Katharine Shepherd of Bishopton Vets looks at how to improve your cattle housing.

With winter approaching now is the time to critically appraise your cattle housing options, says Katharine Shepherd.

She adds that there are five crucial factors to consider in regard to cattle housing: ventilation (the fresh air supply), humidity, bedding, temperature and hygiene.

It is important to maximise fresh air supply on a still day without exposing livestock to a harsh wind when the weather inevitably turns.

Moisture management is also key as this affects humidity, bedding and hygiene.

Don’t forget to should consider carefully drainage and machinery access to sheds, as their effective and efficient cleaning will hugely improve outcomes for stock.

The following checklist – adapted from AHDB, Improve beef housing for better returns – is a good place to start when looking at your buildings.

  • Floor space: Is the floor space adequate for the number of stock and are there draughts or damp areas which effectively reduce the usable pen area?
  • Flooring: Do all pens drain effectively? Is any concrete non-slip and non-damaging?
  • Group size: Steers and heifers should be in a group of less than 40 and bulls in a group of less than 20.
  • Grouping: Are groups well matched in terms of sex and size and whether they’re horned or not?
  • Feeding: What limits feeding? How easy is it to clean feeders? What effect would bad weather have?
  • Water: Can all stock access unlimited quantities of clean drinking water at all times? How often are drinkers/troughs cleaned?
  • Ventilation: Is fresh air available throughout the building?
  • Hygiene: how easy is it to clean floors and pen walls? How often is it cleaned? Does the floor drain easily after washing, making sure dirty water doesn’t go into adjacent pens.
  • Lighting: Is this good enough to be able to inspect stock at all times? Consider the distribution of lights and any shadows created.
  • Handling facilities: Are these safe and easy to use? How many people are required to safely move stock through the handling facility? Check for anything which may prevent stock moving efficiently, for example shadows, change in floor surface or clutter.
  • Equipment condition: Regularly inspect gates, pens, floors etc to make sure they’re in good condition.
  • Capacity: Have you considered capacity for times when you are cleaning or quarantining stock?

We are keen to help you to appraise your buildings and to ensure you get the best outcomes. We will bring along tools such as smoke pellets to assess ventilation in your buildings and walk through any alterations it might be helpful to make.

We would rather come out to discuss strategies with you in advance than be called out to manage a pneumonia outbreak in the future.

Please speak to your herd vet or get in touch with your veterinary practice to discuss the next steps.