What makes cows move faster?
It is always very frustrating when cows are reluctant to move through dairy facilities. As the frustration grows, the tendency to force the cows to move also grows. We often resort to shouting, twisting tails, or hitting with polypipe or worse. Does all this help the cows move through quicker or does it just make you feel better? (even if only temporarily).In a recent Canadian trial, researchers forced cows to walk down a narrow walkway of similar dimensions to a herring bone dairy. All cows passed through the walkway nine times and were exposed to a particular treatment being either shouting, electric shock, hitting, twisting the tail or no interference. The time taken for each pass was measured. The researchers determined that cows found shouting to be just as aversive as electric shocks, and that any interference slowed the progress of cows when compared to no intervention. The findings of this trial quite clearly show that cow flow was best when the cows were not fearful and were permitted to walk at their own pace without interference. The design of the dairy facilities will have an impact on cow flow, however, the way you behave towards your cows can be just as big an influence.
By trying to make the cows move through more quickly, your intervention slows the whole process down.
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