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CONSULT CORNER
Robotic Milking Resources from John Gerbitz
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IT MATTERS MORE IN ROBOTS
What matters more in robots? In some respects, almost everything. Some robot farmers complain that they cannot maintain the consistent...
WHAT'S HOLDING YOU BACK IN ROBOTIC MILKING?
There are 3 primary physical limitations on production in robotic milking systems. The first is milking capacity, or the number of...
EVALUATING HERD PERFORMANCE BY PARITY AND STAGE OF LACTATION
Robot herds are unique in that there are management changes built into the system for different stages of lactation. In most parlor herds, once cows leave the fresh pen, they stay in the same pen, get milked the same number of times, and eat the same ration throughout the lactation. Robotic milking systems can be set to adjust the milking frequency and pellet feeding according to milk production and stage of lactation. It makes sense to group data by lactation number and stag
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WHICH COMES FIRST – MORE MILKINGS OR MORE MILK?
Sometimes robotic milking conversations in farm meetings sound a little bit like, which came first, the chicken of the egg.
2 days ago3 min read
ROBOT COWS NEED A FAST START
Getting robot cows off to a fast start, early in lactation, keeps them moving to feed which supports more frequent milking and higher peak production. A 26,000-pound Holstein herd should expect the average heifer to peak at 90 pounds and the average mature cow to peak at 115 pounds.
May 73 min read
A TALE OF TWO FEED BUNKS
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” I must admit, I have never read the Charles Dicken novel, A Tale of Two Cities, which opens with those phrases. But I am familiar with the contrast described. I do believe, in all my years of farm visits, I have seen the best of feed bunks and the worst of feed bunks.
Apr 303 min read
ROBOTIC FARM FEATURE – HEEG FAMILY DAIRY
This dairy has drawn a lot of attention because they were the first to start a robot barn with no feed in the robots. That’s an exciting innovation, but it’s only one example of Jay’s herd management focus. You won’t listen to Jay very long before you hear him say his cows are, “Living their best life,” and he wants to “Set cows up for success.”
Apr 203 min read
LESS PELLETS AND MORE MILK – IN A FREE FLOW BARN
The feed in the free-flow robot cannot be eliminated, but there may be opportunities to feed less. The strategy for feeding less depends on the demographics of the herd or pen.
Apr 162 min read
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE ROBOTIC MILKING?
If you ask 100 dairy farmers why they chose robotic milking, you will probably get at least 50 different answers. Many started looking at robots because they wanted to save labor, or make their schedule more flexible. As they learned more, they may have come to expect higher production, longer productive life, or more consistency. Others want to encourage the next generation, or reduce the physical demands of dairy farming.
Apr 93 min read
WHY COWS COME TO THE ROBOT – REVISITED
I like to answer “Why do cows come to the robot?” with a few more questions. What do cows want to do? What do we want cows to do? What motivates cows? What can we control?
Apr 23 min read
ROBOTIC FARM FEATURE – JTP FARMS
Today, 460 cows are milked by 9 DeLaval robots – a mix of classics and V300’s. Jake has continued to innovate by adding a Lely Vector automatic TMR feeding system. He uses technology to create uniformity for his cows and simplicity for his workers.
Mar 262 min read
SHOULD YOU RETROFIT THAT BARN WITH ROBOTS?
In many cases, the first question was whether to retrofit robots into the old barn, or start over with a completely new facility. I suggest moving that question to the back burner. Instead, start with a clean slate, and create a list of the features you want in your robotic facility. Begin with the end in mind. Once you have your list, evaluate your existing facility and determine which features can be incorporated into the existing barn, and which ones can’t. You may choose
Mar 193 min read
PLANNING FOR 6000 POUNDS PER ROBOT
We talked about goals in a farm team meeting a few weeks ago. Actually, the goal had already been established, and the customer shared that he planned to increase production per robot by about 12%. It’s a clearly defined and measurable goal. I ruined the moment with a simple question – “How?” Not that the goal wasn’t achievable, but it wasn’t going to happen without a plan.
Mar 123 min read
MANAGING LONG ROBOTIC MILKING INTERVALS
Long milking intervals become a problem when more than 10% of cows are over 14 hours, or when mid-lactation production drops because cows stop coming to the robot. Then we need to look at herd trends and individual lactations to figure out why cows became long-interval cows.
Mar 53 min read
ROBOTIC FARM FEATURE – HOMESTEAD DAIRY
With 36 robots, Homestead Dairy of Plymouth, Indiana is one of the larger robotic dairies in the United States. It is owned by Brian Houin and his extended family. Many large robotic dairies have several barns with 6 to 8 robots per barn. At Homestead, all of the robots are under one roof – an 8 ½ acre roof.
Feb 262 min read
WHICH COWS ARE YOU FETCHING TO THE ROBOTS?
Fetching too many cows makes robots less available for cows to milk voluntarily, and can lead to a fetching habit. The fetching routine should include fresh heifers, fresh cows, recently moved cows, cows that need motivation, and overdue cows. If your barn is flowing well, you might not have any cows in one or more of those groups.
Feb 193 min read
HOW TO CHOOSE A ROBOT FEED
A bin full of the wrong robot feed is like that. Once the feed is in the bin you either feed it out or find a way to divert it for another use. The larger the load, the bigger the problem. I have had calls from customers who filled a bin with a “better buy” which slowed cow traffic in a matter of days. How do you choose the right robot feed, and what can you do to minimize the impact of the transition.
Feb 123 min read
TRACK YOUR HEIFER TRAINING
Average daily milkings for fresh heifers can be deceiving. Even if they average 3 milkings, half of them are milking less than 3 times a day – maybe a lot less.
Feb 53 min read
FARM FEATURE - SANDHILL DAIRY'S NO-PELLET TRANSITION
I worked with Sandhill Dairy as we took their cows from 7 pounds per cow per day to no pellet in the robot. Here is how we did it.
Jan 193 min read
NOTES FROM A ROBOTIC MILKING PEER GROUP
Last month I was invited to gather data, and participate in a meeting of several farms. The group included a cross section of brands, traffic types, herd sizes, and management styles. Both the data and the discussion were thought provoking. Here are some of the take-away points.
Jan 142 min read
FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR YOUR ROBOTIC MILKING PROJECT
Calculating the real return on the project begins with accurate expectations for system capacity, cost of service, and capital investment.
Jan 83 min read
THE ROLE OF LIQUID FEED IN ROBOTIC MILKING
Most robotic milking systems can be equipped to dispense at least 2 feeds in either meal or pellet form. Dispensing liquid feed directly into the feed bowl can also be an option. Liquid feed in robotic milking is much less common than solid feeds, but it does have a place. It can change the physical characteristics of what is offered in the robot, or satisfy a nutritional requirement.
Jan 13 min read
ROBOTIC FARM FEATURE: FOUR CUBS FARM
They believe in comparing themselves to the best and never allowing themselves to become comfortable with their success. They are meticulous about record keeping, and those records give them confidence to accurately forecast the impact of changing markets, new management practices, and facility improvements.
Dec 25, 20253 min read
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