Fleckvieh in the Vogtland District/ Eastern Germany

Local conditions
The farm land is located at an
altitude of 220 to 450 m, the
annual precipitation is 620 mm,
the mean annual temperature is
7° C, however it can get very cold,
as for example last winter the
temperature dropped to - 24° C.
The soil quality index is 37 points
for the crop land and 36 points for
grassland.
Dairy production
Two dairy farms belong to the
ERVEMA Agrar GmbH, one at
Clodra and one at Staitz. At the
two locations together 1430 dairy
cows are kept – 830 at Staitz and
600 at Clodra.
Crossbreeding
Fleckvieh in the Vogtland District/
Eastern Germany
l Theo Vermöhlen, crossbreeding specialist of BAYERN - GENETIK and Wolfram Köber,
farm manager of ERVEMA Agrar GmbH
Like a blue sapphire, the Clodra Dairy Farm twinkles in the hilly landscape of the Vogtland District
in Thuringia / Eastern Germany. The farm is part of the ERVEMA Agrar GmbH, which combines
crop production, dairy farming, beef farming and the production of bio-energy under one roof.
The agricultural area of the ERVEMA Agrar GmbH ranges over 12 communities and 28 villages.
They started absorption crossing
with Fleckvieh in the year 2012.
Since then, many things changed
for the better. The intercalving
period dropped from 410 days
(Holstein) to 386 days (Fleckvieh
crossbreds). Due to the improved
udder health and the reduction of
the herd replacement rate from
44 % to 26 %, the costs for the
veterinarian dropped about 1,5
Cent per kg milk, which makes a
significant difference.
Currently the average milk production
of the herd in Clodra is
8120 kg milk. The short-term aim
is 8500 kg milk per cow and year.
After consolidation the mid-term
goal will be to sell crossbred
breeding heifers to other farms.
l All buildings at Clodra dairy farm are blue.
The facility at Clodra was build up
new in 2010/2011: The barn has
solid walking routes with rough
concrete, cubicles with rubber
mats and straw litter, curtains on
the long sides of the barn and
perforated plates on the front
sides. The installation includes a
rotary milking parlour enabling
50 cows to be milked at one time.
12 FLECKVIEHWORLD 2012/2013

Crossbreeding
l Cows waiting to be milked in the rotary milking parlour. l Cows in the rotary milking parlour at Clodra.
Feeding
The feeding is based almost only
on feed produced at ERVEMA.
The cows are divided into four
feeding groups. The TMR for the
high performance group is adjusted
regularly according to the
results of milk recording.
The whole farm management
aims at an efficient milk production,
with the income coming
from both, milk and beef production
and is focused on a high
lifetime production of the cows.
Mr. Köber, the farm manager and
the two managers of the facilities
at Clodra and Staitz, Mrs. Spindler
and Mrs. Koch are sure that the
Fleckvieh breed fits best with the
idea of long-living cows, even
though some cows start with a
high milk production not before
the second lactation.
Also the ration for the high performance
cows does not contain any
expensive bought in protein feed.
The grain produced on the farm is
only complemented with rape
cake produced at the farm’s own
rapeseed press.
Suckler cows
At present 70 suckler cows are
kept in order to utilize the less
productive grassland areas. The
resulting bull calves are fattened.
However, the crossbred bull calves
out of the dairy herd often have
the same excellent fattening
results as the bulls out of the suckler
cow herd.
Fattening bulls
Crossbreeding with Fleckvieh led to
a considerable increase of the
profit of the fattening business.
98% of the 640 crossbred fattening
bulls are classified carcass
grade U and R, whereas from the
pure Holstein bulls 80% were
classified O and P (in the EUROP
system).
The results of the slaughter cows
are similar. Due to a better feed
conversion and a higher dressing
percentage, quality beef can be
produced from younger crossbred
l The dairy farm at Clodra / Thuringia.
bulls out of the dairy herd. Not
only when the milk price is low,
beef is a nice source of income.
The fattening cattle are fed only
farm produced feed. This way in
19 months the fattening cattle
reach a slaughter weight of 750 kg
at average with daily gains of
1250 g.
Replacement heifers
The heifer raising system at
Clodra is divided into two phases:
one shorter intensive phase
that lasts till the heifers are
8 months old (puberty), followed
by a longer, extensive period.
In the first period, the heifers get
similar feed to the high produc-
FLECKVIEHWORLD 2012/2013 13

l Petra Koch, the manager of the dairy farm Clodra, Theo Vermöhlen, Fleckvieh crossbreeding expert of BAYERN-GENETIK
and Sandy Spindler, manager of the dairy farm at Staitz (v.l.t.r.) look at the rotary milking parlour.
tion cows and reach daily gains
of 1.000 - 1.200 g.
Around the time of AI the heifers
are fed intensively again for one
month. However, for the remaining
16 months, the heifer ration is
mainly based on grass. The grass
silage is mixed with 1 to 2,5 kg
straw per animal per day, depending
on the quality of the silage
and the visual impression of the
animals. The feeding of own feedstuff
contributes a lot to the reduction
of the raising costs.
The crossbred heifers have an
average first calving age of 25
months and a lifeweigt at calving
of 665 kg. Calving problems are
significantly reduced with cross-
l Calf feeding with milk shuttle.
bred heifers compared to the
Holstein heifers that were in the
barn before.
Calf rearing
Special attention is paid to calf
rearing. The first 7 - 9 days calves
are housed in calf hutches.
After that, calves are transferred
to group calf hutches where they
stay for the next 70 days together
with 14 other calves. Via milk
shuttle they are fed two times a
day 4 liters of milk with 140 g
milk powder (35 % skimmed
milkpowder). In addition to that
they get water, calf concentrate
and hey (own mixture) ad libitum.
The group calf hutches are cleaned
once a week and the straw bedding
is renewed. This excellent
hygiene management provides the
basis for healthy calves that are the
productive dairy cows of tomorrow.
l The calves are housed in group hutches with clean straw bedding.
Crossbreeding
There are no flies and it is pleasure
to look at the calves. Vital calves
will get old cows. This forms an
excellent base for selection and the
selling of quality heifers.
Bio - energy
Since 2009 the farm also invested
in bio - energy plants on four different
locations. The plants generate
energy from liquid manure, corn,
grass silage and solid manure.
They produce 1,9 MW electricity
and heat for the surrounding
villages. This makes heating very
cheap for the immediate neighbors.
The cheap energy and the
reduced smell led to a greater
acceptance of the big farm within
the neighborhood.
l
14 FLECKVIEHWORLD 2012/2013

Cattle use the fl oor twenty-four
hours a day to lie
on, stand on and walk
on. To avoid damage, it is
important that the complete
contact area is used.
This requires fl exible, i.e.
form-hugging fl oors - mainly
for lying, not as much
for standing and walking.
Fact remains, however, that
our cattle are subjected
chiefl y to hard shed fl oors,
although, from an evolutionary
point of view, cattle
were not adapted for hard
surfaces. This is particularly
disadvantageous to
our dairy cattle. As a result
of their high capacity they
have become large framed,
heavy and sensitive. Whenever
possible, they prefer a
soft fl oor.
When lying down the cow
gathers its legs under its
body. This places particular
strain on the lower ankle
joint and the rear knee. As
it is, the skin around these
areas is already tight. These
are the fi rst parts which
ache on a hard surface. The
cow reacts to this by easing
the strain. To do this, it
turns the body slightly, on
the one hand moving the
lower positioned leg out of
the area of strain and, on
the other hand, distributing
the body weight over
a larger area. This leads to
rowing motions of the legs,
which subsequently cause
hair- and skin abrasion. It
frequently goes unnoticed
that this is where pressure
ulcers originate due to
brings the pasture indoors legt die Weide in den www.kraiburg-agri.de
Stall
Animal- and production friendly fl oors in the dairy cow house
infections. If this semi-sideways
position cannot be
adopted, the hard surface
leads to contact pressure
on the exposed parts being
higher than the capillary
pressure in the blood
vessels. This results in
disrupted circulation, also
favourable to ulcer development.
Initially, the cows
react by adaptation - they
lie down less frequently.
This escalates the problem
since cattle only rest whilst
lying down. Total loss of ten
to thirty percent of cows is
not uncommon.
The most effective counter
measure is a mat with good
elasticity. By reverting to its
original shape after release
of pressure, it ensures lasting
lying comfort, requiring
minimum maintenance
effort. Only suffi ciently
fl exible lying pads will invite
high performance cows to
lie down 14 to 18 hours a
day. If problems arise with
bed formaton in deep litter
cubicles, a newly developed
animal-friendly elastic
deep litter rubber system,
consisting of a rubber cover,
a rubber brisket board and
profi le at the rear curb, adapted
to the anatomy of the
cows, can be used. It also
provides best comfort with
only minimal litter requirements
and easier cubicle
management. Proper lying
means a lot to the cow and
the dairy cattle owner, since
fodder conversion by rumination
and milk formation
takes place predominantly
in the lying position.
The bulb and the weightbearing
edge of the claw
carry the cow’s weight
when standing and walking.
This requires a cushioned
surface as it is out in the
pasture. The hard surface
found in most sheds, on the
other hand, prevents proper
weight distribution across
these claw areas. Since the
edges of the claws cannot
stand up to the hard
surface, the weight is borne
by the claw soles. The claw
soles, which normally only
participate in carrying the
weight on soft surfaces,
react to the strain impulses
by developing surplus sole
horn. This leads to a fl at
instead of an arched claw
sole, with the result that,
under pressure, the pedal
bone has no elasticity in the
claw. The biomechanics of
the claw is impaired. The
corium of the sole may be
bruised which may cause a
sole ulcer. Simultaneously,
the cows become inactive
since the pressure-induced
strain in the sole is painful.
Consequently, the entire
herd no longer feeds or
drinks suffi ciently. Another
problem ensuing from a
hard surface is the cow’s
rocking gait. Due to constant
strain on the outer
claw sections, claw growth
becomes disproportionate,
resulting in deformation of
the back claws. As a result
of the inevitably changing
leg position, the cows are
even more unstable on their
KRAIBURG Elastik GmbH,
Göllstr. 8, 84529 Tittmoning, Germany
Tel. +49/8683/701-303, Fax +49/8683/701-190, e-mail: info@kraiburg-elastik.de, www.kraiburg-agri.de
legs. These cows increasingly
react by partial rejection
of fodder and water as
well as less frequently lying
down.
The most effective technical
remedy is a fl exible
fl oor surface. Rubber mats
equipped with studs on the
underside are available on
the market. When the claw
sinks in by two to three
mm, the coating absorbs
the step and provides a
non-skid effect. To prevent
puddle formation on the
fl oor, the fl exibility of the
coating enables it to resume
its original state when
the pressure subsides.
These fl oors are suitable
for regenerating mechanically
damaged claws and to
prevent corresponding claw
damages. A fl oor which
relieves the claws from
pressure prompts the cows
to use the individual areas
of activity more frequently,
particularly the fodder area.
This creates pasture-like conditions
for fodder consumption
and avoids acidosis-
and metabolic problems.
Acidosis is one of the most
common illnesses found
in dairy cattle sheds. It
encourages skin- and claw
problems.
For optimal fodder conversion
- the primary objective
of a commercial dairy cattle
operation - the cows require
an environment which is
animal- and production
friendly and which the cow
fi nds comfortable.