Hydor News
NEW PAPER PUBLISHED ON HEAT STRESS IN DAIRY COWS
"Heat Stress & the Dairy Cow" reviews existing research on the subject, examining the effect of heat stress, its impact on production and health and identifying strategies which are available to alleviate the problem. Initially explaining what constitutes 'Heat Stress', recognising that a lactating dairy cow will typically produce heat equivalent to sixteen 100 watt light bulbs as a result of its metabolic processes, the paper then looks at the complex relationship between temperature and humidity.
It explains the levels at which cows will start to suffer mild stress (including the likelihood of high yielding cattle being more prone to the effects) and also the point at which a real risk of death can arise due to extreme temperature and humidity. The potential consequences of heat stress include reduced yield, reduced food intake, increased water intake, lower conception rates, lower calf weights, increased mastitis and increased Laminitis.
The focus then moves to methods to tackle heat stress with improved ventilation, identifying the range of fans available which are specifically designed to overcome the poor natural ventilation which is typical of modern dairy housing. An introduction is provided to the evaporative cooling process which can cool air below ambient temperatures, followed by an overview of integrated climate control systems which combine the benefits of both fans and evaporate cooling for maximum benefit.
The Paper was written by Mike Tanton, Technical Sales Executive with Hydor, who spent 25 years in farming following his degree in Agricultural Technology, before joining Hydor in 2010. He comments – "my background is primarily in poultry farming and I have seen how fans and cooling technology have been embraced by this sector to help improve welfare and productivity. We are now seeing increasing take up from dairy farmers, certainly from those with a more progressive attitude, who realise that effective ventilation can make a significant contribution to productive output, cow health and so, ultimately, to their bottom line."
A copy of the Paper is freely available from Hydor's website www.hydor.co.uk. Alternatively please contact Hydor on 01725 511422 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Hydor Ltd is part of the £70 million Elta Group, a family of businesses with operations in six countries on four continents which, together with a network of international distributors, provides quality fans and related air movement equipment to customers worldwide.
