In search of better milk, farmers pamper their herds with water beds

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Posted 7:58AM on Monday, April 8, 2002

MOUNT ANGEL, Ore. - They say happy cows are more productive cows. Arie Jongeneel is hoping his herd of Holsteins, resplendent on their water beds, will bring forth a dairy deluge. In his quest to bump up production, Jongeneel, a dairy farmer for 32 years, is joining farmers in Europe and elsewhere who say such bovine pampering pays off. Jongeneel, who began experimenting with 15 specially made water beds in January, said he is ordering 80 more for his 1,600 cows in Oregon's lush Willamette Valley. "If it's better for the cows it will increase milk production, there's no doubt about that," Jongeneel said. On a recent afternoon at his farm, eight or nine Holsteins lounged on the water beds, looking thoughtful as they chewed their cud. The water beds -- rubber bladders filled with 18 gallons of water and covered with thick rubber mats -- undulated when the 1,400-pound cows shifted their weight. By conforming to the shape of the cows, the theory goes, the beds give the animals a more comfortable rest. Distributors claim the beds reduce wear and tear on the cows' joints and prevent swelling and burning of hocks. The Dutch- and British-made water beds have been in use in Europe for seven or eight years, mostly for dairy cattle. They began appearing in the New York-Pennsylvania area and the Midwest about three years ago, and are catching on in the West. "The cows liked it right away," said Jongeneel. "They laid right down and were comfortable." The water beds -- which go for about $150 each -- are easier to clean than mucking out stalls, said Jongeneel. Mike Gamroth, a dairy cattle specialist at Oregon State University, said the beds seem to be a good idea for the cows, who lie down for six to eight hours a day to digest their food. "We have learned a lot in the past eight or 10 years about fine-tuning cow comfort," he said. "Milk production is so high you have to do all the small things to push it any further." Dairy cows might appear to be lazy because they lay around much of the time, but there's a lot of work going on inside their bodies. The cow's udder extracts nutrients from blood to produce milk. Five-hundred gallons of blood have to circulate through the udder to provide the nutrients in a gallon of milk. Besides water beds, researchers have tested sand, a traditional bedding material that requires a lot of upkeep because it scatters easily. Other options are plain rubber mats and mats containing tubes filled with shredded rubber from old tires. Some milk producers have reported an increase in yield they attribute to the water beds, Gamroth said, but there are no hard numbers available. John Marshman, a dairy farmer in Chenango County, N.Y., said he's seen cows wait for a shot at the water beds. "The first ones who come back from the milking parlor fill those stalls first," said Marshman, who has bought 150 of the beds. "They like them real well," he added. "I keep putting more in." ------ On the Net: http://www.waterbedsforcows.com