Swedish dairy production has during the last decades undergone considerable structural rationalisation and the number of dairy herds has decreased to less than 7000. At the same time the average herd size has increased and a large proportion of those investing in new buildings today choose automatic milking (AM). During 2008 more than ten percent of the Swedish cows will be milked with AM. The development has been faster than expected and the need for consulting has increased rapidly. This study aims to evaluate whether a check list originating from the FRISKKO (“healthy cow”) programme can be a useful tool when assessing how well the herd functions in various areas. Seventeen farms with AM have been visited in order to see which key factors that are relevant to use and to evaluate which cut offs these should have. As a starting point, a check list for AM developed at the Swedish Dairy Association was used. During 2007 this was complemented with a section concerning animal welfare as a result of the Swedish Dairy Association’s welfare project. The check list was upgraded after the first nine visits. After the project's completion a number of proposals to improve the check list have come forward. The relatively small material creates difficulties in achieving statistical significance but many interesting tendencies are seen.
In order to get the AMS-herd functioning optimally it is necessary to facilitate for all individuals to move between the different sections of the barn without stress. This requires that one sees the barn environment from the cow's perspectives, regarding everything from cubicle comfort, animal health and feeding routines to the barn’s layout.
The differences in how well the herds were assessed to function were largely management related. Just like in conventional systems it is the management and the “cow sense” that have the biggest impact. The udder health is a concern in many herds with AM and in order to solve these problems it is necessary to look at several factors that have an influence on the herd’s function. Fo...
