Future Livestock Buildings – Keeping the Calf and the Dairy Cow Together

Anders H. HerlinSwedish University of Agricultural Sciences - Sweden

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Contents

1. Background2. Suckling alternatives3. Effects 4. Housing and management5. Discussion – suggestions6. Conclusions

Background

• Remarkable changes in livestock buildings since WW2– Structure; farm size– From housing in tie-stalls to cubicles alt. straw yards or

compost packs– Huge changes in efficiency; logistics and technology –

automation, robotisation, precision livestock farming– The emerging of ”Factory farming”

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Background Predicting the future of modern milk production?

• The milk sectors’ ability to keep up with societal changes and values

• Dairy products being attractive for consumers can include:

– Consumers view on dairy farming practices – Transparency – Certification, traceability– Sustainability issues (environmental, societal, economic) – Economic pressure on the farmer to sell the milk produced

by the lactating cowLille – February 22nd, 23rd, 24th 2017Livestock housing : let’s build the future 4

Public perceptions on animal welfare:The fate of dairy calves

• Separation of cow and calf• However,

– Criticised by animal rights groups, animal welfare advocates, the public?

– Alternative methods promoted by organic farming community and likes

– Scientific evidence of benefits and disadvantages

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Examples from past and now

• Somewhere in the domestication process of cattle humans were able to milk cows, ewes and does, mare

• With the help of the calf/lamb/kid/foal facilitating the milk let down

• Sharing the milk with the offspring

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Milking the cow/calf pair - then

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Milking the cow – calf pair - still

• Salers cattle

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Calf suckling alternatives

• Short term single suckling without additional milking; calves suckle their own mother during the colostrum period for 24 hours (or shorter) to 4-5 days.

• Long term single suckling with or without additional milking: the cow is suckled by her calf the first 6 to 12 weeks.

• Long term multiple suckling without additional milking. Two or more calves suckle a nurse cow, for a period of 6 to 12 weeks

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Alternatives for the newborn calf

• Immidiate removal of calf• Temporary – the Cuddle box

– cow licking the newborn calf, feeding, milking

• Short term suckling for 24 hrs up to 4-5 days

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Long-term suckling without additional milking (review by Krohn 2001)

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• Several experiments with multiple calves• Milk production:

– Sometimes stimulate subsequent milk production than milking alone – An increase of up to 20%

• Health;– Decreased risk of mastitis in the suckling period – Also for some time after the suckling has been terminated

Long-term suckling without additional milking II (review by Krohn 2001)

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• Calf growth: – Depends on the cows’ milk production – Multiple suckling leads to greater individual variation in gain– Malnutrition or even death

• Behaviour– Bonding– Separation after 2-3 months

• Both the cow and the calves will vocalise a lot for some days, restlessness will increase, activity and feed consumption will decrease and the cow has to habituate to the milking machine

Long-term suckling with additional milking I(review by Krohn 2001)

• Restricted suckling on a few daily periods of 15±30 min • Several experiments with multiple calves, some single calf• Production:

– Suckling and milking during the same period affect the milk ejection during machine milking

– No effect on subsequent milk production• Restricted or free suckling systems:

– No clear differences

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Long-term suckling with additional milking II(review by Krohn 2001)

• Health:– Indication for better udder health, also post-weaning

• Fertility: – Can increase the post-partum interval until first heat, in

some cases until the end of the suckling period.– Does not seem to lengthen the calving interval much.

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Long-term suckling with additional milking III

• Calf:– Depends on amount of milk availbale– Growth rate >1000 g/d found, but greater individual

variation– More milk intake – less roughage intake and delayed

rumen development– More productive as a cow

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Conclusions on suckling systems I (Krohn 2001)

• Improved welfare of calves than artificial rearing systems:

– nursed by the mother, - suckle the milk, - learn to eat roughage earlier, - have social contact with other calves and cows in a free suckling system, - have space enough to exercise and play.

• These factors are absent in artificial rearing systems,. • The cows can carry out natural maternal behaviour, and

will often be housed under less restrictive conditions than traditional milking herds

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Conclusions on suckling systems II (Krohn 2001)

• Separation after 2-3 months, much earlier than under natural conditions.

• The separation results in restlessness and vocalisation for some days.

• Separation after a short-term suckling much less traumatic for either the calf or the cow.

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Example

• Biodynamic farm: (Schnieder, 2007)

– Cow/calf pairs 5 days together after parturition in a “maternity pasture” (with other cows/calf pairs)

– Thereafter cow/calf pair join the rest of the herd on pasture– Nursing calves are separated out at evening milking,

spends the night together in a bedded pen with hay and water – cows spend night at pasture

– After morning milking, the cow/calf pairs are rejoined and so on

– Calves are weaned between eight and ten weeks of age.

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Experiences from biodynamic farm

• High growth rate of calves, including development, learn from mothers, plant nibbeling early on

• Health concerns have been a non-issue • Time savings on bucket/bottle feeding, a little bit more

work on separation• “herd dynamics”, maternal behaviour

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Housing and management

• Housing alternatives:– Tie-stall housing– Cubicle housing– Straw bed / Compost pack

• Suckling – single or multiple calves per cow– Free – Restricted

• Milking system– Conventional milking (in tie-stalls or parlour)– Robotic milking

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Tie-stall housing

• Restricted or un-restricted suckling

• Prevent calves enter the manger

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Cubicle/Deep litter/Compost pack housing

• Not much different from suckler beef cow housing• Separate calf area• Floor concerns: multiple scraping or smaller slots• Separation of cows/calves at milking or more if

restricted suckling

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Application in robotic milking

• Automatic calf separation/access to suckling by use of smart gates to and from the calf area

• Calf get access to the cow after milking• For the Salers cows, a calf compartment beside the

milking box can be designed….

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Concerns - calf surveillance

• Precision Livestock Farming technologies to be used to monitor calf performance, behaviour and health

– Ensure feed intake, sensors which: • Captures suckling• Captures the onset of rumination

– Health: • Automatic on-line body temperature• Behaviour - activity

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Conclusions

• Maybe more demand for milk from cows where calfs spend significant time with their mothers – at least in some market segments

• Not much production is lost• Restrictive suckling and milking seems to be less

appealing, but then not every cow will have her ”calf..” as the high milk production in early lactation requires multiple calves per cow

• New technologies are promising to be adopted for this purpose

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