One thing that we’ve seen a need for that we didn’t have was a smaller fenced-in area that we could put smaller calves out to run around for an afternoon, or to put a cow that was going to be calving soon into so that she wouldn’t be calving in the barn, or even a place to put a slightly lame cow so they’d have a place near the barn that they could walk around in until they got better.

An ideal area seemed to be behind our barn, it was shaded, and was already an area we would tie animals out in, so it seemed the logical place to build a wooden fenced corral.

We knew this wouldn’t be an easy…or cheap project, but we wanted it to be done, so we went to Lowes and picked up the supplies we were going to need. The posts are 3.5 inches X 3.5 inches X 6 feet, and pressure treated - solid posts that should last for years. We went for cheaper 1×4 for the slates knowing that these would need to be replaced every few years.

The first thing that needed to be done was measuring out the area, and then digging the post holes. Each one needed to be about 2 feet deep (or about 1/3 of the length of the post).

Once the hole was dug, we put in a round cardboard form, set the post in, and poured some fast-setting concrete into the form and then added water. We made sure the post was level and then let it sit for 20 minutes or so.

Once we had let the concrete set, we could fill in the dirt back into the hole and pack it down nice and firm.

Digging the holes was by far the longest and hardest part of the project. Our backs and legs and shoulders and just about every other part of our bodies are still sore. New Hampshire isn’t known as the Granite State for nothing! There were plenty of rocks, tree roots, and other treasures in the soil. About two feet down, we found a garden hose that must’ve been there for at least 20 years! We ended up needing to plant 16 posts in the ground this way.

After we had done a few posts, we were anxious to see what they would look like with boards on them. So we put a few on:

Here’s a look at our first corner (with a lovely shot of the manure spreader in the background).

After a number of hours, things were starting to take shape.

When we got to the other end, we needed to come up with a solution for a gate. We really didn’t want to build one, although we could have if we really wanted to. We needed something pretty lightweight, yet sturdy enough to hold in the cows in the corral. It also needed to be able to easily hang off of the posts.

We found the solution in a pair of chain link 4 foot gates, which we put side-by-side, allowing the tractor to drive into the pen in case it is ever needed. The mounts to hang the gates just needed to be screwed into the post, and then the gates were hung.

Then we had our corral:

Amber is due to calve in a couple of weeks, and she’ll be a good candidate to be put out here for the few days before she calves.

We had some exceptionally strong winds and thunderstorms this past weekend that blew the tin right off the barn! When you own a farm when something isn’t working or breaks, most of the time you either can’t afford to call someone to fix it or it’s just easier for you to do it yourself.

Here’s Senior hard at work:

We’re not sure, but we think we might have the first Wi-Fi equipped dairy barn in the area. The logical question seems to be: Why in the world would you need wireless internet access in a barn?

Well, to be truthful, at the moment there isn’t a pressing need for it. But having a background in the computer industry, we know that computers are everywhere. Most large farms rely heavily on computers for record keeping and reporting. We’re in the process of setting up a computer database that will have information about each cow in the herd. There is an office in the milkroom, which we will have a computer set up so that research can be done records can be updated and records printed.

We expect that also in the future, there will be a demand for internet access on farms. Inspectors, Milk Truck Drivers, even veterinarians will need to keep records on computer and will need to be able to file reports or results instantly. Handheld computers can also make herd observations and notes easy to keep.

Another thing we can now do is mount a wireless camera in the barn, perhaps near a cow that is ready to calve. Then we can keep an eye on her, without having to leave the house! We can also see if there are any cows loose, or check in on other activity down there.

The best thing about this was how cheap it was to do. I had purchased a wireless MIMO router which was connected to the cable modem in the house. The signal just barely made it to the milkroom, where I configured a Cisco Networks Range Expander, (Shown to the right) which essentially takes that signal and amplifies it. Should the time come when outsiders are hooking on, I can add more security features. Both pieces of equipment, after some patient waiting for a good deal cost under $40 total.

Our next step is to finished getting the office cleaned out and get the computer up and running.

When the cow barn was built in 1979, it was very modern. The tie stalls were spacious and this was prior to the large “free stall” and milking parlor movements of the recent years.

Most of the milking cows go out to pasture each day after milking, and come back into the barn in the early evening prior to the second milking. They spend the night in the barn, and stay there until after the morning milking. During the winters, they may stay indoors all day. This can cause problems as the stalls are concrete, and there may not be enough sawdust, shavings or sand to provide enough bedding to keep them comfortable. Imagine laying down and getting up on your elbows and knees on a concrete floor day after day. Them imagine that you weigh 2000 lbs!

We needed to find a way to make the cows more comfortable. Several of them already had swelled knee joints from the stalls. Several companies manufacture stall mats made of rubber for this very purpose, however the price for them was very prohibitive. One place quoted us over $100 for a single 4X4 mat, while other places quoted thousands of dollars for a mat that could be rolled down between the stalls. Those weren’t within our means.

We went to Lowe’s and found these 3×3 anti-fatigue mats for just $19.98 each. They’re made for commercial use, of thick rubber (about an inch thick) and with slots for drainage. At Sam’s Club, the same mats were almost $26 apiece.

They snap together, but I knew that the cows would tear them apart quickly, so I came up with the idea of use tie-wraps to secure the mats together. We did a test run of three stalls, originally just using three tie wraps, at the top, middle and bottom, and securing the mats in the using larger ties. We quickly saw that we would need to tie wrap almost the entire length of each mat for maximum strength. That seemed to work pretty good in our test group, as the cows weren’t able to tear the mats from each other.

So the next step was to try an entire 10 stall section of the barn. We went back to Lowes and purchased 15 of the mats, (clearing out their entire supply) 300 small tie wraps and 40 large ones. Then we worked as follows:

1) Move the remaining cows out of their stalls. Five of the ten stalls were empty because the cow was outside, however, there were still five cows inside, these ones didn’t go outside because they couldn’t be trusted. While we worked on the stalls, we moved them to another part of the barn.

2) Clean the stalls thoroughly. This involved removing any bedding, scraping down and eventually sweeping the stall so we were on the bare concrete.

3) Laying down mats two at a time, upside down, and tie-wrapping them together.

We did them upside down so that the lock would be under the mat. Tie-wrapping the mats was actually the part of the process that took the longest. Once we had two together, we would flip them over, slide them in place, and connect them to another section of mats.

4) Once all the mats were in place, we secured them in the stalls with the larger tie wraps. We know that the cows will pull/push the mats back in the stalls a little bit, but we hope having the entire length of the section covered with what is in essence one big mat, along with having it secure, will keep them from moving too much.

5) When we had the mats in place and secured, we covered them with more bedding. Some sand, followed by a pretty thick layer of soft wood shavings.

6) Then we returned the cows to their stalls. Of course, we forgot to take pictures of steps 5 and 6. Maybe if we do the other side we’ll be able to show you what they looked like completed. (Pretty good, we think.)

We’re going to observe how these mats work out over the next few weeks before trying another section.

We realize that this may not be an ideal solution to the problem, but without being able to afford the more expensive options, we feel that this was a good value which will provide the cows more comfort. Already some are spending more time laying down in the stall, and we’ll be curious to see the effect the mats might have on some of the sore-kneed animals.