| UK Dairy Day
Getting the best return from your housing
As thoughts turn to placing your animals indoors for the winter ahead, nothing contrast
more than healthy productive outdoor pastures of the last 7-8 months to the harsh
environment of living on concrete slats for the coming 4-5 months. In fact it is no wonder
that animals don’t do as well during this period.
ver time in the
barn the cold, wet
harsh concrete
wears down the
animals resistance
and If you try to
envision how to improve your
cattle’s life indoors, words like dry,
warm clean, stress free &
comfortable spring to mind.
What is the one area in the barn
that can have an immediate impact
in improving the conditions for
your animals during the winter
period? Yes, giving your animal a
dry, comfortable surface to walk
upon is the most cost effective
return on investment.
If you have SLATS, The Green
Floor System by Comfort Slat Mats
offers a dry, clean and comfortable
floor which will benefit your cattle
for the winter months ahead.
Improving the Environment
In addition, the suppleness of
the product simulates the normal
grassland surface on which
animals graze and allows the
animal to stand-up or lie-down in a
more natural manner. The profiled
design of the slat cover
O
encourages urine and faeces to
move through the gaps between
the slats and into the storage tank
below the floor resulting in cleaner
floors and thus cleaner animals.
The Green Floor System by
Comfort Slat Mats has been
designed as THE solution to
prevent lameness caused by the
slats by tackling the problems of 1.
Wet floors – a casual factor of
lameness 2. Lack of grip 3. Un-
hygienic & Un-healthy floors
1 Curved – for the speedy
removal of urine from the floor
creating a dry walking area.
2 Dynamic / Cushioned core –
designed to allow the claw to
“grip” into the floor and
3 Snap-Lock – Encapsulates the
slat rib
Slat mat may be seen as too
expensive, but in time will be
deemed essential as their benefits
become more accepted. Attributed
benefits are reduced lameness,
easier for animals to get up, more
thrive and more comfort. Even if
you feel mats are too prohibitive at
today’s margins, you must plan for
the future. Go see cattle units on
22 | Farming Monthly | October 2017
other farms and see for yourself.
Check out how the mats are
performing on these farms, are the
mats secure and remain in
position. Look at the surface for
wear. Are the animals inclined to
slip? Why not plan to do a couple
of pens!
Cattle don’t like getting up from
a slatted floor, so if you see cattle
or suckler cows getting up a bit
like a horse, you know there is
something wrong. Cattle are weary
of getting up for fear that their
knees will be in the slot when they
pivot on them to get up. This
increases stress and shortens
feeding and lying times.
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