| 2016-07-01 |    |
Dutch Treat for Dairy Goats
A new in parlour feeding system has proved a profitable investment for Herman Pieper, a progressive goat milk producer reports Jos Borsten.
Farming near Eibergen, (pop; 12,000) close to the Dutch border with Germany, Herman was primarily a beef and pig producer until 1999 when the decision was made to establish a dairy goat enterprise.
Dairy goat farmer Herman Pieper is delighted with a new Hanskamp in parlour feeding system that cuts costs, enhances performance and saves time.
So over the next two years he built up a milking goat herd and installed a 48 station carousel milking parlour. However, after 15 years it was clear by last winter that the original in parlour feeding system needed replaced.
“It was not a very precise feeding system as the motor worked with a timer and feed often ended up on the floor beside the trough instead of in the trough. There was a lot of costly spillage around the rotary parlour and goats were not being fed to optimise their performance and our profits,” explained Herman.
“A reliable feeding system that can dose pellets precisely is very important in ensuring individual goats are fed accurately to ensure they remain in good condition and that margins are maximised.”
With the PipeFeeder HighSpeed system developed by innovative Dutch company Hanskamp already popular with dairy cow herd owners across Western Europe, Herman decided to have it installed last February.
“Now we have no pellets left scattered around the parlour and each goat gets exactly the correct amount of feed as the PipeFeeder has a very accurate braking system on the motor.”
Having deliberately installed the new feeding system before the start of kidding time Herman Pieper found that goats now learn the parlour routine much easier and faster than in previous years.
“I also really like the way Hanskamp have designed their very robust PipeFeeder so that from the ControlPanel the amount of pellets dispensed per group or per individual goat can be simply set.
“For young goats I can easily set the system to dispense 300g to 400g per animal. This ensures they remain eating and standing peacefully right through milking until turned out.
“The certainty that every goat will always receive feed helps get young goats moving quickly into the parlour. Early in the season when young goats coming into the herd are learning the milking routine this has cut milking time by half an hour as 300 animals go through the parlour.”
When ordering the PipeFeeder Herman Pieper pointed out to Hanskamp that the exit point designed for dairy cows would need adapted to suit goats.
“As a result we were the very first to install a new exit point for the PipeFeeder system designed by the Hanskamp team specifically for goats. It is no surprise that more diary goat farmers have since also opted for this PipeFeeder HighSpeed package.
“For those producing milk from cows or goats and seeking a precise feeding system with no problems I would strongly recommend the PipeFeeder HighSpeed from Hanskamp. Safe and simple to use it has proved an excellent investment as time and money is saved.”
