LESS PELLETS AND MORE MILK – IN A FREE FLOW BARN

Guided flow barns using robots without pellets have gotten a lot of attention in the last year. This has free flow farms wondering if the can feed less pellets. No-feed works in guided-flow because cows move around the barn to get to the feed bunk. As they move, some of the trips to the bunk include a detour to the robot. Cows are trained to find their way through the selection gate, or through the robot, to get to the bunk. The feed in the bunk motivates cows to move through the robot. By contrast, in a free-flow barn the feed offered in the robot motivates cows to move to the robot. 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.

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