Round Yard or Rectangular Yard: A much debated topic!
Cow Flow
We believe rectangular yards have significantly better cow flow
than round
yards. Cows move more easily along the side rails of a rectangular
yard than
around the walls of a circular yard.
In a round yard the backing gate can only push the last cow, the
last cow will
not move if the first cow has not moved into the parlour.
It is easier to teach cows to move in a rectangular yard
by taking smaller groups with the aid of a backing gate
is able to travel over the heads of the cows before
lowering behind the next group. Managing smaller
groups of cows encourages and teaches them to flow
into the parlour.
An important part of encouraging cows to enter the milking parlour
is to ensure
that both the parlour and operator are cow friendly.
Animal Handling
The operator - herdsman need to be quiet, consistent, and an
animal friendly
person to ensure the cow flow and milk production that can be
expected, is
achieved, through a correctly designed parlour.
All good dairy farmers are aware of these principles, but most,
because they
only have to think about this perhaps once in a lifetime need help
to turn them
into workable solutions. At Dairy Projects
International we have the
knowledge and experience to work with farmers to achieve the
desired results.
