Cow welfare
Cow health
Healthy cows, better results
The foundation of a successful dairy farm
Healthy cows are the foundation of every successful dairy farm. That is why, in all products we develop at Lely, we focus on keeping your cows healthy. So they continue to eat well, ruminate properly, move freely, and produce milk efficiently. This contributes to better animal welfare, lower costs and more enjoyable daily work.
Cow health
Healthy cows are more fertile and deliver higher milk production
Hoof health
A cow with healthy hooves moves more easily, eats more and performs more efficiently. Regular hoof care and clean floors are essential. A high feeding frequency also has a positive effect on hoof health.
Udder health
A healthy udder is the foundation for good milk production and milk quality. Lely products contribute to good udder health. For example, our Astronaut milking robot provides extensive (udder) health information, and the Discovery manure robot ensures a cleaner barn, which reduces the risk of infections.
Rumen health
Nutrition and frequent feeding is important for cow health. A well balanced ration supports rumen health, prevents disorders such as rumen acidosis, and ensures stable milk production.
Fertility cow
Cows that become pregnant easily ensure a stable calving interval, optimal milk production, and an efficient herd. Excessively long calving intervals, additional inseminations, and overly long lactations lead to higher costs and frustration. Lely supports fertility through heat detection and clear insight into fertility results.
Hygiene
Clean barns as the foundation for cow health
Hygiene in the barn is an important condition for cow health and animal welfare. Cows that lie in clean and dry cubicles suffer less from udder, skin, and hoof problems. Regularly adding fresh bedding and proper maintenance of mats or mattresses help keep the lying areas dry.
Barn lay-out
Cow comfort
Cow comfort involves more than just the number of available cubicles. It also includes sufficient walking space, light, proper ventilation, and clean drinking water. A cow that experiences enough comfort lies down more, ruminates more and stays healthier. A cow brush is an important tool for improving cow comfort. Cows like to use the brush to massage their skin. This stimulates blood circulation and helps reduce stress.
A cow brush:
- removes dirt and loose hair, keeping the skin cleaner and healthier, which helps prevent itching
- stimulates blood circulation, contributing to better metabolism and skin condition
- reduces stress and boredom, the cow brush supports the cow’s natural behavior
- promotes lying and rumination behavior, a relaxed cow is more likely to lie down and ruminate calmly
Data management
Monitoring cow health and early detection
By observing cows carefully on a daily basis, deviations can be noticed more quickly. A data management system and various sensors support this process. Early signs of health issues can be detected before they become visible. This makes it possible to act quickly and helps data management stay one step ahead of conditions such as mastitis, hoof problems, or metabolic diseases.
A data management system, such as Lely Horizon, is playing an increasingly important role in monitoring cow health. Horizon brings all available data together in one place, analyzes the data, and translates it into practical insights. This helps create a complete overview of the health and welfare of each individual cow. You also receive alerts when deviations occur. In Lely Horizon, you can view different reports to help detect mastitis at an early stage, for example.
Managing health treatments is essential for the health and productivity of your herd. This is also a key part of Lely Horizon: the registration of treatments. Within Horizon, you can clearly manage all treatment protocols and treatments in one overview. Lely Horizon analyses the data and translates it into actionable insights. This means one management system gives you access to everything related to animal health.
Farming insights
Would you like to learn more about cow health?
Read more in our articles.
Why farmers choose the Lely Discovery Collector
When it comes to barn hygiene, many farmers recognise one or more of the following challenges in their daily work on modern dairy farms worldwide today:
- Labour shortages and succession planning. Skilled staff are hard to find, and automation offers a more sustainable solution.
- High maintenance demands. Conventional systems require regular rope changes and repairs, which cost time and money.
- Deep bedding challenges. Working with sand or other bedding materials adds complexity to daily routines.
- Limited cleaning with traditional scrapers. Corners and narrow areas are often missed, reducing overall hygiene.
The Lely Discovery Collector is designed to solve these challenges. Built for barns where traditional systems struggle, it combines robust engineering with intelligent operation to clean almost every corner, day and night. For farmers aiming for consistent barn hygiene, healthier cows, and less manual work, the Discovery Collector is a practical choice.
More than 30,000 farmers worldwide use automated manure cleaning solutions
Every dairy farmer knows the importance of a clean barn. It’s essential for cow health, milk quality, and overall farm performance. Yet, traditional manure cleaning methods often fall short. Labour shortages, maintenance issues, and barn layout constraints can make scraping a daily challenge.
What if there is a more efficient and smarter way forward? Automation offers a powerful and proven solution. Did you know that already more than 30.000 farmers worldwide adopted automated manure cleaning solutions? Let’s dive into why automated manure cleaning is becoming essential and how it can help farmers overcome daily obstacles.
Frequently asked questions
Questions farmers ask about cow health
When cows receive smaller portions more often, the rumen pH stays more stable. This reduces the risk of rumen acidosis. It also allows rumen bacteria to work continuously, which means the cow can absorb more nutrients from the same ration.
More frequent feeding prevents peaks and drops in energy. This helps cows maintain their body condition and supports milk production. It also reduces the risk of problems such as milk fever or ketosis, especially in high-producing cows.
Feeding more often reduces competition at the feed fence. This creates a calmer barn environment and puts less strain on the hooves. It also better matches the cow’s natural eating behavior.
In short: feeding more frequently leads to a calmer rumen, better feed utilization and fewer health risks. Together, this contributes to healthier cows.
A sick cow often shows subtle signs. For example, she reacts more slowly, isolates herself from the herd, eats and ruminates less, produces less milk or milk with flakes, has a fever, or has difficulty standing up.
The earlier you recognize these signals, the greater the chance of recovery. A data management system helps you collect health indicators and alerts you when deviations are detected. This often allows you to identify a sick cow before the disease becomes visible, so you can intervene sooner and prevent further problems.
Automation helps guide cows that need treatment to the right area. This includes cows that need insemination, preventive hoof trimming, drying off, or sick cows that require medication. When working with Lely Horizon, advanced filters and automatic routing help send the right cow to the right place at the right time. This happens directly after milking in the Lely Astronaut, without disrupting the cow’s routine and without causing stress.
Cow health driven by data
Improving cow health starts with the right insights
Healthy cows form the foundation of every successful dairy farm. It is the result of daily insight into the behavior, health and environment of the herd. By identifying problems such as hoof and udder health issues, metabolic disorders, and reduced immunity at an early stage, you can prevent higher costs and production losses. Smart use of data and automation not only helps you respond to problems, but also prevent them in a sustainable and consistent way.