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China: Preventing heat stress in non-milking animals
In just a few years the landscape of Chinese dairy farming has changed dramatically, going from small household farms to professional and effective dairy operations. Successful farm management is therefore a top priority, especially when it comes to heat stress which can affect all animals on-farm.
BY ZHANG NAN AND SNORRI SIGURDSSON, CHINA-DENMARK MILK TECHNOLOGY COOPERATION CENTRE (CDMTCC), MENGNIU DAIRY AND ARLA FOODS JV
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A dry cow area at a Chinese dairy farm.
oday in China there are hundreds of dairy farms boasting more than 1,000 dairy cows, and these farm sizes have helped the local farmers become better at farm management; failure at this level of
dairy farming can easily result in huge deficits and eventual bankruptcy. A key management issue that most dairy farmers in China have to deal with today is how to handle the impact of heat, caused by weather, on their animals. Despite China being a
vast territory, most dairy farms in the country are affected every year by heat stress during the summer period. With the ever-changing climate, heat stress is widespread and dairy farmers in other countries are increasingly also fac- ing this situation; however, often the focus is only on the milking cows. Yet young animals and dry cows also need to be taken care of when it comes to the possible impact of heat stress, and Chinese farmers have been advised to focus on these animals too. They have done so, and positive outcomes can be seen.
Prevention in the herd Milking cows are the first source of income for dairy farms, but as most farmers know they are highly susceptible to heat stress. Farmers need to therefore set up heat stress preven- tion and cooling measures in multiple areas where milking cows are kept, such as cowsheds, milk parlours and holding areas. This has been done in many farms all over the world, but good animal welfare management should never ignore the non-milking cows and the heifers. Research has shown that heat stress also impacts dry cows; if heat stress preven- tive measures are in place where they are kept, dry cows will give birth to healthier calves that grow and develop faster than calves born to cows that were not managed the same way during the dry period. Preventive measures should also apply to small calves.
Dry cows, closed-up cows and heifers Dry cows, closed-up cows and heifers can all be affected by heat stress which can lead to metabolic disorders, so cooling measures are strongly advised. Most farms in China are de- signed with both indoor and outdoor areas for the dry cows. The indoor area is usually equipped with similar heat stress prevention methods as can be seen with the milking cows, where fans and cooling equipment play a major role in pre- vention. The outdoor area should also be considered – here Chinese dairy farmers focus on keeping the outer space dry and soft, as experience has shown that dry cows prefer to be outside to rest especially when the outdoor temperature
24 ▶ DAIRY GLOBAL | Volume 8, No. 2, 2021
PHOTOS: CDMTCC
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