Dairy Production in Loose Housing Systems

Liv Lønne Dille

Since 2004 it is no longer permitted to build tie-stall barns in Norway, and from 1 January 2024 it will no longer be permitted to even use existing ones. This situation has thus led to widespread construction of new dairy cattle barns. Prior to the 2024 deadline, it is expected that nearly 5000 loose housing facilities will be constructed.

Loose housing is nothing new in itself, but experience has shown that such systems have not been without problems. Often there were problems related to legs and hooves, hygiene or behaviour, while other herds have adapted well to loose housing conditions. However, there has been no systematic survey of experience from dairy herds kept in loose housing systems in Norway. Thus, the project “Dairy Cattle Kept in Loose Housing Systems” (in short: “Kubygg”) was initiated in December 2005. The project is a cooperation between the departments of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences (IHA) and Mathematical Sciences and Technology (IMT) at UMB, the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science (NVH) and the Nord Trøndelag University College (HiNT). The project is funded by the Agricultural Research Fund, the Research Council of Norway and national budget allocations. The project’s budget framework totals NOK 16 million for the period 2005-2010. Its main goal is to optimise barn layout and the selection of materials and construction methods so that good animal health and welfare can be combined with low construction costs.

Professor Egil Simensen, NVH, is the main project coordinator. Three PhD students are also linked to the project: Camilla Kielland (NVH) will focus on health-related issues, Geir Næss (UMB/IMT) will be working on barn layout, and Lars Erik Ruud (UMB/IHA) will specifically focus on details concerning installations such as resting boxes and mats. Research technicians Stine Kvivesen and Hans Kristian Hansen (HiNT) also form part of the project team.

The first challenge was to locate existing loose housing dairy barns. So far, there is no coordinated data on these in any centralised database. We therefore prepared forms for the extension officers in Norway’s two major dairy companies (TINE and Q-Dairies). Each officer was to indicate if their farmers had tie-stall or loose-housing barns. We were thus able to gather data on 11,600 herds, of which 14 % were kept in loose housing systems. We then sent questionnaires to all farmers with loose housing systems and to those with large milk quotas, but for whom we did not receive any data. These two groups accounted for 2400 farms, of which 1350 responded. Of these, we selected 270 herds that we considered to have relatively new and interesting barn designs. These farms will then be visited.

Phase I of the project will be carried out in the winter of 2006/07, and will mainly consist of field observations in which we will record cattle behaviour and hygiene, barn design, etc. Phase II will be carried out in the winter of 2007/08 and will consist of more specific field studies.

Published: 12.03.07
Updated: 14.05.09
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