeders and drinkers. Compliance with the rules and hygiene for keeping cows affects the productivity of the cattle population.
For summer housing of cows, it is important to equip a walking area with a canopy from the sun and rain. Cows should be milked 3 times a day. Before milking begins, the udder is examined and massaged. Milking is carried out to the last drop, until the cow's udder becomes soft and empty. For good milk production, it is important to follow the feeding, milking and walking schedule.
In winter, windows and floors are insulated and cracks are sealed. Bedding made from straw or peat is often changed; sawdust and spruce branches are also good.
It is better to serve food from the feeding table. Usually, a container is placed in front of the stall where food can be poured: haylage, hay, vegetables, mash, concentrated feed, root vegetables. Animal owners also need to monitor the behavior and health of dairy cows and calves.
Conclusion
Keeping dairy cows is a huge burden, requiring daily attention and care. For those who have decided to start keeping cows on a private farm, they should study all the pros and cons of this type of activity in order to avoid disappointment and correctly assess their capabilities.
The positive aspects of raising dairy cows in private household plots include the absence of the need to register. Accordingly, there are no tax burdens and reports.
Disadvantages of private household plots - a limited territory that cannot be expanded without permission from the locality administration.
Beginners need to familiarize themselves with the federal laws on state support for private household plots. Based on these laws, anyone can count on receiving land for use and providing infrastructure for work (electricity, water, transport).
