Last week, we paid a visit to the Dewhurst family at Whittingham Hall Farm, near Preston, who use our baled Finebed for their 180 pedigree Holsteins. Thank you to John, Gillian, Mick and Kate who spent the afternoon showing us around!

(Above, Kate & Mick, Gillian & John)

The Dewhurst’s choose Finebed for it’s consistency – and Mick describes the product as ‘Fine enough to provide an absorbent comfortable bed, but coarse enough not to blow straight off the cubicles’.  It keeps their cows clean, without having to use excessive quantities, providing good value for money.

Most of the herd are housed all year round – to maximise milk yields and productivity. Wilson Agri mattresses provide a comfy lying surface, whilst the Finebed is just used as a drying agent. Only 4 or 5 bales are needed each bedding time to dust the cubicles by hand- just on the back end where the udder touches the mat.

The Finebed works well through slats into slurry storage, unlike chopped straw, which was used previously, and caused some blockages. Thanks to the Lely Discovery Robot, who collects manure from the passageways every hour, muck dragged into the cubicles is minimal, and cows stay clean in their beds.

Pallets are stored outside, freeing up indoor storage space- which works well, unless some nosey cows get to their clean bedding first!

Special thanks again to the Dewhurst family for hosting us, and showing us round! Look out for a video coming soon on our social media, and see around Whittingham Hall Farm for yourself…  

You can follow Mick and Kate on Instagram – @WhittinghamHallFarm for their regular updates!

If you’d like to learn more about our cubicle conditioners – and how it can benefit your cattle health, comfort and welfare, take a look at our dairy products.