Effects of winter housing system on hygiene, udder health, frostbite, and rumination of dairy cows

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of 2 winter (December to April) housing systems on dairy cow hygiene scores, frostbite, teat condition, clinical mastitis, and activity and rumination across 3 winter seasons (2013, 2014, and 2015). Certified-organic cows (n = 268) were randomly assigned to 2 treatments (2 replicates per system): (1) outdoor straw pack (outdoor) or (2) 3-sided compost-bedded pack barn (indoor). Cows calved during 2 seasons (spring or fall) at the University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center, Morris, Minnesota, organic dairy. Organic wheat straw was used as bedding for the 2 outdoor straw packs, and bedding was maintained by farm management to keep cows dry and absorb manure throughout the winter. The compost-bedded pack barn (2 pens in the barn) was bedded with organic-approved sawdust, and the bedding material was stirred twice per day with a small chisel plow. Hygiene scores were recorded biweekly as cows exited the milking parlor. Incidence of clinical mastitis was recorded in a binary manner as treated (1) or not treated (0) at least once during a lactation. Frostbite incidence was collected monthly. Activity and rumination times (daily and 2-h periods) were monitored electronically using a neck collar sensor (HR-LD Tags, SCR Dairy, Netanya, Israel). Indoor cows had greater udder hygiene scores (1.75 vs. 1.46) and greater abdomen hygiene scores (1.79 vs. 1.43) compared with outdoor cows. Additionally, the indoor cows had greater upper and lower leg hygiene scores compared with outdoor cows. Incidence of clinical mastitis was greater for indoor cows compared with outdoor cows (27.1% vs. 15.1%, respectively). Frostbite incidence was not different between indoor (30.1%) and outdoor (17.5%) cows. Daily rumination was 509 min/d for indoor cows and 530 min/d for the outdoor cows. In summary, lactating cows housed outdoors on straw-bedded packs had cleaner udders and improved udder health compared with cows housed in a compostbedded pack barn.

Evaluation of solar photovoltaic systems to shade cows in a pasture-based dairy herd

“…Before the initiation of the study, fly counts and fly avoidance behaviors, respiration, and hygiene scoring were agreed upon on site by 5 observers (an experienced animal scientist and the 4 observers that were conducting the visual observations for the study). These definitions were based on previous research studies and the training of the animal scientist (Sjostrom et al, 2019;Perttu et al, 2020). Fly counts on cows were recorded twice during the morning (1000 h) and twice during the evening (1600 h) observations.…”

Design and implementation of a survey quantifying winter housing and bedding types used on Vermont organic dairy farms

“…Despite these potential benefits, our survey results indicate that the adoption of compost bedded packs for lactating cows on organic dairy farms in Vermont is relatively limited and, when used as the only bedding system for lactating cows, was less frequent than we had predicted before this survey. One recent study found improved hygiene and udder health for cows housed outdoors ("outwintered") on straw bedded packs compared with cows housed indoors on compost bedded pack during 3 winters in Minnesota (Sjostrom et al, 2019). In our survey, only 1 farm reported primarily using outdoor housing for lactating cows and returning cows to tiestalls only during inclement weather, although 6 respondents commented that cows had daily outdoor access.…”

Milk Production, Body Weight, Body Condition Score, Activity, and Rumination of Organic Dairy Cattle Grazing Two Different Pasture Systems Incorporating Cool- and Warm-Season Forages

“…Activity was highest for cows grazing BMRSS (Table 5), which was probably due to the physical structure of the plant, as cows must be more active to move about the pasture because of the tall stems and long leaves of the BMRSS. Activity was lowest for cows in CSA (Table 5), which could be due to the cooler air temperatures during October when cows were grazing these CSA pastures, as cooler temperatures maybe be associated with lower activity levels [48].…”