Playpen (cattle farming)
The loose house is a term used in agriculture , especially dairy farming, and describes a stable in which the livestock can move freely compared to tethered housing .
Many farms are switching from tethered housing to loose housing. This enables a more species-appropriate social behavior , increases the animal comfort and is more efficient with larger herds. The animals can move freely in the barn .
There are different forms of loose housing in dairy farming.
- A loose stall, for example, has individual berths for the cows that are separate from the walking area. The cubicles are either deep and filled with bedding or high and have special cow mattresses . The cubicle playpen is designed with a fixed or partially fixed floor: This is solid or with a slatted floor or a mixture of both.
- Deep stalls, on the other hand, have litter. There is no separation between the walking area and the berth. They are particularly suitable for young animal rearing and bull fattening, but they use up most of the straw, are very labor-intensive when clearing up and have the largest space requirement.
The playpen is standard in new barns, as it has advantages in terms of animal health and work economy. Furthermore, it has been shown that an increase in milk yield can be expected due to the improved cow comfort, especially in dairy farming.
As a disadvantage z. B. Mortellaro's disease , which is partly caused by constant dampness and which occurs less frequently when tethered.
There are also loose pens for keeping horses, for example the active stable , which is characterized by automatic feeding.
literature
- Prisca V. Kremer: Resilient floor coverings in the dairy cattle barn , VDM Verlag, ISBN 3-639-04059-7
Individual evidence
- ↑ Therapy guidelines for veterinarians. (PDF; 4.7 MB) In: blv.admin.ch . November 2019, pp. 60 - 62 , accessed January 26, 2020 .