Thank you to the participating farms
Video footage from the following farms was used to help demonstrate different housing options and structures.
Owners: Philippe Lacerte, Andréane Dupont, Chantal Pipon, Denis Dupont
Location: Saint-Sévère, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 2
Herd size*: 120 cattle, including 57 lactating cows, 9 dry cows, and 54 calves and heifers
Area of cultivated land: 505 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 2016 | 2018 | 2019 |
Housing type | Free stall – deep bedded stalls | Free stall | Group housed, Bedded pack |
Building size (ft2) | 13,000 | 7,600 | 2,000 |
Ventilation type | Negative (Tunnel) | Negative (Tunnel) | Negative (Tunnel) |
Milking system: Monobox milking robot (GEA)
Key elements: Deep stalls bedded with recycled manure solids, adaptation of old buildings for calves and multi-breed herd (68% Holstein, 25% Jersey and 7% Ayrshire)
* : As of October 2022
Owners: Martin Lavallée and Isabelle Marcous
Location: Saint-Marc-sur-Richelieu, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 7
Herd size*: 385 cattle, including 165 lactating cows, 35 dry cows and 185 calves and heifers
Area of cultivated land: 950 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 2017 | Contract rearing | 2019 |
Housing type | Free stall – deep bedded stalls | — | Group housed Bedded pack |
Building size (ft) | 185 x 265 | — | 50 x 136 |
Ventilation type | Negative (Cross) + baffle curtains | — | Negative (perforated walls), Natural (calves post-weaning) |
Milking system: Milking robot (Lely)
Key elements: Cross ventilation with baffle curtains, nursery ventilation systems uses perforated (air diffusing) walls, and contract rearing of heifers
* : As of October 2022
Owner: Jasmin Mathieu
Location: Terrebonne, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 5
Herd size*: 347 cattle, including 172 lactating cows, 23 dry cows, and 152 calves and heifers
Area of cultivated land: 400 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 2010 | 2000 | 2017 |
Housing type | Free stall | Free stall | Group housed Bedded pack |
Building size (ft) | 114 x 168 | 105 x 96 | 63 x 37 |
Ventilation type | Natural + Supplemental ventilation (HVLS1 and LVHS 2) | Natural + Supplemental ventilation (LVHS 2) | Positive (Tube system; PPTV) |
Milking system: Internal rotary milking parlour (GEA), 20 units
Key elements: Supplemental ventilation, water mattresses, rotary milking parlour, adaptation of old buildings for calves and calf feeding with modified automated calf feeder
* : As of October 2022
1 HVLS: High-volume, low-speed fans
2 LVHS: Low-volume, high-speed fans
Owners: Carol Venneman and Hanspeter Kobel
Location: Clarenceville, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 3
Herd size*: 175 cattle, including 87 lactating cows, 14 dry cows and 74 calves and heifers
Area of cultivated land: 95 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 2019 | 2016 | 2020 |
Housing type | Compost bedded pack | Bedded pack | Group housed Bedded pack
|
Building size (ft) | 80 x 374 | 62 x 128 | 44 x 48 |
Ventilation type | Natural + supplemental ventilation (HVLS1) | Natural | Natural |
Milking system: Parallel milking parlour (GEA), double 10 (20 units)
Key elements: composted manure bedding, electric fences used to separate pens, mechanically simplistic, distribution of the ration by conveyor and deep feed bunk
* : As of October 2022
1 HVLS: High-volume, low-speed fans
Owners: Alain, Jacques, Mathieu, Hugo, Guillaume and Audrey Lafortune
Location: Saint-Roch-de-l’Achigan, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 2
Herd size*: 295 cattle, including 155 lactating cows, 25 dry cows and 115 calves and heifers
Area of cultivated land: 800 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 2011 | 2000 | 2016 |
Housing type | Tie stall | Free stall | Group housed Bedded pack |
Building size (ft) | 76 x 225 | 95 x 145 | Cows’ building |
Ventilation type | Negative (Tunnel) + supplemental ventilation (LVHS2) | Natural | Negative (Tunnel) |
Milking system: Pipeline
Key elements: Addition of fans over lactating cows (2019), improvement of a tie stall and track carrier system for milkers
* : As of October 2022
2 LVHS: Low-volume, high-speed fans
Owners: Pierre and Pierre Olivier Caron
Location: Plessisville, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 3
Herd size*: 176 cattle, including 80 lactating cows, 16 dry cows and 80 heifers and calves
Area of cultivated land: 93 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 2019 | 2002 | 2019 |
Housing type | Free stall – deep bedded stalls | Cold barn | Cold barn |
Building size (ft) | 104 x 300 | 52 x 125 | 28 x 40 |
Ventilation type | Natural + supplemental ventilation (Cyclone) | Natural + supplemental ventilation | Positive (Tude system; PPTV) |
Milking system: Milking robot (Lely)
Key elements: Deep stalls bedded with sand, rubber mats in every alley, sprinklers at the feed bunk and non-insulated calf housing
* : As of October 2022
Owners: Jacques, Jean-Luc, Françis and Yannick Laperle
Location: Coaticook, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 4
Herd size*: 427 cattle, including 127 lactating cows, 25 dry cows and 275 calves and heifers
Area of cultivated land: 300 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 1990 | 2020 | 2017 |
Housing type | Tie stall | Cold barn | Individually housed Hutches |
Building size (ft) | 263 (length) | 284 x 54 | 164 (length) |
Ventilation type | Negative (Tunnel) | Positive (Tube system; PPTV) + supplemental ventilation (Cyclone) | Positive (Tube system; PPTV) |
Milking system: Pipeline
Key elements: 3-wall building with a removable curtain and positive ventilation along the length of the building
* : As of October 2022
Owners: Charles, Marc-Antoine and Gilles Lanciaux
Location: Dixville, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 7
Herd size*: 600 cattle, including 255 lactating cows, 60 dry cows and 285 calves and heifers
Area of cultivated land: 323 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 2019 | 2000 | 2018 |
Housing type | Free stall – deep bedded stalls + bedded pack | Free stall | Pair housed Bedded pack |
Building size (ft2) | 83,000 | 25,000 | 20,000 |
Ventilation type | Natural + supplemental ventilation (LVHS2) | Negative (Tunnel)+ supplemental ventilation | Negative (Cross) |
Milking system: External rotary milking parlour (BouMatic), 50 units
Key elements: Supplemental ventilation, holding area with rubber mats, deep bedded stalls with wood shavings and lime, rotary milking parlour and ad lib milk feeding of calves with special tube system
* : As of October 2022
2 LVHS: Low-volume, high speed fans
Owners: Nadine Lalande and François Paiement
Location: Mirabel, Québec
Number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees: 3
Herd Size*: 267 cattle, including 115 lactating cows, 15 dry cows and 137 calves and heifers
Area of cultivated land: 200 hectares
| Cows | Heifers | Calves |
Construction year | 1963/1997/2007 | 1995/2019 | 2017 |
Housing type | Tie stall | Cold barn | Group housed Bedded pack |
Building size (ft) | 270 x 32, 38 et 60 | 142 x 42 | 100 x 50 |
Ventilation type | Negative (Tunnel) | Natural | Natural + Positive (Tube system; PPTV) |
Milking system: Pipeline
Key elements: 3-walled building (heifers) and cows have outdoor access
* : As of October 2022
Calf Housing Decision Support Tool
Calf Housing Choice Guide and Dry Cow Housing Choice Guide are tools designed to help evaluate calf and dry cow housing options and support informed decisions by comparing technical features and estimated construction costs. These guides are available through the Canadian Dairy Hub.
Factsheets
- Footbaths (from Dairy Farmers of Canada)
Videos
This project is funded by the Sectoral Development Program under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership between the governments of Canada and Québec.
