Cows enjoy a room with a view and health benefits
Kent and Annette Anderson’s cows enjoy the ultimate room with a view as they calve under shelter on the rolling hills overlooking Stanley in northern Tasmania. But it’s not the scenic attraction of The Nut in the background that appeals to Kent and Annette, it’s the health and welfare benefits that come from calving in a Dairy Shelters Australia structure. Kent and Annette moved to Vegasoul’s Spring Farm last year after share farming for three years at the owner’s sister farm, Nutview, where they were introduced to the benefits of calving under shelter.
After supervising paddock calving for more than 20 years in the dairy industry, they weren’t about to go back. “We had a calving barn on the other farm and when we calved here last year without it, we said we’d never do it without a shelter again,” Kent said.
The farms are owned by a Hong Kong investor and overseen by New Zealand consultant Hamish Edge. Kent and Annette are sharefarmers on a milk solids basis. With support from two full-time staff and two backpackers, they milk 720 Holstein-Jersey cross-bred cows on about 340 hectares. The farm had a Holstein herd under the previous owner but changed to the cross-breds to increase milk solids and lessen the impact of the cows on the land.
“We get a lot of rain,” Kent says. “We don’t talk inches; we talk metres.” Kent and Annette enjoy a close relationship with the farm management and were keen to discuss shelter options, not only to create a better environment for the cows but to protect the land. That’s where the Dairy Shelters Australia structure became an essential part of the farm’s infrastructure – with more likely to come.
“We put the calving shelter in this year and it’s bloody brilliant,” Kent said. “All we had before was an open calving pad and it always got boggy and muddy.”
Nutview had a traditional enclosed barn and while that was helpful, Kent and Annette discussed the option of the clear roof, deep litter shelter with Hamish and their former vet, Neil Leighton, who has joined the Dairy Shelters Australia team.
“For an enclosed shed this size you’re looking at $350,000-$400,000 but the Dairy Shelters Australia option was considerably cheaper and we think it’s even better with the sunlight and warmth they let in,” Kent said.
“We found out some more information and then met the Dairy Shelters Australia team at AgFest and it all happened very quickly.”
The decision to build two side-by-side shelters was made in May but with calving due to start on August 5, the pressure was on. With no builders available locally, a team from Victoria flew down to do the work.
“We were worried about the weather so they organised a team to come across from the mainland,” Annette said. “They got here in June and had it up in 13 days. They were great. It was bloody cold but they were here at half past five in the morning and worked till it was dark.”
The shelters were ready in time and the 2024 calving period finished with great success.
“There are so many benefits,” Annette said. “Your cows are warm and dry and right beside the dairy. The clear roof brings in the sunshine and warmth and you don’t have health issues like out in the paddocks and you don’t trash your paddocks,” Kent added.
The existing calf shed was at maximum capacity so part of the new shelter was partitioned off to house some older calves.
The success has prompted Kent and Annette to plan more clear-roof shelters for raising calves and housing cows during the harsh Tasmanian winters.
“We’ve got 1000 square metres with the current calving shelter but if we bumped it out to 6000 square metres, on a bad day the cows could go into the paddock and eat for two hours and then come back to the shelter,” Kent said.
“It would be much better than being in the water and the mud. They could lay down in the warmth and they wouldn’t be trashing the paddocks and we wouldn’t have the cost of repairing pastures all the time.
“There are multiple health benefits for the cows and you reduce the risk of many calving-related diseases if they are warmer and sheltered. You always get one of two stillborn calves but you don’t lose any due to the elements. This time of year, can be pretty tough here.”
Kent and Annette say Dairy Shelters Australia shelters are good for the reputation of the industry. “There are a lot of people who don’t understand what farmers have to do at calving time,” Kent said.
“You might see a dead cow but it’s not the fault of the farmer; it’s what sometimes happens in dairying. With these, you reduce the risk of things going wrong because they’re in a better environment and they’re in a safer spot where we can check on them. By having the shelter, we alleviate a lot of that risk so it’s got to be good for the industry.”
The shelters are generating a lot of interest. “We’ve had so many neighbours call in to have a look and they’re all impressed,” Annette said. “This is the way things are going to go.”
While they have no plans for a total barn system, Kent and Annette say having multiple clear-roof shelters would bring great management flexibility. “From October to May it lends itself to get the cows outside here,” Kent said, “But we’d like the capacity to house them all over winter and just give them a few hours out in the paddock to eat and then can come back here out of the elements.
“It’s better for the cows, the paddocks and the farmers.”