Bedding

3 things you need to know about bedding with manure solids

rschrift@mclanahan.com — Fri, 05 Jun 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Sand is the ideal dairy bedding source, but it is not always feasible for every farm. Recycled manure solids can be a viable alternative for a mix of practical, economic and operational reasons.

3 Open Minutes with Dr. Nigel Cook

kimmi@agproud.com — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 00:00:00 -0500

During a Dairyland Initiative podcast episode, Courtney Halbach and Dr. Nigel Cook discussed how to manage sand bedding in freestalls. Progressive Dairy visited with Cook to follow up on a few of the topics covered and discuss the most important points he would like dairy producers to know when bedding freestalls with sand.

Fine sawdust as dairy bedding: Benefits and key considerations

rebecca@ecostrat.com — Thu, 12 Jun 2025 00:00:00 -0400

When it comes to bedding for dairy farms, choosing the right material can have a significant impact on both the health of the cows and the overall efficiency of the farm.

Reclaimed sand is a proven bedding resource

rschrift@mclanahan.com — Wed, 14 May 2025 00:00:00 -0400

Cow comfort and herd health are essential factors to achieve higher milk quality and production. Bedding plays a critical role in both, which is why many dairy farms have long relied on sand as their go-to bedding. However, questions sometimes arise as to which bedding is better – fresh or recycled sand?

Are you focusing on these cow comfort essentials?

kristin.brommer@ves-artex.com — Tue, 15 Apr 2025 00:00:00 -0400

Ventilation, cooling, bedding, lighting, feed and water access are the main foundations of cow comfort. Focusing on these aspects when designing and building your dairy barn will greatly enhance cow comfort, leading to better milk production, reduced health issues and overall improved welfare.

Manure collection and management for sand barns

dschreiner@lely.com — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 00:00:00 -0500

Running a successful dairy involves navigating a range of variables, such as breed, feed mix, barn layout, bedding type and more. There is one topic, however, every farmer will have to face, which has an impact on the function of the entire barn: manure.

What is the best bedding choice for cow comfort in stall barns?

evf5337@psu.edu — Thu, 07 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0500

Locomotion and hock scores, along with resting time, are indicators of the quality of the lying surface and bedding choice. With many bedding options available, this article provides recommendations for how to optimize each of them to improve cow comfort.

Making dried manure solids bedding work on your farm

halley.fobes@vaxxinova.com — Fri, 27 Sep 2024 00:00:00 -0400

Dried manure solids are one of the most common bedding materials used on dairies today. Farms choose to use them because they also have several distinct advantages over other bedding types. However, no management decision comes without trade-offs, and farms using dried manure solids bedding must take steps to minimize their potential disadvantages.

Tips for providing the most comfortable bed possible for cows

bradley.biehl@amsgalaxyusa.com — Mon, 26 Aug 2024 16:38:14 -0400

There are many things to consider when you start evaluating what kind of beds and bedding you will use in your stalls, and everyone has a different opinion about what’s the best option.

Barn planning: Decisions, decisions

brodenburg@inbarn.com — Tue, 02 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0400

There are many things to consider before we even start to design a facility layout. First, we need to focus on priorities, long-term goals and education. Secondly, we need to make general systems decisions, and finally, we can begin focusing on layout and planning.

Which bedding type is best for your cows?

amber.adamsprogar@gmail.com — Wed, 12 Jun 2024 00:00:00 -0400

How do you choose the best bedding for your cows? Obvious considerations include bedding cost and availability, but there are a few less obvious considerations that will help you make the best decision for your farm. Take a look at them and discover which bedding fits your farm’s cow comfort goals.

Keep sand where you need it, not where you don’t

rschrift@mclanahan.com — Tue, 28 May 2024 00:00:00 -0400

The benefits of sand bedding for dairy cows are many. However, sand is not always the easiest material to incorporate into manure management systems.

Top 3 tips to improve cow comfort

amber.adamsprogar@gmail.com — Wed, 08 May 2024 00:00:00 -0400

Based on my last 14 years studying cow behavior, three specific areas rise to the top of my list for improving cow comfort. If these three tips are addressed on your farm, your cows are or will be rewarding you with fewer cases of disease and an increase in milk production.

Bedding type considerations for cow health and comfort

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 -0400

Bedding type is a crucial component of cow comfort. Encouraging cows to spend more time lying and chewing their cud is the ultimate goal, but accomplishing that end has a plethora of considerations.

Controlling bedding pathogens can reduce environmental mastitis

benjamin.saylor@churchdwight.com — Tue, 30 Apr 2024 00:00:00 -0400

Controlling pathogen outgrowth in recycled manure bedding is possible. When a bacillus-based bedding additive was tested on-farm, a significant reduction in bulk tank SCC and mastitis cases was noticed.

Building dairy facilities to withstand the cold Montana winters

kimmi@agproud.com — Tue, 12 Dec 2023 00:00:00 -0500

What is it like to dairy in Montana? Three Montana dairymen describe their processes for preparing for harsh winter conditions.

Is your dairy’s sand bedding quality up to par?

rschrift@mclanahan.com — Fri, 16 Jun 2023 00:00:00 -0400

Sand is the gold standard for dairy cow bedding, but all that glitters is not gold.

Dairy farming back to the basics

Tue, 08 Nov 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Farming equipment manufacturer Hustler Equipment recently released an innovative range of front-end loader and tractor attachments.

Compost-bedded barns as an alternative housing option for lactating cows

barbara.jones@eku.edu — Mon, 11 Jan 2021 23:54:11 -0500

Compost-bedded pack barns have become more prevalent in the last few years.

3 alternative bedding options when supplies are tight

bravomelissa@yahoo.com — Wed, 12 Aug 2020 15:40:15 -0400

Globally, many family farms fell back on “DIY self-sufficiency” in the wake of infrastructure disruptions of transporting agriculture goods due to COVID-19 economics.

Air and light considerations for compost-bedded pack barns

jbewley@holstein.com — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 18:49:34 -0500

Compost-bedded pack barns have grown in popularity in many areas of the world as an alternative to stall-based housing systems for dairy cows. Compost-bedded pack barns are loose housing barns that rely on composting manure and organic bedding to provide resting space.

Compost-bedded pack barn design and management considerations

Tue, 15 Oct 2019 15:49:11 -0400

Compost-bedded pack (CBP) barns are an increasingly popular open barn design for housing dairy cattle, particularly with funding opportunities available through the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Alternative Manure Management Program. These barns allow natural resting positions and offer shelter with a reduced infrastructure cost compared to traditional freestall barns.

New York couples share pros and cons of compost-bedded pack barns

Sun, 31 Mar 2019 13:00:01 -0400

Bedded pack barns – either deep-bedded or compost bedded – allow cows to freely roam and lie down in any configuration they prefer. Manure is kept in place and managed in solid form.

Making the best bed: Pros and cons of bedding options

Sun, 31 Mar 2019 13:00:01 -0400

Bedding choice directly influences cow comfort, but the decision on which material to put underneath cows must consider several other factors, such as cost, availability, ease of handling, udder health, pathogen growth and more.

7 benchmarks for the best bedding quality

Mon, 21 Jan 2019 21:22:57 -0500

Promoting a surface on which cows want to lie down is about more than just comfort. The bedding material a dairy chooses plays a critical role in preventing mastitis, reducing injury, regulating temperature and fitting into the overall management system.