After months of rigorous testing, DCC Waterbeds Dual Chamber Cow Waterbeds have been awarded the DLG Technology and Farm Input Test center’s DLG seal of approval for performance in cow comfort. Located near Frankfurt, Germany, the DLG center delivers top quality performance testing methodology recognized and trusted by the agricultural industry in Europe.
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The DLG Center in Gross-Umstadt near Frankfurt, Germany, perform quality tests on agricultural machinery and farm inputs using a time-tested philosophy and method faithful to the trusted underlying principles of the internationally recognized DLG tests.
“We know that unbiased validation is important for dairy producers in the decision making process. With the DLG tests on elasticity, tread load, abrasion and slip resistance, DLG has confirmed what we’ve know from our nearly 20 years of history in barns around the world: DCC Waterbeds provide lasting, cow comfort for dairy cows,” said Dean Throndsen, President and CEO of Advanced Comfort Technology, the worldwide distributor of DCC Waterbeds.
“DCC Waterbeds are a popular bedding solution in Germany, The Netherlands and Belgium, so it was important to us to reaffirm to dairy producers that we are committed to meeting the highest cow comfort and product quality standards through being certified by a trusted third-party,” Throndsen added.
Based on test results, the DLG awarded the DLG-APPROVED for criteria that evaluate the comfort and durability properties of DCC Waterbeds for use as dairy bedding.
According to the report, “The DLG-APPROVED test for single value-determining criteria ‘Deformability/Elasticity, Permanent Tread Load, Abrasion, Slip resistance’ includes technical measurements on test stands of the DLG Test Center. The deformability and elasticity, the abrasion resistance, the slip resistance were measured and a permanent tread load was applied. The test was based on the DLG Testing Framework for elastic stable flooring, as of April 2010.”
To view the complete test report, visit www.DLG.org/dcc-waterbed.html
Since it was established 130 years ago, both the DLG organization and the contents of the DLG quality tests for agricultural machinery and farm inputs have gained an excellent reputation.
Over the years, the DLG has introduced many seals of approval in various forms, but they all have one thing in common: they deliver proof of outstanding product quality, based on independent, impartial assessment.
DCC Waterbeds is proud to have achieved certification and received the DLG APPROVED Seal.
For more information about DCC Waterbeds, contact Amy Throndsen at (608) 709-2693 or email support@advancedcomforttechnology.com. For more information about DLG testing, visit www.dlg.org.
Headquartered in Wisconsin, Advanced Comfort Technology, Inc., is a family-owned company that distributes DCC Waterbeds worldwide. ACT, Inc., has been improving dairy cow comfort by providing waterbeds for cows since 1999. For more information, visit www.DCCWaterbeds.com or www.advancedcomforttechnology.com.
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There are SO MANY advantages to sand bedding for dairy cows. University researchers are quoted extensively in dairy magazines and websites touting the advantages of sand.
We thought we’d stretch our humor muscles and come up with a few “advantages” that are often overlooked. Of course all of these “advantages” are the direct result of sand management issues—which are often the direct result of LIFE and things you can’t control. When an employee quits, when you get sick, when it rains and then the sun comes out and you’re behind on field work, when your sand supplier sends you a bad load of sand, when your equipment breaks—all of these things are out of your control, and that’s when the headaches of managing sand can spin out of control, too.
Some of these “advantages” have popped up in barns we’ve visited recently. So, have a chuckle about ol’ Mr. Sand with us. He’s not perfect either.
Did you know that research shows that DCC Waterbeds perform on par with sand bedding in preventing hock lesions and injuries? A 2007 study published in the Journal of Dairy Science reported that 95% of the cows on waterbeds had hock scores of 0 and 1, while 97.5% of the cows on sand had hock scores of 0 or 1 (compared to just 82% of the cows on mattresses having scores of 0 and 1).That means DCC Waterbeds were within 2.5% of sand – those are some healthy hocks on both sand and DCC Waterbeds. Visit http://bit.ly/JDS2007 for the complete study.
Let’s celebrate sand by listing ALL of its "advantages:"
1) Your cows will never be lonely. With the excitement of sand flies joining the cows for a nap in the summer, your cows will always have someone to keep them company. Sand flies are like pets for your cows, irritating little pets.
2) Regular shopping sprees! Since you love shopping, sand allows you to do more of it, more often. With regular repair to your manure handling equipment shopping for parts, pumps, scraper blades and chains is guaranteed.
3) You love paying for things twice! You buy sand endlessly by the ton, and then get to pay to dig it out of the lagoon and haul it out to the fields each year.
4) Cows don’t need to get up for a snack. Isn’t it great that cows under-the-weather love to lick sand? They can just lay around all day and lick the sand until they feel better.
5) Provides a hobby for cows. It may be boring for some people, but collecting rocks can be a magnificent hobby! The variety, size, and composition of stones found in sand can create a lovely rock collection for the aspiring cow collector.
6) Keeps cows fit. Not only do cows get to dig in the sand in the front of the stall and kick the sand out the back of the stall – all, apparently, to stay fit while creating their perfect little sand heaven, but when it rains and snows and the sand gets frozen into chunks, cows can have a sand-ball-fight!
7) Keeps your farm connected. Your balance sheet stays connected with the outside world, and sand helps keep you even more connected – to the price of sand, labor, and fuel as all of your sand hauling equipment guzzle it.
8) Cow pedicures come free with sand bedding. It’s like living in a spa when you have sand bedding, right? The hooves are nice and smooth, sometimes too smooth, sometimes way too smooth.
9) Eliminates idle hands. Have an extra half hour? Don’t go check the score of the game, go rake your sand stalls. Have an extra hour? Don’t go play catch with your kids, go groom your sand stalls. Any time you have a little bit extra, you should probably go rake your sand, or replace it completely. The more often you do, the more comfortable your cows are going to be.
10) Eliminates boredom in the parlor. The parlor is usually a quiet, slow-pace place to work, so with sand, you can combat boredom by having parlor staff wipe off grimy, sand coated udders. Wouldn’t want them to have nothing to do.
11) Cows lie down longer (even when they don’t want to). Ever seen a cow stuck under a free stall loop or a fresh cow struggling to gain footing on sand? On the bright side, she’ll lie down longer.
12) Superior comfort. According to Dr. Mich Schutz at Purdue (#162), sand provides superior cushioning for knees and hocks. We don’t dispute this fact. In fact, we’re happy that DCC Waterbeds on par with sand in terms of comfort.*
*Sand must be at least 6-8 inches sloped from head to tail, and the rear level should not be below the curb. Approximately 40 pounds per stall per day should be added to the stalls. Stalls must be the correct dimensions. Stalls should be groomed during milking (2-3 times per day). Compare to DCC Waterbeds cleaning.
13) Sand does not support bacterial growth. Sand is inorganic, so bacteria find the environment hostile, helping prevent mastitis.**
**Sand must be groomed to prevent pooling of liquid and manure in the sand creating “dirt” where bacteria can freely grow. Grooming and refilling are extremely important, regardless of whether it is a busy season or you have an emergency to attend to. Also, when using a sand-manure-recycling system you must make sure the sand gets clean and dries. Compare to the maintenance of DCC Waterbeds.
14) Sand is easy to maintain during milking.***
***Unless you are the one milking. Or you are looking to cut down labor costs. Or you’ve switched to robots, so no one is milking, then you’re just disrupting the cows.
15) Sand is cool in the summer.****
****If the cow lies on top of the freshly groomed sand beds and doesn’t dig down deep. IF.
16) Sand is relatively inexpensive^
^If you have an available source of inexpensive sand or happen to have a dairy set up for sand-manure-separation (a system that can cost upward of $1,000,000). Otherwise, when you add in labor, sand costs, and equipment wear and tear, the cost of sand may not justify the relative comfort levels.
Accessories not included: Sand hauling equipment, sand blowers, sand levelers, sand rakes, front-end loaders, manure equipment replacement parts, fuel.
Author's note: We at DCC Waterbeds intend this to be a humorous, tongue-in-cheek message about some of the headaches of managing sand. Of course we know that all dairy producers - sand/waterbed/flat mat/manure solids/pasture based/etc. - are doing their best to create optimal levels of cow comfort. Our point is simply this: not everyone believes that managing sand is worth the effort, or find themselves in a position where they do not have the resources to manage it at a high enough level to maintain cow comfort. We hope you can laugh with us. After all, we sell cow waterbeds and get laughed at all the time.
What’s a Baird’s tapir?
We had to look it up, too! The Baird’s tapir is a small African hoofed mammal.
The team at Brookfield Zoo, a Chicago Zoological Society facility, looked to the dairy industry for a comfortable bedding solution to help relieve joint discomfort being experienced by their 26-year-old Baird’s tapir, Jezabel. In the Fall 2015 Gateways magazine, published by the zoological society for members, a short article talks about Jezabel’s experience:
In just a few short weeks, they saw improvements for her pressure points, and the team is considering offering waterbeds to all our tapirs, rhinos, and giraffes. Plus, the veterinarians may obtain a portable waterbed for hospital patients.
We’re so excited the Jezabel, and other Brookfield Zoo species, can benefit from the comfort provided by DCC Waterbeds.
(c) 2023 Advanced Comfort Technology Inc. and DCC Waterbeds joined the Promat family (Sept 1, 2023)
Promat contact details here.
