If you have recently started to dairy farm, you will no doubt want to keep your cows as happy and healthy as possible. Below is a guide to steps you can take which will help you to keep your dairy herd in great condition.

Reduce the amount of stress the animals feel

Stress can have a big impact on the health of your cows and the quality of the milk they produce. When a cow becomes stressed, the levels of stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline in the animal's bloodstream increase. This can lead to high blood pressure and inflammation of tissues within the animal's body which can shorten their life and lead to lower quality milk and reduced milk production. You should, therefore, do everything you can to keep the level of stress your cows feel to a minimum. You should make sure that your animals have enough space to move around and that the sheds are well-ventilated. When keeping the cows indoors, you should also ensure that they have access to natural light. If the cows are out grazing in a field, you should take steps to ensure that signs inform any dog walkers or hikers of the steps they should take to avoid upsetting or panicking the animals such as avoiding certain areas or keeping their dog on a short lead. These warning signs can be purchased from an agricultural supplier.

Feed them high-nutrition stock feed

While some dairy farmers will attempt to feed their herd using natural grass, this approach can have many downsides. For example, due to the seasons, the quality and availability of grass on your pastures can vary. One way of making sure that your cattle are well fed is to use specially formulated stock feed. Stock feed is designed to provide your cows with all of the vitamins and minerals they need to produce the highest-quality milk. If you want to get really scientific, you could consider carrying out nutritional profiling on the current feed you are using. This will allow you to identify which particular vitamins and minerals your herd is missing out on. You can then add supplements to the feed in order to boost the supply of these particular nutrients.

If you would like to find out more about the steps you can take to improve the well-being of your dairy herd, you should contact an agricultural supply company today.