Robotic Spreader Beds Livestock Automatically

Robotic Spreader Beds Livestock Automatically LIVESTOCK Miscellaneous A robotic spreader from JH Agro keeps livestock and poultry happy and healthy and reduces labor for their owners The Danish equipment spreads straw sand and other bedding material with no need for shovel or fork Nick DeBoer has used one in his Ontario dairy for the past 5 years “It saves a lot of labor and is good for the cows ” says DeBoer “Even with mattresses for stalls a little straw helps reduce abrasiveness It makes life a little nicer for the cows ” DeBoer appreciates that not only do he and his workers not have to spread straw by hand they don’t have to disturb the cows by entering the loafing area That is especially important with the robotic milking system he installed at the same time He says it has been a good investment in cow comfort Every morning the battery-powered automated bedding distributor zips back and forth on rails It spreads a small square bale’s worth of straw with each trip returning to base to reload when empty DeBoer loads a large square straw bale into a chop box It chops the bale up and elevates the straw to fill the distributor as needed He uses about one large bale a week to keep 135 stalls bedded If straw falls on a cow DeBoer knows the straw will fall off when she stands up or moves around The system is easily programmed to control how and where the straw is distributed DeBoer says the distribution system has been very low maintenance “It has operated smoothly and I’ve only had to replace the batteries and install an updated circuit board ” he says “I have a robotic feeder that requires much more support ” DeBoer bought the distribution system as part of a robotic dairy system package from Norwell Dairy He also uses a robotic calf feeder and is sold on the reduced labor “I don’t think my kids would have stayed with the dairy business without the robotics ” he says He notes that a number of hog producers have visited his operation to see the spreader JH Agro says European hog and poultry producers like the system for feeding roughage The company cites research showing feeding roughage to pen-free egg-laying hens reduces feather pecking and cannibalism Sows fed roughage like corn silage are more content and less stressed There’s a video of the straw distribution system at FARMSHOW com Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Norwell Dairy Systems Ltd 37 Drayton Industrial Drive Drayton Ont Canada N0G 1P0 ph 519 638-3535; info@norwelldairy com; www norwelldairy com

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