Livestock nursery farms always face challenges in maintaining a healthy environment for calves, cattle, sows, and piglets. There is limited space and a lack of hygiene. A well-maintained and hygienic nursery will offer comfort for your animals. They will be less stressed and more likely to stay at home. Most importantly, it will keep them healthy and robust.
Proper management and supplies are vital to increasing herds and running a healthy nursery. You also minimize losses due to mortality and sickness with the right supplies. Another essential factor to consider is the facility space. You want your calves and piglets to be comfortable to ensure their health, welfare and growth. You want these animals to behave naturally and be appropriately treated.
Even though they are animals, they are still living creatures that require attention and healthcare. So, when you consider supplies for your calves and piglets, make sure to invest in applications that are durable, easy to clean, simple to install and offer more than a 1-year warranty.
Here are some supplies to consider:
Drinking Systems
Cattle waterers are designed with young animals in mind. These systems provide a fresh, clean water supply for all animals at all times. The young animals can access the water through nipple drinkers or water cups.
The nipple drinker system dispenses a controlled amount of water that will help to ensure the animals get the right amount of water supply. These systems also prevent water waste and keep the nursery floor dry.
Shelter
The best shelter for young animals should offer maximum comfort and productivity. They come in many options, such as freestanding and rear or front mounting in different lengths. It makes feeding easy and also contributes to space-saving.
When it comes to comfort, these spaces should be designed with unique side-loading to eliminate alleyways. It also comes with anti-crush bars that encourage the animals to lay down with ease and feel comfortable. These systems are known for eliminating pre-weaning mortality.
Feeders
Feeders are common farm equipment that enriches feeding behaviour. It increases feed intake and results in better milk production. It keeps animals calm while they eat. It also reduces the wastage of food.
Feeders are known for their unique ways of distributing feed. The best aspect of this system is that it comes with a timer to feed your animals. This means you can feed them at a time convenient for you.
Heat Lamp
Controlled heat lamps offer significant energy savings and at the same time, minimize loss. It regulates the heat and provides the necessary levels that will keep livestock healthy. You can view and adjust the temperature at all times.
The unique feature of this lamp is its memory protection should you experience a power failure. This way, you can ensure the animals are always supplied with controlled heating. The system also comes inbuilt with overload protection.
Nursery Flooring
Flooring can be difficult to clean. It is a major cause of mortality. This is why you want a system that is durable, easy to clean, elevated and comfortable. Choose flooring that is designed for easy cleaning and disease detection. They are straightforward to install, as well. The benefit of this flooring type is that your sows and piglets always remain healthy.
Similarly, the flooring should be very strong and handle any weight. This type of flooring must be suited for all stages of bovine and sow development. Ensure the flooring is constructed using non-corrosive material. It needs to offer animals a warm, less abrasive environment for them to stay cool and restful.
Wet Dry Feeder
The Wet Dry Feeder offers maximum feed efficiency with a consistent setting for feeders. These feeders are the right height and weight for optimal feed access. They are designed to enable sows and calves to eat in a straight position rather than an angle, which generally blocks feed spaces. This system features the R Adjust Technology that allows you to control feed supply while saving on feed costs.
Flex Crate
This system offers anti-crush bars that ease the animals to the floor gently. The bars can be easily adjusted to promote comfortable nursing. You can, without difficulty, clean the system. You can also obtain a crate that meets your nursery needs and layouts.
Additionally, they have built-in anti-crush protection. A significant advantage of this system is that sows can load and unload from the side, rear or front.
