TY - JOUR
T1 - A comparison of 2 evaporative cooling systems on a commercial dairy farm in Saudi Arabia
AU - Ortiz, X. A.
AU - Smith, J. F.
AU - Villar, F.
AU - Hall, L.
AU - Allen, J.
AU - Oddy, A.
AU - Al-Haddad, A.
AU - Lyle, P.
AU - Collier, R. J.
N1 - Funding Information:
This project was supported financially by Schaefer Ventilation Equipment . The authors thank all the staff and personnel at Al Safi Dairy Company that assisted in this experiment. The authors thank John F. Smith for his leadership and dedication to the dairy industry. His work and unconditional support made him an excellent mentor and colleague, but above all, his kindness and good heart made him a great person and friend.
Publisher Copyright:
© American Dairy Science Association®, 2015.
PY - 2015/12/1
Y1 - 2015/12/1
N2 - Efficacy of 2 cooling systems (Korral Kool, KK, Korral Kool Inc., Mesa, AZ; FlipFan dairy system, FF, Schaefer Ventilation Equipment LLC, Sauk Rapids, MN) was estimated utilizing 400 multiparous Holstein dairy cows randomly assigned to 1 of 4 cooled California-style shade pens (2 shade pens per cooling system). Each shaded pen contained 100 cows (days in milk = 58 ± 39, milk production = 56 ± 18 kg/d, and lactation = 3 ± 1). Production data (milk yield and reproductive performance) were collected during 3 mo (June-August, 2013) and physiological responses (core body temperature, respiration rates, surface temperatures, and resting time) were measured in June and July to estimate responses of cows to the 2 different cooling systems. Water and electricity consumption were recorded for each system. Cows in the KK system displayed slightly lower respiration rates in the month of June and lower surface temperatures in June and July. However, no differences were observed in the core body temperature of cows, resting time, feed intake, milk yield, services/cow, and conception rate between systems. The FF system used less water and electricity during this study. In conclusion, both cooling systems (KK and FF) were effective in mitigating the negative effects of heat stress on cows housed in arid environments, whereas the FF system consumed less water and electricity and did not require use of curtains on the shade structure.
AB - Efficacy of 2 cooling systems (Korral Kool, KK, Korral Kool Inc., Mesa, AZ; FlipFan dairy system, FF, Schaefer Ventilation Equipment LLC, Sauk Rapids, MN) was estimated utilizing 400 multiparous Holstein dairy cows randomly assigned to 1 of 4 cooled California-style shade pens (2 shade pens per cooling system). Each shaded pen contained 100 cows (days in milk = 58 ± 39, milk production = 56 ± 18 kg/d, and lactation = 3 ± 1). Production data (milk yield and reproductive performance) were collected during 3 mo (June-August, 2013) and physiological responses (core body temperature, respiration rates, surface temperatures, and resting time) were measured in June and July to estimate responses of cows to the 2 different cooling systems. Water and electricity consumption were recorded for each system. Cows in the KK system displayed slightly lower respiration rates in the month of June and lower surface temperatures in June and July. However, no differences were observed in the core body temperature of cows, resting time, feed intake, milk yield, services/cow, and conception rate between systems. The FF system used less water and electricity during this study. In conclusion, both cooling systems (KK and FF) were effective in mitigating the negative effects of heat stress on cows housed in arid environments, whereas the FF system consumed less water and electricity and did not require use of curtains on the shade structure.
KW - Efficacy
KW - Evaporative cooling
KW - Heat stress
KW - Milk yield
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U2 - 10.3168/jds.2015-9616
DO - 10.3168/jds.2015-9616
M3 - Article
C2 - 26409968
AN - SCOPUS:84950133488
SN - 0022-0302
VL - 98
SP - 8710
EP - 8722
JO - Journal of dairy science
JF - Journal of dairy science
IS - 12
ER -