scholarly journals Characteristics of Cowsheds in Vietnamese Smallholder Dairy Farms and Their Associations with Microclimate—A Preliminary Study

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 351
Author(s):  
Nguyen N. Bang ◽  
John B. Gaughan ◽  
Ben J. Hayes ◽  
Russell E. Lyons ◽  
Nguyen V. Chanh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Stress ◽  
Heat Load ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
High Heat ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Heat Load Index ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Air Speed ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

In smallholder dairy farms (SDFs), farmers often build cowsheds using local materials and based on self-accumulated experience without due consideration to reducing the risk of heat stress. This study aimed to characterise the heat stress abatement strategies and microclimate within SDF cowsheds from four typical dairy regions of Vietnam (south lowland, south highland, north lowland and north highland) and identify the housing parameters most associated with the microclimate. The study was conducted on 32 SDFs (eight SDFs per region) in autumn 2017. Twelve housing management variables, illustrating cowshed design and heat stress abatement methods of each SDF, were collected. Six microclimate parameters, collected within the cowshed, were temperature (AT), humidity, air speed (AS), heat load index (HLI), Temperature-humidity index (THI) and accumulated heat load units (AHLU) during a day (06:00 h to 18:00 h). Factor analysis and cluster analysis was applied to group cowsheds of SDFs into clusters where SDFs in the cluster had the same cowshed characteristics. Multivariable linear models were applied to define the parameters most likely to inform future research into heat stress mitigation on SDF. Averaged from 08:00 h to 18:00 h, microclimate inside the cowsheds was considered hot (HLI > 79) in the highland and very hot (HLI > 86) in the lowland regions. Cows in the lowland regions accumulated high heat load (AHLU > 50) by 18:00 h. Cowsheds of SDFs varied widely and grouped into seven cowshed types, but no type was more effective than others in reducing heat stress conditions within cowsheds. Using roof soakers together with fans decreased AT and HLI by 1.3 °C and 3.2 units, respectively, at 14:00 h compared to 11:00 h. Each 100 m increase in altitude was associated with decreases of 0.4 °C in AT, 1.3 units in HLI and 0.8 units in THI (p < 0.001). Each meter increase in the eave height of the cowshed roof was associated with decreases of 0.87 °C in AT, 3.31 units in HLI and 1.42 units in THI, and an increase of 0.14 m/s in AS (p < 0.05). The cowshed parameters that should be prioritised for future research into the amelioration of heat stress in SDF cows include using the roof soakers together with fans, increasing altitude, eave roof height and floor area per cow.

scholarly journals Assessment of Performance and Some Welfare Indicators of Cows in Vietnamese Smallholder Dairy Farms

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 674
Author(s):  
Nguyen N. Bang ◽  
Nguyen V. Chanh ◽  
Nguyen X. Trach ◽  
Duong N. Khang ◽  
Ben J. Hayes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Stress ◽  
Milk Yield ◽  
Body Condition Score ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Point Scale ◽  
The South ◽  
Lactating Cows ◽  
The North ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Smallholder dairy farms (SDFs) are distributed widely across lowland and highland regions in Vietnam, but data on the productivity and welfare status of these cows remains limited. This cross-sectional study was conducted to describe and compare the productivity and welfare status of SDF cows across contrasting regions. It was conducted in autumn 2017 on 32 SDFs randomly selected from four typical but contrasting dairy regions (eight SDFs per region); a south lowland, a south highland, a north lowland, and a north highland region. Each farm was visited over a 24-h period (an afternoon followed by a morning milking and adjacent husbandry activities) to collect data of individual lactating cows (n = 345) and dry cows (n = 123), which included: milk yield and concentrations, body weight (BW), body condition score (BCS, 5-point scale, 5 = very fat), inseminations per conception, and level of heat stress experienced (panting score, 4.5-point scale, 0 = no stress). The high level of heat stress (96% of lactating cows were moderate to highly heat-stressed in the afternoon), low energy corrected milk yield (15.7 kg/cow/d), low percentage of lactating cows (37.3% herd), low BW (498 and 521 kg in lactating and dry cows, respectively), and low BCS of lactating cows (2.8) were the most important productivity and welfare concerns determined and these were most serious in the south lowland. By contrast, cows in the north lowland, a relatively hot but new dairying region, performed similarly to those in the south highland; a region historically considered to be one of the most suitable for dairy cows in Vietnam due to its cool environment. This indicates the potential to mitigate heat stress through new husbandry strategies. Cows in the north highland had the highest BW (535 and 569 kg in lactating and dry cows, respectively) and the highest energy corrected milk yield (19.2 kg/cow/d). Cows in all regions were heat-stressed during the daytime, although less so in the highlands compared to the lowlands. Opportunities for research into improving the productivity and welfare of Vietnamese SDF cows are discussed.

scholarly journals Understanding variability in greenhouse gas emission estimates of smallholder dairy farms in Indonesia

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Titis Apdini ◽  
Windi Al Zahra ◽  
Simon J. Oosting ◽  
Imke J. M. de Boer ◽  
Marion de Vries ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Rainy Season ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emission ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Enteric Fermentation ◽  
Tropical Regions ◽  
Population Mean ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Abstract Purpose Life cycle assessment studies on smallholder farms in tropical regions generally use data that is collected at one moment in time, which could hamper assessment of the exact situation. We assessed seasonal differences in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGEs) from Indonesian dairy farms by means of longitudinal observations and evaluated the implications of number of farm visits on the variance of the estimated GHGE per kg milk (GHGEI) for a single farm, and the population mean. Methods An LCA study was done on 32 smallholder dairy farms in the Lembang district area, West Java, Indonesia. Farm visits (FVs) were performed every 2 months throughout 1 year: FV1–FV3 (rainy season) and FV4–FV6 (dry season). GHGEs were assessed for all processes up to the farm-gate, including upstream processes (production and transportation of feed, fertiliser, fuel and electricity) and on-farm processes (keeping animals, manure management and forage cultivation). We compared means of GHGE per unit of fat-and-protein-corrected milk (FPCM) produced in the rainy and the dry season. We evaluated the implication of number of farm visits on the variance of the estimated GHGEI, and on the variance of GHGE from different processes. Results and discussion GHGEI was higher in the rainy (1.32 kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM) than in the dry (0.91 kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM) season (P < 0.05). The between farm variance was 0.025 kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM in both seasons. The within farm variance in the estimate for the single farm mean decreased from 0.69 (1 visit) to 0.027 (26 visits) kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM (rainy season), and from 0.32 to 0.012 kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM (dry season). The within farm variance in the estimate for the population mean was 0.02 (rainy) and 0.01 (dry) kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM (1 visit), and decreased with an increase in farm visits. Forage cultivation was the main source of between farm variance, enteric fermentation the main source of within farm variance. Conclusions The estimated GHGEI was significantly higher in the rainy than in the dry season. The main contribution to variability in GHGEI is due to variation between observations from visits to the same farm. This source of variability can be reduced by increasing the number of visits per farm. Estimates for variation within and between farms enable a more informed decision about the data collection procedure.

scholarly journals Short communication: Genetic analysis for fertility traits of heifers and cows from smallholder dairy farms in a tropical environment

2015 ◽  
Vol 98 (7) ◽  
pp. 4990-4998 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Buaban ◽  
M. Duangjinda ◽  
M. Suzuki ◽  
Y. Masuda ◽  
J. Sanpote ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Analysis ◽  
Short Communication ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Tropical Environment ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Fertility Traits ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

scholarly journals Food resource availability and milk production on smallholder dairy farms in the sub-humid coastal region of Kenya

1993 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. 158-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Reynolds ◽  
J. Mureithi ◽  
G. Mullins ◽  
W. Thorpe
Keyword(s):  
Milk Production ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Coastal Region ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Management, productivity and livelihood effects on Kenyan smallholder dairy farms from interventions addressing animal health and nutrition and milk quality

2011 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
John A. VanLeeuwen ◽  
Teresa Mellish ◽  
Colleen Walton ◽  
Ayub Kaniaru ◽  
Regina Gitau ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Animal Health ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Milk Quality ◽  
Health And Nutrition ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Forage availability and its quality in the dry season on smallholder dairy farms in Tanzania

2008 ◽  
Vol 58 (4) ◽  
pp. 196-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. J. Mtengeti ◽  
E. C. J. H. Phiri ◽  
N. A. Urio ◽  
D. G. Mhando ◽  
Z. Mvena ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Forage Availability ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Diet factors and subclinical laminitis score in lactating cows of smallholder dairy farms in Thailand

2013 ◽  
Vol 155 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 197-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Pilachai ◽  
J.Th. Schonewille ◽  
C. Thamrongyoswittayakul ◽  
S. Aiumlamai ◽  
C. Wachirapakorn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Lactating Cows ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms
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