Barns & Equipment

Almost 10 years ago, brothers Mark and Paul Berning decided to install an automated calf feeder to assist with one of the tasks at Green Waves Farm in St. Michael, Minnesota.

Collecting and analyzing critical data points, from activity to rumination, for every individual cow can be a struggle for many dairy farms. But this type of information is paramount in maintaining the health and well-being of an entire herd.

Often when we think about putting time into proper operation, maintenance and tool safety, our thoughts turn to the expensive power tools at our disposal.

On most modern dairy operations across the U.S., you will find an office with a computer. The computer is most likely running 24 hours a day and may be covered with some dust or fly scat. In that computer, you can find records and information about the performance of the dairy herd.

In our previous article in the Feb. 7, 2019 issue of Progressive Dairyman, we discussed the history of milk filters and their importance in the milking process (Milk filters: The unsung hero of successful milking outcomes).

Parlor expectations have changed. The goal of milking cows the best we can remains: to milk them safely, gently, quickly and completely. But the need for efficiency has changed how we milk cows, the number of cows we strive to milk per hour and how we approach milking labor.