Cowhouse does not sell equipment as such but we can help to inform you and facilitate the sourcing or manufacture of the right equipment direct from suppliers to you from all over the world and NZ.
We will give you an independent non sales focussed view of what works and what does not. (A lot of US or even EU based equipment is NOT suitable under NZ conditions)
Often farmers get excited by a "good deal offered" by a builder or unrelated company. This may be false economy! The needs of the cow require a top level input, understanding and expertise to ensure it will work for you to your expected outcomes.
For a manufacturer to just copy a stall frame and fit that as a standard frame as part of the build is asking for difficulties.
Already in NZ we have seen some farmers loose more than acceptable levels of cows, most of these losses are due to bad design and bad advise or no advise.
Housed cow losses should never be more than in a pasture based situation, ideally they should be less.... and they can be! Cowhouse Ltd has many clients whom be happy to talk to you how we have helped them create the best system for their cows
Pay a few dollars upfront and get what will work on your farm for your herd.
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Permanent soft bedding in compost form has recently been banned by a number of Dutch Dairy companies
Reasons are the possible contamination of milk and animals by damaging pathogen.
This follows a report a few years ago which highlighted possible dangers to human and animal respiratory systems in indoor facilities
When housing cows in a Freestall, various equipment items may be needed, like a "snowplough" on your bike or tractor to move feed to the feed rack, or "turning wheel" to swipe feed to the feedlane, or a "robot Uno" maybe a sludge tank or contractor to help you move sludge... Special stirrers which do not break your lining and stir the heavy sludge effectively. Gates for separating cows inside the scraper lane bays, parts for your scrapers, you name it we can help you obtain it.
We work with various quality manufacturers and suppliers and make sure that their equipment is suitable for your purpose.
It pays to ask us for an opinion before you buy anything as very often sales talk and facts may not be the same
The New Zealand animal housing market is very young, not many people have a lot of experience.. so do not just copy the neighbour! At Cowhouse we have been involved for more than 10 years and have been involved from day one for advice on the initial design concepts for NZ conditions. Most NZ farms having house cows have had some or total involvement from Cowhouse Ltd through its principal Harmen Heesen.
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Good clean water is vital, you have heard it all before... and it is hard enough to provide for this outside on pasture. Now try inside... there too many choices, tipping troughs, concrete troughs, water heated troughs, fast flowing space saving troughs. The right choice comes from analysing the needs and best design system for the best wellbeing and production of your dairy cows and the practical use of the day to day management of the facility. Some very smart and easy to manage systems have been developed by Cowhouse ltd for you to benefit from
There are many, many stall frames, and each design has its benefits and draw backs... its not "just a piece of bent steel" height, length, width of bay as well as shape of the frame will all have an impact on cow wellbeing. We suggest strongly not to obtain these products without proper and qualified advice. An engineer or builder however capable is not a cow wellbeing expert. At Cowhouse we know all the options and will help you select a stall frame which is suitable for your cows.
Recently we have seen some installations of "green sticks" a product which did its entry in the EU over 10 years ago and never got traction. The product on the face of it gives cows more freedom, but what it actually does is it gives no control as such cows stand on the matts sideways, turn around in stalls and are generally not clean. We do not recommend "green sticks" as a suitable product for NZ Dairy Housing systems
This is a good example of what does not work under NZ conditions.. a stall design which is flexible and none guiding.
Flexible sticks instead of a firm stall results in cows moving around and turning around and stand on side of stalls. The hassles created in this systems do not warrant any cost savings (if any) or novelty factor. NZ farmers should not be used as a testing ground... i.e. if its not common use in EU or USA do not use it is a fair base to work from.
With these Green sticks there is a fine line between control and no control. This product provides NO control under NZ conditions and is definitely not on our list of recommended products
The seller based in Denmark... whom sells either direct or through builders. The latter with limited experience and background applied on what is required to meet what is the best manner in which animal wellbeing system under NZ conditions are applied. The seller appears to have very little interest in fixing existing systems which are in general NOT working.
Cowhouse representative Harmen Heesen has travelled to the EU in Oct 2013 to visit various barns in Germany which have been equipped with the Green Stick product. In his observations under EU designed systems and EU based uniform very heavy cows the system appears to be working to the farmers satisfaction. There appear to be very few systems installed in the Netherlands which by many standards is the " Holy Grail in Innovative systems trials"
Under NZ conditions we have very different parameters which may not be easily accommodated by the Green stick product.
Any farmer contemplating to buy this product should be very aware of the limitations or should ensure to engage specialist expertise beforehand for a second opinion.
Cow profiling is an essential in all stall guidance system choice and set up in NZ... our cows are not uniform so where overseas it is almost 100% safe to use manufacturers set up recommendations to weight and or age, in NZ this proves not to deliver the results needed for optimum cow comfort
To actually get cows laying properly in a stall is a skill, it requires a good understanding of cow needs and cow dimensions.... Not one set up is the same, care and expertise engaged in this area pays off big time
When cows need to be separated, ensure you get some good gates, last thing you want is a farm gate tied up with string.
Good access and ability to instantly swap between stalls or feed barriers.
Entry gates to scraper lanes, feedlane gates and access gates to the Dairy, horses for courses. Your local engineer may make great gates but does he have the know how and background that really understands what you need.
High lift gates are great for housing systems as they allow an easy none obstructive way in which cos can be separated and managed.
This system shown is totally flexible , a few bolts and the system can be located where ever you wish.
Well thought out and all complete, comes as a kit set
Cows like scratching and rubbing... why, because they have a need to get rid of bugs and itchy skin. Even more so indoors.
Dust, unwanted hair, muck and maybe just a good head scratch is all it takes to be content and beautiful.
Looking after your cows means they look after you.
Automatic scrapers come in various formats and designs, the Europeans and North Americans have a long development history in this field. Length of drag, width of lane, lane surface, type of effluent all need to be considered. For every in house facility there is a system, just a matter of choosing the right one. At Cowhouse we have the information and choice to get it right.
Ridge design... any ridge will do? wrong!, ventilation for an inhouse facility is paramount. Very few people understand dairy cow ventilation. Every aspect of the building design and its location will have an impact. At Cowhouse we have the background detail to ensure ventilation works for your cow house. (don't just copy the one down the road) every vent ridge is designed for the size and purpose of the building.
Pushing up feed to the feed lane is an other job which can be done automatically, more feed available close to the mouth means more feed down the cow where it counts.
A Lely Uno Feedpusher can make the difference!
www.lely.co.nz
This company does a great scraper for on the front of the motorbike originally designed for scraping dung, however this unit proves to be very suitable for scraping feed to the feed barrier.
www.newmanengineering.co.nz
This stirrer is no joke... designed for permament pond installations. Pond stirring is on many farms neglected.. why? simply most eguipment is either not suitable or to labour intensive to operate. Or it is damaging liners. The Gigabite stirrer addresses all these issues and more.
Developed by specialist for a specilist job.
Effluent ponds are in the "limelight" new technology and systems result in better systems and design for longer term storage options.
Talk to us about concrete lined pond, steel glass effluent storage slips and mixing systems.
Feed barriers are crucial for best feed intake and maximum hygiene.
From proven principles and designs a NZ feedlane mould is available. Modular and to any length, this feedlane module ensures best design and the cows wellbeing is taken care of.
A vent curtain is not windbreak... special moulded curtains for inhouse dairy systems in many different densities will determine, temperature and ventilation aspects of the facility. In some locations nothing may be required other than a good location, natural windbreak like trees or similar. In other locations we may need a permanent curtain for maximum light and minimum wind flow, or an adjustable curtain. Many choices of materials, suppliers and designs. (as an aside we have found these curtains also to be great for a dairy sheds open to prevailing winds and also calf sheds)
When you change cows from a pasture based only system to a hydrid pasture inhouse system, aspects of cow hygiene and the ability to rest comfortably come to the fore. Over many years the Europeans have developed some very smart mattress concepts which address all the needs of the high producing Dairy cow of today. Materials ranging from rubber to polyurethane, pvc, synthetic rubber, woven matting, tube matting, water beds! and more, many choices and many features and benefits.
Cost is an issue as is proven results. At Cowhouse we have all the testing reports and NZ based practical results. With now well over 50.000 cows on mats in in-house facilities in NZ we can give you the widest industry reality check in this important area of housing cows.
We do not recommend any matting be obtained which does not have a testing report from an independent well qualified organization like the EU based DLG Sigma test institute.
( a bit like a consumers institute for farm equipment)
Water beds by definition have a fancy connotation, possibly more human related than cow related. Fact is in NZ where we generally have cold nights and house cows during colder periods waterbeds would actually suck energy out of cows rather than put energy in. (all that cold water has to take in heat from the cow right). Aside form that NZ studies have now confirmed that cows actually hate water beds and are not getting their desired resting times . Resting times are vital to milk production as that is when the blood circulated more through the udder.
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Sand beds are best. World wide results on what do cows like best are clear, sand.
However sand is a menace when it comes to pumps and scrapers and effluent distribution equipment . In NZ sand is not readily available every where and there is a huge cost in cleaning and filling beds.
In general it is considered that under a high efficient low labour input system sand for NZ conditions is a very brave choice.
Cowhouseâ„¢ Limited
Phone: 0800 80 90 98
E-mail: sales@cowhouse.co.nz