DAIRY ST R FALL & WINTER
Calf & Heifer Special Edition
November 9, 2024
Better barn design, ventilation Moes utilize new technology for youngstock By Emily Breth
emily.b@star-pub.com
GOODWIN, S.D. — When caring for newborn calves, the Moes family at MoDak Dairy Inc. takes the responsibility seriously. MoDak Dairy is owned by Jim, Greg and Jacob Moes. Together with the help of other family and their team, the farm milks around 2,500 cows in a double-30 parlor. All the youngstock and steers are raised on the farm, as well. With the new calf barns in place, the mortality rate of the calves has dropped to well below 1/4%, Greg said. It is too low to calculate simply. “Consistency is a big deal with animals,” Greg said. “(They do well when) they know when they are going to get fed, how much and that it’s not going to be too cold or hot (in the barn).”
EMILY BRETH/DAIRY STAR
Jacob (from leŌ), Greg and Jim Moes stand Oct. 15 in front of freshly chopped sorghum at their farm near Goodwin, South Dakota. MoDak Dairy Inc. is a 2,500-cow dairy.
The barns are 100-by 150 feet with two separate rooms. Each room has 12 10- by 26-foot pens that hold nine calves each. The airow in each of the rooms is automatically controlled by tem-
perature. This feature helps the calves grow better in the winter, Greg said. “They do gain better because they don’t take as much to keep warm,” he said.The series of vents in
the new barns are like those found in hog barns. Air is drawn in from the attic of the barn, circulated throughout the pens and then exits the barn through an exhaust chimney in the roof.
Greg also said he appreciates that the calves have access to clean food, water and bedding all day without someone having to make multiple trips a day. Turn to MOES | Page 2