A cross-sectional study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of clinical lameness in high-producing Holstein cows housed in 50 freestall barns in Minnesota during summer. Locomotion and body condition scoring were performed on a total of 5,626 cows in 53 high-production groups. Cow records were collected from the nearest Dairy Herd Improvement Association test date, and herd characteristics were collected at the time of the visit. The mean prevalence of clinical lameness (proportion of cows with locomotion score >or=3 on a 1-to-5 scale, where 1 = normal and 5 = severely lame), and its association with lactation number, month of lactation, body condition score, and type of stall surface were evaluated. The mean prevalence of clinical lameness was 24.6%, which was 3.1 times greater, on average, than the prevalence estimated by the herd managers on each farm. The prevalence of lameness in first-lactation cows was 12.8% and prevalence increased on average at a rate of 8 percentage units per lactation. There was no association between the mean prevalence of clinical lameness and month of lactation (for months 1 to 10). Underconditioned cows had a higher prevalence of clinical lameness than normal or overconditioned cows. The prevalence of lameness was lower in freestall herds with sand stalls (17.1%) than in freestall herds with mattress stall surfaces (27.9%). Data indicate that the best 10th percentile of dairy farms had a mean prevalence of lameness of 5.4% with only 1.47% of cows with locomotion score = 4 and no cows with locomotion score = 5.

The compost bedded pack dairy barn is an alternative housing system for lactating cows that has received increased attention in the last 2 yr. No descriptive data were available about this housing system. Therefore, a study of 12 compost dairy barns in Minnesota was conducted between late June 2005 and September 2005. The objectives of this study were to describe the housing system, identify management practices used in these herds, observe cow welfare, analyze herd performance and udder health prior to and following the change in housing system, and measure producer satisfaction with the system. Producers were interviewed on various aspects related to the housing system and herd management, samples of milk were collected, and cows were scored for locomotion, body condition, hygiene, and hock lesions. In addition, historical bulk tank information and Dairy Herd Improvement Association data were collected when available. At the time of the visit, the Dairy Herd Improvement Association somatic cell count (SCC) was 325,000 +/- 172,000 cells/mL, rolling herd average was 10,457 +/- 1,138 kg per cow, and herd size was 73 +/- 35.5 lactating cows. The body condition score was 3.04 +/- 0.11, the cow hygiene score was 2.66 +/- 0.19, and 7.8% of all cows were clinically lame (locomotion score > or = 3 on a 1 to 5 scale). No hock lesions were present on 74.9% of the cows; 24.1% of cows had a mild lesion (hair loss), and 1.0% had a severe lesion (swollen hock). Historical analysis of the bulk tank SCC showed that 3 out of the 7 herds analyzed had a significant reduction in bulk tank SCC when compared with the previous housing system. Mastitis infection rates decreased significantly by 12% on 6 of the 9 farms analyzed. Reproductive performance significantly improved for 4 out of the 7 herds analyzed, with 25.9 and 34.5% improvement in heat detection rates and pregnancy rates, respectively. The main reasons producers reported for building this type of housing system were for improved cow comfort, cow health and longevity, and ease of completing daily chores. The largest concern was the cost and availability of bedding, especially as additional compost barns are built. Overall, all producers were satisfied with their decision to build a compost barn.

Interest in using recycled manure solids (RMS) as a bedding material for dairy cows has grown in the US Midwest. Cost of common bedding materials has increased in recent years and availability has decreased. Information regarding the composition of RMS and its use as a bedding material for dairy cows in the Midwest is very limited. The objectives of this study were to characterize RMS as a bedding material, observe bedding management practices, document methods of obtaining RMS, and describe housing facilities. We visited 38 Midwest dairy operations bedding freestalls with RMS to collect data. Methods of obtaining RMS for bedding included separation of anaerobic digested manure, separation of raw manure, and separation of raw manure followed by mechanical drum-composting for 18 to 24 h. Average bedding moisture of unused RMS was 72.4% with a pH of 9.16. Unused samples contained (on a dry basis) 1.4% N, 44.9% C, 32.7C:N ratio, 0.44% P, 0.70% K, 76.5% neutral detergent fiber, 9.4% ash, 4.4% nonfiber carbohydrates, and 1.1% fat. Moisture was lowest for drum-composted solids before and after use as freestall bedding. After use in the stalls, digested solids had lower neutral detergent fiber content (70.5%) than drum-composted (75.0%) and separated raw (73.1%) solids. Total N content was greater in digested solids (2.0%) than in separated raw (1.7%) solids. Total bacterial populations in unused bedding were greatest in separated raw manure solids but were similar between digested and drum-composted manure solids. Drum-composted manure solids had no coliform bacteria before use as freestall bedding. After use as bedding, digested manure solids had lower total bacteria counts compared with drum-composted and separated raw manure solids, which had similar counts. Used bedding samples of digested solids contained fewer environmental streptococci than drum-composted and separated raw solids and had reduced Bacillus counts compared with separated raw solids. Coliform counts were similar for all 3 bedding sources. Addition of a mechanical blower post-separation and use of a shelter for storage were associated with reduced fresh-bedding moisture but not associated with bacterial counts. This was the first survey of herds using RMS for bedding in the Midwest. We learned that RMS was being used successfully as a source of bedding for dairy cows. For most farms in the study, somatic cell count was comparable to the average in the region and not excessively high.

The objectives of this cross-sectional study were to describe housing and management practices on farms using automatic milking systems (AMS) in 2 states of the upper Midwest and to evaluate the association of various housing and management factors with 3 measures of animal welfare: prevalence of lameness, severe hock lesions, and dirty cows. Fifty-four farms were visited once to collect facility measurements and observations, interview the dairy producer, and score cows for locomotion, hock lesions, and hygiene. Median number of AMS units/farm was 2 (interquartile range = 1; range = 1 to 8). Factors concerning labor were the most commonly cited reason by dairy producers for making the transition to the AMS; additional commonly cited factors were an improvement in lifestyle and human health. Number of cows fetched per AMS, or manually brought to the AMS if not milked voluntarily, was 4.7 ± 2.3 cows/AMS per day (8% of cows) for free traffic flow farms and 3.3 ± 1.8 cows/AMS per day (5% of cows) for guided traffic flow farms. Cow resting surface was significantly associated with prevalence of lameness and severe lameness. Farms with sand-bedded freestalls (17.2%) and bedded packs (17.4%) had significantly lower lameness prevalence (score ≥3 on a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 = normal locomotion) than farms with mattress freestalls (30.5%), waterbeds (25.0%), and mattresses with access to pasture (22.6%). Farms with mattresses and access to pasture had similar lameness prevalence to farms with waterbeds, but were lower than farms with mattresses only. A somewhat similar result was found for severe lameness prevalence (score ≥4 on a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 = normal locomotion); farms with sand-bedded freestalls (2.8%), bedded packs (0.0%), and mattress freestalls with access to pasture (1.5%) had significantly lower prevalence than farms with mattresses (7.1%) or waterbeds (10.8%). Severe hock lesion prevalence (score = 3 on a 1 to 3 scale, with 1 = normal, 3 = swelling) in herds with sand-bedded freestalls, waterbeds, and bedded packs were similar and significantly lower than the prevalence in mattress-based freestalls. Cows housed in sand-bedded freestalls had significantly lower prevalence of dirty cows (score = 3 or 3.5 on a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 = clean) than those housed on mattresses and waterbeds, and had significantly lower prevalence of severely dirty cows (score = 4, 4.5 or 5 on a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 = clean) than all other housing systems except waterbeds, which was similar. Manure removal system (manual, automatic, or slatted floor) was significantly associated with prevalence of severely dirty cows; farms with manual scraping had lower prevalence of severely dirty cows than farms where alley scraping was practiced automatically or slatted floors were used. Dairy producers using AMS appeared to be successful with a variety of facility designs and management practices. Cow resting surface in AMS herds was associated with some animal health and welfare measurements.