Dairy Science Commons^™

The Effects Of Housing On Dairy Cow Comfort, Immune Function, Stress, Productivity, And Milk Quality, Matthew Richard Borchers

Theses and Dissertations--Animal and Food Sciences

Mastitis and milk quality affect every dairy farmer across the globe. Sand bedded freestalls are the industry standard for cow comfort, welfare, and the control of environmental mastitis. Compost bedded packs may be a viable alternative to the sand bedded freestall.

Compost bedded packs are maintained at a consistent level of moisture, nutrients, and aeration to favor compost microorganisms. Greater bacteria counts in bedding have traditionally been associated with increased mastitis rates and mastitis pathogens can be found in the pack and on the teats of cattle housed in even well managed compost bedded pack barns. In spite of this, …