Cow Comfort
“Your cows should be eating, drinking, milking and lying down.”
The comfort and absorbency of the bedding you choose for your cows has a pivotal effect on how long cows lie down for. During this rest time cows build up their strength which allows for increased productivity, milk yields and rumination, along with less stress and a reduced vet bill.
Why is cow comfort important?
- In the field cows lie down 40-50% of their time
- On concrete in cubicles cows lie down approx 12/15% of the day
- On mats in cubicles cows lie down 12/14 (50-58%) hours a day. This can be spread over 15-20 periods, lasting from 30mins to 3 hours.
- Whilst lying, cows ruminate which helps milk yields and blood flow to the udder increases by up to 50% which increases milk yield in direct proportion
- Each year a cow will lie down and rise 5000-7000 times and mats/mattress help reduce pressure on cows’ knees by up to on third compare with concrete.
Shallow Bed History
The Shallow-bed system was popular in the late 1970's, developed by Newton Rigg Agricultural College. This system is still being extensively used in the Netherlands and has given them excellent result with the use of EnviroBed in the system.
Today significant numbers of UK farmers have gone back to basics, favouring the shallow-bed system as it helps them improve cow comfort as it is known that that 70% of rumenation occurs when the cow is in the lying position. The extra comfort also can ensure against hock damage whilst being economical on bedding usage.
The system can be adapted from existing deep bed sand or straw cubicles as well as being easy to implement from mats or matress systems. It is a simple way to keep cows clean and healthy with less work. The exceptional absorbency of EnviroBed means fluids are absorbed readily and the bedding stays healthy for longer. In the shallow-bed system EnviroBed forms a cushion for the hocks reducing abrasion and preventing hock damage.
If you are currently using mats and matresses it is easy to test the system and see if your cows lie down more comfortably. Simply place a retaining batten onto the back of the cubicles so that a shallow-bed (5-6") of EnviroBed can be retained for the cows to lie on and keep comfortable and dry. Many farmers do the test by just doing this on one row initially and allowing the cows to tell them if it is their preferred surface.
The shallow-bed system is the preferred cubicle bedding system in Holland to avoid hock damage and improve lying down times. EnviroBed was chosen as the ideal animal bedding to use in shallow-beds due to:
- The density - stays in the beds better than sawdust, sand or straw
- The high pH and copper content - discourages pathognic bacteria
- Extreme absorbency - better lifespan from bedding
