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When building a new facility, it’s tempting to keep up-front ventilation and cooling costs at a minimum. That may seem like a good thing in the short term, but it’s important to consider the long-term cost and benefits of designing a system that goes beyond bare bones and fits your operation’s individual needs, now and as you grow your business.
Structures that house cattle are vital to the success of a dairy business. It is essential these buildings are able to withstand weather events, have tolerable maintenance costs and contain materials resistant to an interior environment that can be rather aggressive.
Buildings need to provide a safe environment for employees and animals, remain in good condition for their functional life, with minimal maintenance, and last (at least) the duration of the loan taken to construct it.
Like a breath of fresh air, the Feldpausch family has brought new life to a two-decade-old Colorado dairy, transforming a dated site into a technologically advanced facility poised for the future.
Chuck and Nora Feldpausch, dairy producers originally from Michigan, sought to create a sustainable business model and lifestyle for their young family. After evaluating both green field sites and existing operations, they came across a location near Greeley that met their needs.
Dairies know that by keeping a close eye on the expenses, you can set up a lean operation that is well insulated against changes in the market. It used to be that many of us would see energy costs as a standard monthly expense we couldn’t do much to alter.
Today, however, more and more dairies recognize that energy costs are within the control of the farm, and upgrading to more energy-efficient equipment makes good business sense.
Dairy cows can spend their entire lives walking on concrete, and that’s why Jacob Gerlach says proper floor surfacing is key to hoof health.
Gerlach grew up around dairy farms, helping his father with A.I. and learning dairy practices from vets, nutritionists and farmers. He is currently the public relations manager for TrakRite, a company that provides concrete grooving, milling and texturing for dairy barns.
People expect cows to graze. Pastoral scenes of cows at pasture are used by many marketing groups to sell milk products. Yet the reality of our dairy industry in North America and many other parts of the globe is very different, with a shift toward larger herds, housing and more intensive management.
It’s that time of the year. The leaves have colored and fallen, football season is in full swing, and we’re coming to grips with what kind of forage quality we have to feed deep into 2015. Hay and haylage crops are in storage and corn silage is being harvested throughout the Upper Midwest.
While some were interested in my Halloween costume, more importantly and not jokingly, more people are asking about this year’s crop quality. How is our 2014 forage shaping up?
It should be obvious that nutrient requirements of dairy cattle are the same as they have always been; we are the ones slowly advancing our understanding of those requirements.
The purpose of the various editions of the National Academy of Science/National Research Council publication on the nutrient requirements of dairy cattle is simple. Users of that system must be able to predict how cattle will perform for a given set of inputs and able to predict what those inputs should be for a given output.
Feed more forage. Feed 60, 65, 70 or 75 percent forage to your cows. It’s natural. It’s healthier. I heard my neighbor does it. All the folks on the East Coast feed 70 percent forage. It’s the best way to feed cows.
But is it the right thing to do?
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