Out Loud and Out of Tune
Studies show that cows produce more milk when the farmer talks to them. It’s a case of in one ear and out the udder!
People think I am off my rocker when I start singing to-or having a good old chat- to my cows, but it’s often deliberate, for a purpose. My motto is “Out loud and out of tune” My mother-in-law, Jill, said in the Bible it says “Make a joyful noise to the Lord” though it does not say anything about being in tune!
Cows like calm, consistent and steady so I like to serenade them with everything from country and western, broadway musical classics and even the odd song of ABBA, but please keep that on the low down. Heavy metal and punk rock are a no-go! There has actually been a heap of studies showing that cows respond well to music just as people do.
If a cow is having a bad hair day and she is really grumpy, refusing to be milked, or if I am training new heifers that have not been in the dairy before there are a few tools I have at my disposal to create calm in the dairy. These are voice, touch, body position and the line of sight and the classic art of distraction.
In the dairy I position myself so that she can keep me in her eyesight, I’ll talk or sing so she can hear me and I’ll gently touch (rubbing or patting works best) her back, flank or tail. Does this work every time? Absolutely not, but the strike rate is good.
As farms get bigger and bigger, the ability to invest lots of time in a single animal is diminished, which is such a shame. Most of our cows love to come into the dairy, our biggest issue is getting them to leave!
When moving cows, body positioning is critical. Cows like you to walk out to the side of them at a distance, rather than directly behind so they do not feel threatened. It takes skill to judge how flighty a cow is to determine the distance to stand behind and still get the cow to move easily and comfortably. You might walk a pet cow at an arm’s length whereas a flighty cow might require standing at least 10 metres behind.
Sometimes as a farmer and you notice a cow isn’t relaxed and comfortable it could be that you a getting something wrong. I often use the example of a large school with say 1000 kids. On any given day there is a kid with a busted arm, one with a busted leg, five with viral infections, 10 with an upset stomach and 30 with anxiety issues. With 1000 cows, it is unrealistic to expect they are all going to be cheery all of the time.
Where this is all heading, make sure you sing out loud and out of tune and when someone tells you not to give up your day job, just dial the volume up a notch!
If you’re happy and you know it, dance a jig!
Paul.