Optimising Grazing with the Lely Astronaut

The introduction of the Lely Astronaut automatic milking system, Lely Grazeway selection box and Lely Discovery automatic manure scraper has delivered the desired work-life balance for a South Tipperary farmer who hasn’t looked back since going robotic.

Brendan English, who is currently milking 69 cows on a 27-hectare block on the family farm at Garryclogher, just outside Cahir, also works off-farm and began exploring automated milking options in 2016.

“Up to that point, we were milking in an eight-unit parlour but the time had come for us to consider a more efficient alternative,” said Brendan. “So, once we’d put in the necessary research and given it the required level of thought, we opted for Lely and installed the Astronaut in March 2017.

“We placed our Grazeway at a point which provided good access for the cow, whether she's walking from our A, B or C milking blocks. Once we had the system in place, we put all the cows out to grass and then trained them through the Grazeway and then onto the Astronaut all in one go.”

Prior to 2017, the English’s herd was miked on a set schedule, irrespective of readiness or cow handling (both over-milking and under-milking can lead to udder and teat problems).

Thanks to the Lely Astronaut, cows are free to be milked whenever the pre-set parameters allow them to do so by either through the minimum amount of milkings or expected milk production. Lely’s robotic milking system is also gentler on the cow, reducing stress while providing greater freedom of movement.

In tandem, the Lely Grazeway compliments the Astronaut’s efficiency. Thanks to the Grazeway, cows choose for themselves whether and when they want to go out to pasture. Via the tags’ cow-recognition system, the Lely Grazeway then determines whether or not they can.

 “Initially we were bringing cows in incrementally. But once the first few cows came in, more followed – and by week three, 90 per cent of the cows were moving freely in and out to the robot themselves. And by week six, every single cow was moving freely.” Brendan recalled.

The English family adopted a “cardinal rule” when it came to bedding in the new on-farm practice. “We just didn’t hunt cows,” said Brendan. “What we’ve had in place for the past eight years is a cow-led and cow-centred system and from the outset, we haven’t had an issue with the cows coming into the robot for milking.”

As part of integrating the Lely suite, the English family implemented the ‘ABC’ grazing system, offering three fresh eight-hour grazing/feed allocations for the herd on a daily basis.

Said Brendan: “We already had the A roadway in place whereas we had decisions to make when it came to both the B and C roadways; we actually moved our C roadway a year in because we realised there was a preferable place for it. We then added on spur roadways to make it easier to reach certain paddocks.

“Our farmyard isn't exactly in the centre (of the holding) but at the same time the furthest paddock is only 500 metres away and the cows tend to flow in and out of the robot - it’s not too huge a distance either.

‘We’re utilising our grass better’ 

“This is a limestone (soil-based) farm so the cows were grazing until November 23rd while our turnout date was on January 16th. And thanks to the Grazeway, we can utilise our grass better. We can get the cows out in a calmer way and then they incrementally come in and out. We’ve established that the recovery and regrowth’s have improved post-automation, which means that cows are out longer and they're getting more grass into the system.”

Meanwhile, the Lely Discovery Scraper has literally taken the daily task of manure-scraping out of Brendan’s hands, with its smart design providing access to every corner of the barn, helping to maintain optimal barn hygiene.

While production levels at the end of the first year of automated milking were more or less the same as they were the previous year, by years three and four, the benefits of the system became evident to Brendan.

“By 2021, we were up to 540kg of milk solids whereas over the last couple of years, when the weather hasn’t been as good, we’ve been at 507kg of solids and have fed just over 1000 kilos of meal to deliver that figure. Our better cows are being fed a little more so they're coming to the robot more frequently and are being milked a bit more. For example, our top cow for a couple of years was being milked three times a day, producing 10,000 litres, which underlines how well the system works for high producing cows.”

Data-driven access 

Data-driven access to individual animal performance via the Lely Astronaut is another of the many benefits the English farm has benefited from. “At the touch of a button, we have figures on fat, protein, cell count, milk speed and the cow’s general health. We can tell if a cow has mastitis before it becomes a full-blown case, which is a massive help. With the Lely Discovery keeping the yard so clean, the number of mastitis cases has dropped considerably. That means more milk in the tank and more profit.”

With individual data available for each cow, combined with the data of the bulls used during breeding, Brendan has seen improvements in protein and milk speed respectively. “The technology that we have at our disposal means we can zone in on the score of both the cow and the bull, all of which is vital in helping to breed the best possible calf.”  

Brendan added: “Thanks to the flexibility provided by the automated system, I’m no longer rushing around to get jobs done the way I used to. Sure, you still have to move wires and so on – that’s just a fact of life – but the fact that the system is cow-centred is a huge benefit from both the herd’s perspective and my own.

“Combined with the quality of the support service that Lely provides – you can call them at any time and you’ll get a reply – the entire package works so well for us. Be it a call-out or over the phone, there’s no great delay in resolving any issue - and for me, that’s what sets Lely apart.”