As the autumn-calving season approaches, dairy farmers may be wondering whether it is better to calve in a shed or paddock.
Autumn calving generally means that some, if not all cows could be calved outside at grass.
But weather conditions so far this year would question whether that will be an option for farmers this year.
Weather
Many farms calve cows outside during the autumn, but the weather conditions are going to have the biggest influence on whether this will be possible this year.
The argument that many make is that keeping cows out for calving in the autumn keeps them fit and thus reduces the need for intervention at calving.
Although calving cows outside does have its advantages, farmers should still have access to the calving pens if and when required.
There is also the option of keeping cows in at night and letting them out during the day, but this increases the workload at an already busy period.
Calving cows outside also has benefits, with one being a reduced bacterial load placed on a calf at birth.
Ideally, cows that are inside have a clean bed of straw with a low bacterial count – however this is not always the case.
When it comes to heifers the best option is likely to calve them inside to ensure that there are no issues.
Autumn calving
The location of soon-to-calve cows really depends on every individual farm’s situation.
While calving cows outside does have it advantages, it also poses some problems.
If cows are being calved outside, they should be close to handling facilities for when they are required.
Cows calving outside need to be checked regularly and it might make more sense to keep cows in at night.
The weather over the coming weeks and months is also going to be a major factor in determining whether they should be calved inside or outside.