Build a warm barn for animals. Cattle barns - how to build correctly? Installation of feeders and drinkers

Since farming has recently become increasingly popular, the question of how to build a barn has become very relevant. Indeed, the products obtained from cattle breeding are inherently basic in the diet of any person, so milk and meat will always find a market. And any practical owner would prefer to have these products from their own, “tested” animals. It is not surprising that many farmers prefer to have a small herd of cows or at least their own cows. However, since cows are very sensitive to housing conditions, the success of a livestock farm directly depends on the creation of optimal conditions and a properly constructed barn.

Since farming has recently become increasingly popular, the question of how to build a barn has become very relevant.

How to build a barn for livestock? It is quite possible for any owner to build a room in which a cow with a calf or a small herd of cattle, for example 5 heads, will live, that is, do-it-yourself cattle sheds are quite doable. To do this, you must first develop a barn design. First of all, you need to decide on the location of the room. According to sanitary standards, the barn must be located at least 15 m from a well with drinking water. This will keep the water clean. The area of the premises for one cow, including space for equipment, feeders, drinkers and hay, must be at least 18 m². If a barn is being built for 10 heads of cattle, then the calculation is based on 6 m² per cow, plus the area of utility rooms. When building a barn for 20 heads or more, the construction plan must include a room for storing milk, a maternity room, an isolation ward, a utility block and other utility rooms. It is better to entrust the design of a large barn to a specialist, as he will be able to take into account all the necessary details and correctly reflect them on the floor plan.

Sometimes a cow shed is attached to the back wall of a house. This allows you to save on building materials. But most often barns are built at a distance from the house. When choosing a place for a barn, you must provide a pen for animals.

How to build a barn with your own hands? The construction of a barn begins with preparing the site for construction and selecting building materials. At different times and in different places, people used stone, wooden logs, adobe brick, burnt brick, cinder blocks, foam blocks, sand blocks and various reinforced concrete structures to build barns. The most environmentally friendly are wooden barns and barns made of adobe bricks. Such buildings retain heat well and have optimal gas exchange. However, the choice of material is determined by the availability in a given region and natural conditions. It is important for any owner to build a room of high quality and inexpensively. In any case, to work, you will need tools such as a shovel, a stake, a level, and a rope. And the materials used are screws, nails, cement, clay, sand.

Room for cattle (video)

Foundation of the building

On the site allocated for the barn, the top fertile layer of soil is removed. The foundation of the building must be located on a solid foundation. Its depth and width depend on the material of the barn walls. A frame barn does not require a foundation at all. But such a barn is only suitable for warm regions. If the walls of the barn are made of stone or cinder block, or the building is built on loose soils, then the foundation is buried into the ground at least 70 cm. For lighter walls, the foundation can be made less deep. A strip foundation is installed for small buildings. To do this, they mark the site and dig trenches. Then the formwork is installed and the stone-cement mixture is poured. The concrete foundation is quite strong and durable. You can also make the base from baked brick or rubble stone. The top of the foundation is covered with roofing felt or other moisture-proof material. This will ensure waterproofing of walls and partitions.

What to make walls and roof from

Stone walls, of course, are the strongest and most durable, but made this way they will not meet some requirements - it can be damp and cold in the barn. If heating and ventilation of such a room is not provided, the animals in it will get sick, which will inevitably affect their productivity. Brick and cinder block are more expensive materials. They retain heat well, but still require additional thermal insulation. The best materials for a private barn are considered to be adobe brick and shell rock. These are inexpensive materials with low thermal conductivity, ideal for the construction of a barn. Sufficiently warm walls that do not require additional insulation are obtained with a thickness of 1.5 bricks. They are usually made 2.5 m high. A higher room will be colder, and if the walls are lower, it will be stuffy inside. The barn should have windows for natural light. They are made above the level of the animal's head. Whatever material the walls of the barn are made of, they must be plastered and whitewashed. This is done for additional disinfection of the room.

The most suitable and cheapest material for a barn roof is slate roofing. The roof is made from planed boards and adjusted during the process to ensure a complete fit. A thermal insulation layer is laid on top of the boards and pressed down with slate. The roof should have a slight slope to remove precipitation.

How are things in the West?

In the West, cowsheds are often made two-story or with a large attic. The upper room is intended for storing hay. The advantages of such a construction include saving space and natural additional insulation of the barn ceiling. In addition, hay is better preserved in a ventilated attic. Among the disadvantages is an increased fire hazard. Dry hay can ignite even from sunlight, and in this case it will be more difficult to extinguish the fire.

Cowshed made of wooden structures (video)

What are floors and manure storage made from?

Proper flooring in a barn is very important. Any flooring material has both its advantages and disadvantages. A prerequisite is that the floor in the barn must be warm. Naturally, a wooden floor will be the warmest. It can be made from wooden boards 5 cm thick. But over time, such floors lose their quality and begin to absorb animal feces, which increases the concentration of ammonia in the room. In addition, wood floors are not durable. They will have to be changed approximately every 5-6 years. Brick floors are more durable. They will last 13-15 years, but they require insulation with a straw bedding. Concrete floors are even more durable, but this is a cold and damp material, on which in winter the bedding should be at least 30 cm. Clay floors with boards nailed on top are good. This design is cheap and practical.

The floors in the barn are built at a height of about 10 cm above the ground and always on a slope. This will allow urine to drain and make cleaning easier. The slope is approximately 5°. Greater floor slopes can lead to disease in the cows' limbs. At the end of the slope, make a drainage ditch about 15 cm deep and about 30 cm wide. The ditch should be of such a size that a shovel can fit into it.

The slurry is drained from the gutter into a special tank. The volume of the tank is calculated based on the livestock. For 1 cow you need to allocate 0.3 m³ (or 300 l) of liquid collection tank per month. A slurry tank is usually located in the backyard. Make it no more than 3 m deep. This tank must have waterproof walls. Therefore, most often it is made of concrete. The inside of the walls is coated with bitumen. This container must be closed with a tight lid. The farmyard must be equipped with a manure storage facility. When planning a manure storage facility, the volume of the pit is calculated taking into account the fact that one cow produces about 1 ton of manure per month. The depth of the pit usually does not exceed 0.5 m. The walls are lined with stone or made of concrete. The bottom is made with a slope towards the liquid collector. A canopy must be provided over the manure storage facility. During the winter, the manure in such a pit rots and becomes an excellent fertilizer that is in demand among farmers.

Proper flooring in a barn is very important.

Internal structure of the room

A small cow shed usually has no internal partitions, and all the animals in it are kept in one room. Barns for a large number of cattle have internal partitions separating the stalls. Thus, each animal is, as it were, in a separate room. The size of a cow stall depends on the breed, sex and age of the animal. So, for one adult cow, a stall with an average size of 1.2 x 1.8 m is provided. The width of a stall for a cow with a calf is increased to 1.5 m. Therefore, it is advisable to make the internal partitions mobile. For dairy cows, the width and length of the stall may be slightly smaller, for beef cows - slightly larger. A separate room must be provided for bulls. Sometimes a farmer builds a barn to house and fatten only bulls for meat.

How to build a barn for oxen? When constructing premises of this type, stalls are provided for calves and adult bulls. A stall for bulls is made measuring 1.25x2.4 m, and for calves it should be 1x1.5 m in size. The stall must have a split to secure the animal.

Ideally, each animal should have its own feeder and water bowl. This would protect animals from contracting many types of infections. One such feeder should hold up to 8 kg of feed. They make individual feeders from boards. The wood is carefully cleaned and sanded, and a small recess is made in the front part for the head and neck of the animal. Drinkers can also be made from boards or stainless steel. To build feeders and drinking bowls for cows with your own hands, you need to know their dimensions. The height of the feeder should be 65 cm, the width - about 80 cm, and the length - at least 1-1.3 m. The feeders are placed in front of the stall, and the wall of the feeder adjacent to the stall is made 30-35 cm shorter than the opposite one. In practice, large barns use tray feeders and drinkers made of brick or concrete.

Livestock premises must be equipped with electric lighting and ventilation. Additional lighting in winter will increase milk yield by up to 10%, and ventilation will protect animals from poisoning by ammonia vapors.

The premises for animals must be clean and dry. In cold weather, straw bedding is placed in the stalls to protect against colds. The bedding is changed every day. If the drainage of slurry and manure is well adjusted and most of the litter remains dry, then it is enough to replace some of the straw by adding fresh straw. A thick layer of bedding will keep the barn warm and the animals healthy during the winter months. It is advisable to equip a farm for cattle with a shed for walking animals in the hot summer with remote feeders and drinking bowls.

up to 100 cm for medium cows;
up to 120 cm for large ones;

Classification of stalls by length

On farms with milking livestock, it is not practical to use a table longer than 190 cm.

In this case, feces will accumulate on the platform and not in the gutter, which will require more effort when cleaning. Therefore, two types are used:

The most practical is a short stall for cows - in it the animal's rear is constantly above the chute, which makes cleaning easier. The middle model uses a fenced feeding table to prevent the cow's head from being placed in a lying position. This leads to an increase in the useful length of the stall, the use of long chains and an increase in the size of the barn, but the animals are more comfortable in them.

This method is rational for year-round tethered keeping, and also does not require additional equipment for the space.

weight gain improves;

According to this technology, the cattle area is used only for animals to lie down. This is a fenced area that strictly corresponds to the size of the animals. Cows lie on them and slowly digest roughage (rumination occurs).

Use of litter

Do not harm animals.

This material can also be easily removed with scrapers, a conveyor or a tractor. Straw is less suitable - large particles absorb moisture less well and are more difficult to remove with a conveyor. Its main advantage is accessibility. Since farms usually use a full cycle and prepare grain feed themselves, a lot of straw is produced.

In summer, almost everywhere, animals are kept under a canopy made of four pillars 2.2 - 2.4 meters high and a pitched roof made of slate or roofing felt.

Feeders are installed under the higher part of the canopy. It is good to fence the canopy with a net to protect the animal from insects.

In winter, in cold areas, cows are kept in permanent, insulated buildings with an attic ceiling and a vestibule at the door. Attics in such premises are usually used for storing roughage and bedding.

The barn should not be heated: the required air temperature is maintained in it by the heat generated by the animal itself. An exception may be certain days in winter, when the outside temperature drops sharply.

The foundation of the room must be strong, and its upper part (basement) must be insulated from the wall with a waterproof gasket, for example from roofing felt.

Housing for livestock is usually built from local materials: wood, adobe, brick, slag concrete, shell rock and others. The best of them is adobe brick. It is made from a mixture of clay, sand and fine straw.

Bricks and cinder blocks are often used for construction. However, thin brick walls freeze in cold weather. Therefore, it is better to build brick walls with a hollow space inside and fill it with sawdust or straw cuttings.

The walls are usually built about 2.5 meters high. They must be smooth and plastered. They must be periodically cleaned of dust, cobwebs and whitened. The height of the room (from floor to ceiling) must be at least 2.3 meters.

The ceiling of the barn is made dry, light, smooth, durable, and well insulated. A wooden ceiling with insulation made from sawdust, dry leaves, and straw fully meets these requirements. Like the walls, the ceiling should be whitewashed.

The condition of the floor in the barn greatly affects the productivity of the animal and its health. It must be warm, dry, even, sufficiently durable, non-slip, impermeable to liquids and convenient for cleaning from manure.

Typically, private households have wooden floors. But the best material for the floor is baked brick, laid end-to-end on coal slag; such a floor can last 12 - 14 years without repair.

The floor should have a slight slope (1 - 2 centimeters per linear meter) from the feeder to the manure ditch.

It is better to make windows in the back or side walls in relation to the animal, with an area 10–15 times less than the floor area; they should be located above the animal’s eyes. It is advisable to install windows and doors on the south or east side.

The internal dimensions of the room may vary, because there is usually space for a calf, but for one cow it should be 22 cubic meters. m, with a stall floor length of 1.9 - 2.1 meters and a width of at least 2 meters.

The feeder is made of smoothly planed boards 40-50 millimeters thick, with a capacity of up to 5-7 kilograms of roughage (hay, straw). The feeder usually resembles a trough 45 - 50 centimeters wide, 30 - 35 centimeters high and about one meter long. It can be attached to the floor, or better yet, slightly raised (suspended), this will not allow the animal to step into the feeder with its feet.

The barn should be warm, dry, bright, with good air, but without drafts, spacious and comfortable enough to accommodate the animal and equipment (shovel, broom, basket, forks, buckets). Windows must not be blocked or shaded.

For animal bedding, you can use 1.5-3 kilograms of straw, 1 - 3 kilograms of peat, 2-5 kilograms of sawdust per day.

Every day, except on very cold days (below minus 20°), the cow should be allowed out for a walk for 2 - 3 hours, and during this time the room should be ventilated by opening the doors and windows. For walks, you can use a small paddock equipped next to the barn.

A.IVASHUROV.

A cattle stall performs essential functions depending on the type of housing. With the free-stall technology, this is a simple place to rest and digest food, and with the tethered method, the animal is milked and fed in the stall. The productivity of cattle, the ease of maintenance and the implementation of therapeutic measures depend on the correct selection and preparation of the stall.

Tether stalls

This type of breeding involves the use of a stall as the main habitat of cows, which affects milk production, the strength of the immune system, and the functioning of the reproductive organs. The dimensions of the stall for tethered cows are determined by the dimensions of the animals, determined by breed factors, physiological condition and individual animals.

up to 100 cm for medium cows;
up to 120 cm for large ones;
up to 150 cm for massive animals at 7-9 months of pregnancy.

Typically 120 cm stalls are used as they can be used for any animal and because of the 6 meter gap between the columns. Cattle stalls of 150 cm are used in maternity wards, and narrow ones are installed when farming specific breeds.

Classification of stalls by length

In livestock farming, stall lengths that differ from building standards are used. If in the latter option this is the distance from the chute to the feeding table, then the useful length is measured to the place of the tether.

More often used for cows are stalls with a length of up to 190 cm.

The place for cattle does not exceed 250 cm in length, and according to modern standards - 200 cm. The largest ones are used in maternity wards, where it is necessary to create the most favorable conditions in the last months of pregnancy, when the calf is actively gaining weight and shaping its appearance. At this time, the cows are constantly kept in the stall, so it is made comfortable.

On farms with milking livestock, it is not practical to use a table longer than 190 cm. In this case, feces will accumulate on the platform, and not in the gutter, which will require more effort when cleaning. Therefore, two types are used:

In a short stall, the cow's head is placed even in a lying position. Its length is less than the oblique length of the body, fences must be installed on the sides, and short chains are used. You should also install a pipe in front of the feeder - a horizontal limiter that does not allow cattle to crawl into the feeder. The technique allows to reduce litter contamination and personnel work.

Features of keeping bulls

weight gain improves;
contact between animals is leveled;
Animal service is made safe.

With the usual group breeding of large bulls, injuries increase, feed digestibility and its processing into mass decrease. And large and angry bulls pose a danger to staff. Therefore, from 12 months, everyone should be placed in a stall.

Their main difference from cows is their size. These are larger and stronger structures that should ensure a comfortable stay for the bull until 18-20 months, when he gains a weight of more than 500 kg. The leash is short, the bull's muzzle should be located in the feeder. The bedding is changed daily.

Freestall stall

According to this technology, the cattle area is used only for animals to lie down.

This is a fenced area that strictly corresponds to the size of the animals. Cows lie on them and slowly digest roughage (rumination occurs).

Freestall stall dimensions

Here the approach is different - the cattle should fit comfortably in a lying position. Therefore, the width is used up to 125 cm, and the length up to 280 cm. For stalls located near the walls, the length can be increased to 3 meters. If you make short places, then the udder and pelvic limbs will constantly be in the passage, where they will be contaminated with dirt and microbes, and also be injured by other animals.

It is best to use sliding models. Regulation is carried out in several ways:

moving the side pipes – adjusting the width of the box;
by shifting the beam for the withers, the length of the stall is changed;
raising it or lowering it, they adjust it to the size of the cow.

Use of litter

Placing cows on a concrete floor is fraught with the development of bronchial diseases and limb pathologies. Free-stall housing necessarily involves the use of bedding, but if the free-stall method uses deep and permanent bedding, then the table accommodation requires daily cleaning.

Peat and sawdust are best for bedding - they absorb moisture well., do not harm animals. This material can also be easily removed with scrapers, a conveyor or a tractor. Straw is less suitable - large particles absorb moisture less well and are more difficult to remove with a conveyor. Its main advantage is accessibility. Since farms usually use a full cycle and prepare grain feed themselves, a lot of straw is produced.

The litter is changed every day, and in case of heavy contamination with manure - several times. The use of covering material allows you to keep animals clean, which reduces the work of milkmaids, increases resistance, and improves the prevention of hoof diseases and bursitis.

The pigsty (8-9m2) is also isolated from other rooms by blank walls or partitions. There is only one entrance here. The interior can be designed in different ways, depending on your purpose for keeping the animals (fattening for lard, bacon or raising piglets).

Partitions in a pigsty made of boards.

The feeding compartment is along the length of the animal, the width may be smaller, because during feeding the pig should not make unnecessary movements and scatter its food. In front there is a feeder, in the back there is a shield, under the shield there is a grate for the liquid collector. The second, more spacious compartment is made for animals to rest. Don't forget a baffle to protect the piglets so they don't get crushed by the sow.

Next to the pigsty, it is necessary to build a walking yard and a hole in the wall for the animals to go for a walk in good weather.

Plant a tree with a thick spreading crown next to the paddock to protect the animals from overheating in the summer. Lighting, insulation and ventilation of the pigsty - everything is the same as in a barn.

The poultry house (8-8.5 m2) is also equipped differently today. Instead of ordinary poles, three-tier wire cages for laying hens with trays for collecting eggs, feeders, and pull-out trays for collecting droppings can be placed along the walls. This design increases the capacity of the poultry house by almost three times, frees up floor space for chickens, and there is even room for a feeder, drinker and electric heater (Brooderhaus with artificial lighting). Here you need a hole in the wall to access the courtyard, closed on all sides and on top with wire mesh. Consider a system for supplying water to automatic drinkers, make a tray for draining waste after washing the room.

There may be other options for your yard. It can be used for raising sheep, rabbits, geese, turkeys, etc.

The feed warehouse (18 m2) is made with an entrance gate and is of such a size that, if necessary, it can easily be converted into a garage. Along the walls there are compartments for different feeds. There is also an entrance to the cellar where root vegetables are stored in winter. Nearby are concrete pits for silage or pulp, covered with a canopy, and on top insulated with straw to prevent freezing. In the warehouse area there is also a shed for drying firewood, cabinets for storing equipment and tools. There may also be a winter hut for bee hives.

For a warehouse, it is better to set aside a place somewhere along the way from the residential building to the utility block, so that you can take what you need without wasting time. Here, laundry, corn cobs, onion bundles, etc. are dried under sheds.

The feed kitchen (8m2) must be connected to the animal premises, the feed warehouse and the house. It would be nice to add a summer kitchen with a smokehouse here. Two feed boilers can be placed in the oven to prepare food for animals.

Work tables and cabinets in the feed kitchen, just like in a regular kitchen, are arranged in the correct order, from left to right, from raw materials to the finished product. Nearby there is a sink with a water tap. Instead, there can be a regular bowl. It is placed on the table top, and above it is placed a tank with a tap, filled from a bucket. The crushed feed is steamed, mixed with concentrates and fed into animal feeders.

The summer kitchen attached to the utility block is a good gazebo. Here they prepare family dinners and relax. Although, it can also be used to prepare food for the winter. Next to the gazebo you can place a pit - an outdoor swimming pool. All this expands the functions of the summer kitchen. The hearth here can be equipped as a fireplace-smokehouse, where you can cook barbecue or smoke fish, sausages, hams, whatever you like best. The combustion chamber must be moved at least 2 m to the side and connected by a chimney bed with a smoking chamber closed by doors. Arrange a wide table and benches around the fireplace.

We must not forget such an important detail of the estate as a dog house. Its opening should be directed towards the gate of the utility yard so that the watchdog can see the main security objects. In addition, from the booth to the gate, along the driveway, stretch a wire along which the dog on a chain will move around the yard. Insulate the dog house well and make sure it is dry. To do this, make a flooring from boards. Change the straw bedding regularly. If you want, you can build a dog house into the utility unit.

By properly locating and arranging the barnyard and other buildings, you will greatly simplify your livestock work.

In the current difficult socio-economic conditions, creating your own farm is of interest to many. Although everyone has different goals - business, hobbies or the meaning of life - nevertheless, everyone wants to have environmentally friendly products on the table and for their subsidiary farming to also bring profit. There is nothing impossible about this. Today there is such a variety of building materials that you can easily build and equip a barn yourself in any region of the country, despite difficult climatic conditions.

Typical design device

First of all, remember one rule: the comfort of the cows comes first. This is the only way you will receive good quality meat and dairy products and recoup your costs. Regardless of the livestock, a convenient barn consists of the following sectors:

stalls with feeding trough, drinking bowl and waste disposal;
food storage room (kitchen);
maternity area for newborn calves;
area for walking animals;
utility room for storing equipment;
manure collection area;
compartment for storing milk, as well as containing milk containers;
boiler room for heating all rooms.

The stalls are arranged in rows depending on the number of heads. In individual farming, there are mainly single-row, two-row or three-row buildings.

There should be enough free space between stalls

The animals should not be crowded, so the passage between the rows is made moderately wide.

Types of barns

The correct choice of barn determines how productive the farm will be. Many factors are taken into account here: separate keeping of different-sex animals, the proportion of young animals, the number of heads, etc.

For small farms with a maximum capacity of 50 heads, as a rule, mini-barns are built - prefabricated frame hangars, well-lit and ventilated, which can be warm or cold. The latter are more suitable for cattle, since cows, calves and steers feel better in cool buildings (with outside temperatures). In such conditions, they get sick less, develop better and produce more milk.

It is more appropriate to build frame hangars in regions with year-round warm weather conditions

Unfortunately, in most regions of our country, harsh weather conditions do not allow keeping animals in cold barns. It is necessary to build insulated barns with a large number of windows, which are constantly kept open, which provides a suitable microclimate for the animals. However, when keeping more than 30 cows, you already need to take care of additional ventilation - install fans or polyurethane ventilation curtains, light aeration ridges or a Frivent DRW ventilation unit (if finances allow).

Additional ventilation helps to avoid excess moisture and regulate temperature conditions

Although there are many types of barns, all of them should be cool, light and cozy.

According to the materials used in the construction of barns, there are:

in the form of buildings made of metal profiles, with indoor temperatures close to street temperatures;
like buildings made of thermal insulating building materials;
type of hangars made of sandwich panels.

According to basic design:

2+2-row cattle shed for free housing of animals (loose-stall) with a high trapezoidal roof made of metal profiles with a minimum number of beams, which will ensure good air exchange;
3+3-row for the combined housing of dairy cows with calves and a separate milking parlor;
3-row barn, where the calf section and milking area are in the same room;
A 4-row barn makes it possible to fully mechanize all work - milking, water and feed distribution, manure removal.

Video: supply and exhaust ventilation of a barn for 200 heads in the Irkutsk region

Preparing to build a barn

During the preparatory stage of building a barn, you need to solve a number of critical problems in order for your efforts to be crowned with success.

Choose the direction of farming - do you plan to deal only with milk or meat, will you process the resulting products yourself, or sell the milk to dairies and hand over the cows by live weight. Will the young stock be purchased or produced locally? What is the size of the herd, how automated will labor be?
Deciding on a site for construction is important not only for the terrain, but also for the groundwater level. The predominant direction of winds, their intensity. Availability of convenient access roads and is it possible to organize pasture nearby.
Choose a suitable barn design. Or, based on the standard one, do it yourself, taking into account all your desires and capabilities.

Standard standards for animal housing

Premises for keeping animals must meet certain standards:

Free-stall housing - 6 m² per head of an adult and 4–4.5 m² per calf. If calves will be kept together with cows, the area should be 10 m².
Free-stall housing of cows is most often used on farms with a large number of livestock: animals are kept on a farm without stalls, with a milking parlor, and move freely both indoors and on walking areas
Tethered housing is the construction of individual boxes, the sizes of which depend on the sex and age of the animals. An adult cow is given an area of 1–1.3 x 1.8–2.1 m, a bull is given 1.3 x 1.4 m, a calf will be comfortable in an area of 1 x 1.5 m, a cow with a calf 1.5 x 2 m.
Tethered housing of cows has its advantages - there will be no collisions between animals, this method of housing compared to loose housing increases milk productivity by 15%, and reduces feed costs by 10%
The average dimensions of a barn are: width 4 m, length 6 m and height 2.5 m. The size of utility rooms depends on the number of heads, and the sizes of stalls and stall equipment depend on the size of the animals.

Table: sizes of stalls and stall equipment depending on the weight and dimensions of the livestock

Size of cows		Stall dimensions		Restrictor height		Height of the front wall of the feeder, cm
live weight, kg	oblique body length, cm	length, cm	width, cm	front, cm	lateral, cm	Height of the front wall of the feeder, cm
up to 450	139–143	140	105	118	75	16
451–500	142–147	145	105	122	75	18
501–550	146–152	150	110	125	80	20
551–600	152–160	155	110	127	85	22
601–650	157–163	160	120	130	90	24
651–700	160–168	165	120	133	90	26

Typical barn designs

A mini-farm involves keeping from 2 to 10 cows. For such a quantity, it is not difficult to draw up a barn plan yourself. The main thing is to adhere to the area standards for keeping animals.

The main principle of mini farming is to use available resources as rationally as possible.

The average farm includes from 20 to 50 heads of cattle. The barn layout looks quite simple.

It is advisable to entrust the construction of a farm with 100 or more head of cattle to professionals.

If you are just starting to raise cows, it is better to start with keeping fewer heads.

Well, only a team of experienced craftsmen can handle the construction of large farms. It is impossible to do this on your own according to the rules and regulations.

Drawing up a project is not everything. We now need to obtain approval from the relevant authorities. This procedure is troublesome. If possible, consult a lawyer. Perhaps after such a consultation you will change the concept of your farm or select a different site for construction.

Selecting materials for building a barn

To build a farm with your own hands you will need:

crushed stone;
baked brick or durable concrete for the foundation;
waterproofing material (roofing felt is most often used);
wooden boards for flooring;
covering material for the roof - slate, for example, or tiles;
building material for the construction of walls.

Walls and floors are of great importance when building a barn, since barns, as a rule, are not heated even in harsh climatic regions. Well-insulated walls and floors will be sufficient.

Wooden structures have performed well in terms of thermal conductivity, but they are short-lived. Brick barns are widespread, but in the northwestern regions it is recommended to make a two-layer structure, laying insulation between the layers. And this increases the cost of construction. Therefore, barns made of foam blocks and sandwich panels deserve more and more attention - they are easy to assemble, durable and well maintain the required temperature in the room.

But adobe is considered the best building material. It retains heat in the barn, ensures sufficient dryness in the room and is relatively inexpensive. Lay adobe in 1.5 bricks (hollow in one) on a good cement mortar, and line the bottom with ordinary brick. Inside, the walls are plastered, leveled and whitewashed.

The farm floor must be warm, dry, level and waterproof. Custom-fitted timber flooring is ideal for all these requirements. However, due to some properties of wood, it will have to be repaired every 3-4 years. Therefore, they often choose fired hollow bricks for the device, laid on edge on top of roofing felt or slag. Such a floor will last at least 14 years in an aggressive environment without repair. True, it is not too warm, which is why in the winter the floor in the barn is covered with a thick layer of bedding or rubber mats are used.

The floor in the barn should help maintain the health of animals and increase their productivity; for this purpose, rubber flooring is used

Video: cow stall equipment

Calculation of materials

The amount of material depends on the area of the barn, which, in turn, is directly related to the number of animals kept. We will show the calculation principle using the example of constructing walls from adobe, since this option is the most profitable. Moreover, it is quite possible to make adobe yourself from the straw of any cereals, clay and sand.

Adobe for a cowshed is a convenient, cheap building material that our ancestors have used for centuries

Calculation of wall A: wall length 6 m, height 2.2 m, one doorway measuring 1x1.8 m, total area 13.2 m², doorway area 1.8 m², wall area without doorway 11.4 m².

Calculation of wall B: wall length 6 m, height 2.2 m, 5 window openings with dimensions (0.8x0.6 m, 0.6x0.6 m, 0.6x0.6 m, 0.6x0.4 m, 0. 6x0.4 m), total area 13.2 m², area of all window openings 1.68 m², wall area without window openings 11.52 m².

In the barn it would be more practical to install PVC windows, which will be lift-and-section or hinged with colorless polycarbonate filling

Calculation of wall B: wall length 6 m, height 2.2 m, 4 window openings with dimensions (0.6x0.6 m, 0.8x0.6 m, 0.6x0.6 m, 0.6x0.6 m), total area 13.2 m², area of all window openings 1.56 m², wall area without window openings 11.64 m².

Depending on the climatic characteristics of the region, inflatable or roller blinds, as well as lift-and-section windows can be installed on the windows

Calculation of wall D: wall length 6 m, height 2.2 m, blank wall (without door and window openings), total wall area 13.2 m².

A blank wall without windows will protect cows from strong winds

Determine the amount of adobe to build a barn:

Let's derive a single formula for calculation. The area of any wall is equal to the total area of the wall (height x length) minus the total area of all openings (windows, doors). The area of each opening is also equal to height x length. So: S total. = (S A + S B + S B + S D) – (S openings A + S openings B + S openings B + S openings D) = (13.2 + 13.2 +13.2 + 13.2) - (1.8 + 1.68 + 1.56) = 47.76 m².
Find out the area of one adobe brick. S sk = W sk x H sk (usually 0.08 m²). If you make adobe brick yourself, its area may be different, depending on the size of the mold for production.
We determine the amount of adobe that will be needed to build a barn. K c = S total. : S ck = 47.76: 0.08 = 597 pcs. Round up to 600 pcs.

Table: calculation of adobe blocks for the construction of a barn measuring (6x6x2.2) meters

Wall	S walls, m²	Doorway, m²	Window opening, m²	Doors for manure removal, m²	Walking doors, m²	S calculated, m²	Adobe brick, pcs.
A	13,2	1,8	-	-	-	11,4	142,5
B	13,2	-	0,72	0,48	0,48	11,52	144
IN	13,2	-	0,72	0,84	-	11,64	145,5
G	13,2	-	-	-	-	13,2	165
Total							597

To make 600 pieces of adobe blocks you will need:

clay ≈ 4600 kg (2.8 m³);
sand ≈ 1500 kg (1 m³);
straw ≈ 230 kg (4 m³).

Any material is calculated in the same way - brick, sawdust concrete blocks, panels, wooden beams, flooring according to the floor area, roofing material according to the size of the roof, etc.

Set of tools

The necessary tools depend on the building materials used, but in any case you will have to use:

crowbar and shovel;
building level;
trowel, spatula and screws;
rope;
construction mixer or concrete mixer.

Building a barn with your own hands: step-by-step instructions

Cowsheds are built using two technologies - frame and frameless. The frame method is considered more promising. Its main advantage is the speed of construction and ease of laying communications - ventilation, water supply, manure removal, etc. The construction of a small utility block consists of several stages:

Laying the foundation. Any - columnar for small wooden outbuildings, strip or monolithic for heavy buildings. Remove the top layer of soil from the area. They usually deepen it to 50–70 cm and fill it with crushed stone. With frame construction, this is where the laying of the foundation ends. To build a brick barn, a solid foundation is made - strip or monolithic. A trench is dug to a depth of 1 m, formwork and reinforcement cage are installed, the bottom is covered with crushed stone and filled with concrete. Roofing felt is laid on top as a waterproofing material.
The foundation of the barn must be strong and able to withstand heavy loads
Lay out the walls using a trowel and a building level, not forgetting to leave openings. To ensure that the walls retain heat, they provide good thermal insulation.
Since the barns do not need heating, the walls need to be well insulated: the adobe masonry underneath is lined with brick, laying polystyrene foam insulation
The roof is being installed. Wooden logs are installed at the top of the walls and sheathing is made. Then covered with roofing material. Slate is usually used as it is more accessible and cheaper. The ceiling is usually covered with reed slabs and plastered with clay. It is advisable to have an attic - this is additional insulation, you can store hay and other feed there. The roof of a barn without an attic must be insulated.
For the slate roof of the barn, a grid is installed with a pitch calculated for the slate sheets
Install windows and doors.
Carry out interior work. Particular attention is paid to the floors. The soil is compacted, a layer of roofing felt or slag is made, and the floor is laid with small gaps and a slope so that animal feces flow into the drainage pit. A layer of straw or sawdust is placed on top, to which peat can be added.
Cows will rest comfortably on straw bedding

Cowsheds for a large number of livestock are built in a similar way, equipping each stall with a feeder 1 m long and 0.65 m high.

Barn ventilation

The simplest diagram of a barn ventilation system: an exhaust pipe made of boards is installed on the roof of the building. One or more, depending on the length of the room, equipped with a fan and a damper in case of bad weather. Fresh air enters the barn through the window openings. If there are none, then intake openings with dampers are created to allow air to enter at the bottom of the walls almost at the very foundation. Stale air is removed through an exhaust pipe.

Air exchange occurs by itself: warm air exits through exhaust shafts on the roof of the building, and cold air enters the room through special openings in the walls of the barn

To reduce the penetration of infections from the street, a box of sawdust is placed in front of the entrance, which is periodically moistened with creolin. In barns housing 200 or more animals, additional ventilation is provided in the form of a canopy on the roof.

Manure removal system

hydraulic wash or self-alloy;
delta scraper or belt conveyor.

More often, farmers use a self-fusing system for cleaning the premises. To do this, pipes wrapped in slippery material with plugs are laid at an angle across the entire area of the barn, and when opened, manure flows into special tanks.

Self-alloying manure removal system is made of PVC pipes Ø 250 mm

Lighting in the barn

There are certain requirements for barn lighting that must be adhered to:

lighting standards - in the stalls 50 lux, in the feeding area - 75, in the entire barn - 200 lux and no more, otherwise production rates will decrease;
It is necessary to use LED lamps, since fluorescent lamps emit low-intensity light when the standard temperature drops to 20–25 °C;
When arranging lighting in the barn, it is important to correctly calculate the duration of daylight hours and gradually change the lighting during this period - from 4.00–4.30 to 8.00–8.30 the illumination is increased, and from 16.00–16.30 to 20.00–20.30 it is gradually reduced.

For the normal development of animals in the barn, it is necessary to provide high-quality lighting - in daylight, cows give more milk, and calves eat better and grow faster

Absolute darkness in the barn is unacceptable to avoid injury to animals. For night lighting, red spectrum lamps with a power of 10 W are used.

A selection of videos: life on the farm - building a barn with your own hands

Start of construction. Preparing and laying out the area for a barn. Welding of frame elements.

Video: building a barn - the beginning

Laying the foundation and erecting the frame. The foundation is made of strip form, formwork is installed, into which previously made frame elements are installed level and secured. The trench is then concreted.

Video: foundation and frame for a barn

Continued construction. Another video report in real time - what we did during the week.

Video: we continue to build a barn

Roof arrangement. The barn design determines the materials that will be used to cover the roof. Inexpensive options are slate and tiles.

Video: barn roof

Laying water pipes. The water supply in the barn begins with a Ø 32 mm riser, to which is connected the main ring main made of Ø 25 mm pipes. Automatic drinking bowls, watering and water taps are installed in the premises.

Video: water supply for a barn

The final stage of setting up the water supply and septic tank. It is necessary to adhere to sanitary standards - when laying water and sewer pipes with a diameter of up to 200 mm in parallel, the distance between them must be at least 1.5 m. It is advisable to lay water pipes in a protective case.

Video: finishing the water supply and septic tank for the barn

Building a barn yourself will take more time than installing a ready-made structure or construction by a team of professionals. But this is perhaps the only drawback. But mansions for little cows, warm, solid, cozy, made with your own hands, will cost much less. We hope that with the knowledge you have acquired, you will build a barn that will serve you faithfully for many years.

The tethered type of keeping livestock at home requires the organization of personal space for each individual. It is necessary to build a barn for the bulls, make stalls and install the necessary equipment for maintenance. All this contributes to an increase in milk productivity by 16-20% against the background of an increase in muscle mass by 5-10%.

What should a barn be like?

A livestock shed should be comfortable for both the animals and the farmer, since the tethered type of housing requires frequent contact. Therefore, the main requirement for the construction of a barn concerns the size of the room itself. The breed of the cow, the number of heads, their weight and body size are taken into account.

There is no need to build concrete and stationary barns, especially for those breeders who plan to breed cattle.

It is better to make a frame stall for bulls with your own hands, made of metal and wood. This will make the process of building the barn easier and will allow you to change its size in the future.

Another important nuance is the arrangement of the place where calves are kept. It is better to divide the room into 2 parts using a partition. One will house adult bulls and cows, the other will house young animals. For calves, a person himself can organize the proper conditions, provide a sufficient amount of food and protect them from violent individuals. In a separate area they will always be under the supervision of the farmer.

Preparatory activities

When deciding to build a barn for a cow, it is important to decide on the location. Livestock smells unpleasant, so it is better to build a barn about 20 m from your own home.

The selected development area should also be away from water supplies.

Without paying attention to this, there is a risk of poisoning your drinking water. Harmful substances that contain animal waste products can become infected with infectious diseases.

It is important to determine the size of the cow stall, the width and length of the passages, as well as the possibility of free movement of cattle from the barn to the pen and back.

The calculation can be carried out taking into account the following parameters:

stall area per adult cow – 6 m²;
stall area for one adult cow and calf – 10 m²;
the distance between the walls of the stalls is 1.2-1.5 m;
stall width – 1.25-1.5 m;
stall length – 2.5-3 m;
passage to the feeder - 1 m.

The height of the shed walls is at least 2.5 m. Mandatory in the calculations of the ventilation and lighting systems.

How to build a shed

After completing the planning of the shed layout for the steers, they move on to the purchase of building materials and the construction itself.

The construction of a building begins with laying the foundation. This stage of construction is the most important, because The reliability of the entire barn depends on the foundation of the barn.

Different types of foundation are used. The most popular foundations are:

Tape. Made from concrete. Follows the contours of the building.
Monolithic. It is a cast concrete surface, deepened 15-20 cm into the ground.
Columnar. The cheapest and easiest to install option. But its use is limited by the features of the building.

A columnar foundation is only suitable for light frame buildings made of wood. It is not suitable for concrete and brick buildings. It will not withstand heavy loads, which will affect the durability of the built barn.

Barn floor

It is better to make the floor in the barn concrete, because... it does not absorb moisture, serves as an additional barrier to rodents entering the barn and can withstand heavy loads. But concrete is cold, so before putting cattle into the barn you will need to insulate the floors. This can be done using straw.

The surface itself should be inclined. It is important that livestock waste products are drained into the slurry tank. Tilt up to 3° is allowed. By increasing it to 5°, the farmer risks harming the health of his pets. Due to the large slope of the floor, joint diseases are possible, as well as an increase in the number of miscarriages in cows.

The liquid collector is a drainage ditch built into the floor. Its width is up to 20 cm, and its depth is 8-10 cm. If the room is paved with straw, such a ditch need not be made. The process of removing manure will be simplified.

Walling

To build a bull barn that is reliable and durable, you will have to choose the right building materials. Wood is not suitable for large barns, because... the purchase of such material will be expensive, and the reliability and durability of the structure will be worse than that of a building made of brick or concrete blocks.

The tree is chosen for barns where no more than 5 heads will be kept. This material has high thermal insulation. It is easy to dismantle, repair or replace individual parts. It will be more difficult with strong concrete and brick walls. Widening the pens and passages will be more difficult.

When constructing walls, the presence of window openings and ventilation is also taken into account. It is important to maintain optimal air temperature in the barn. In winter it should not fall below 10°C, and in summer it should not rise above 28°C. The indicator is regulated by the quality of air exchange.

Roof installation

The roof is made pitched. The main roofing material is slate. It is not expensive and is durable. If the bull barn is brick or cinder block, it is better to have a two-row roof. This will ensure the presence of an air gap, which serves as thermal insulation for the room and will provide additional space for storing feed.

Another roofing option is polycarbonate panels. This material is durable, transmits light and is easy to install. But its use requires additional insulation of the roof.

Walking area

The barn needs to be equipped with a walking area. It should be spacious. Livestock must move freely throughout the territory allocated to them.

Certain requirements apply to the paddock. Walking will be useful and safe if the designated area contains:

clean (the presence of garbage can harm the livestock);
a canopy has been installed to create shade in the summer;
A reliable enclosing structure with a gate has been installed.

It is important to pay attention to the construction of the pen, because... cattle spend several hours a day in it. It is important to maintain cleanliness in the designated area by removing excess garbage and waste products from cows.

Stall installation

Meat and dairy cow breeds differ in size. Therefore, the parameters of the cow stall are calculated in advance.

Different materials are used for construction. Convenience, ease of installation and the possibility of expansion are achieved using wood or metal pipes. A brick or concrete building will not have these advantages, but it will surpass them in durability.

Standard cow stall dimensions:

Width - 1.25 m;
Length - 2.6 m;
Height – 1.6-2 m.

The intended use of such sizes is associated with the peculiarities of keeping livestock. During construction, the location of the cattle is taken into account. They should be in front of the feeder and drinking bowl, and with their backs in the gutter. The animal must not be allowed to move freely in the stall, because this will lead to the appearance of feces near the dining equipment.

Calf housing area

When developing a project, breeding prospects are taken into account. The calves are not kept on a leash, but are placed with their mother. Therefore, the stall for a cow should initially be larger.

Young individuals need fattening. They often do not have time to eat the required amount of feed; adult cows are ahead of them. Therefore, it is better to make separate stalls for calves. Special houses are popular. These are individual boxes with a small pen and installed feeders and drinkers. Breeders often make them with their own hands from scrap materials.

The simplest option is a wooden box. To build one, you will first have to make a drawing, which will indicate all the dimensions of the bull stall. Then construction begins. How to make a calf house:

The timber is cut according to the dimensions according to the drawings.
Using screws, twist the rectangular box. The height of a person is taken into account so that he can easily reach the cattle.
The floor is made of planks and covered with hay.
Fences are installed outside the box. They make a walking area.

Such houses should not be insulated. They are often installed indoors. In summer they can be easily moved outside.

Installation of feeders and drinkers

Feeders and drinkers are needed for both small and large livestock. This is an integral part of the internal arrangement of the barn.

The feeder itself often has the shape of an inverted trapezoid. The outer side of the container is high - 65-75 cm. The side that is closer to the stall is 20-30 centimeters smaller. The width of the lower base is 30-40 cm, and the service hole is made with a widening of 60 cm. It is easy to make such a feeder with your own hands or buy it in a specialized store.

The drinking bowl is installed on the side of the feeder. If you plan to keep them tethered, which is convenient for a small number of heads, cup or valve-float drinking schemes are suitable. They are automatic and connected to the general water supply system. Such systems are sold in specialized stores. You can make them yourself by first obtaining the drawings.

Lighting and ventilation of the barn

Another important nuance in building a shed concerns the installation of artificial lighting. In summer there will be no problems with light. The sun's rays will penetrate the room through the window openings. Both wooden and metal-plastic windows are used. It is better to make them sliding in order to easily organize ventilation of the barn. The person who will care for the livestock and milk the cows also needs light.

In winter, there is not enough daylight, which affects the productivity of cattle. Due to lack of light, livestock consumption of feed, as well as its absorption, is reduced by 10-15%. And this is a direct threat to milk yield, which is important to prevent. Therefore, it is important to arrange lighting; electric lamps help maintain the normal daylight hours of 14-15 hours. Both conventional incandescent lamps and fluorescent, mercury and halogen lamps are used.

A bad nuance is the organization of ventilation of a barn for cows. Organization of optimal temperature and humidity in the room and the unimpeded removal of toxic gaseous substances (emitted with livestock waste products) are the key to good cattle immunity, regardless of the number of animals present.

Ventilation of a cow barn can be natural, artificial or mixed. For one bull or two heads, several ventilation holes are enough for air inflow and outflow. Air exchange will be more powerful if it is of a mixed type, when air enters through special channels in the walls and is removed using electrical equipment - fans. It is not profitable to install artificial ventilation at home. Such equipment is expensive and is often used in large barns with more than 20 animals.

When raising cattle, you need to think about where they will live. You need to understand that the health of the bull, the milk production of the cow, and the weight gain of large-horned cattle depend on the comfort of keeping. Therefore, you cannot do without knowledge of how to build a shed for bulls in accordance with the norms and standards of livestock construction. Properly done with your own hands, you will be able to raise livestock efficiently and productively.

A cow and a bull are not known for their cleanliness. The shed needs to be made so that cleaning it seems easy. An important factor influencing the construction will be the site itself and its nuances. Drafts are not allowed in the barn.

Advice: It is better not to start construction where spring water accumulates. It is not necessary for the barn to stand in close proximity to a house or well.

Bulls and cows are supposed to live in a strong stall; its period of operation is long. In the construction of a barn for cattle, the use of non-ecological materials that emit toxic substances that can poison calves and even adult livestock is prohibited. The best option would be wood or other environmentally friendly building material, preferably with good thermal insulation properties.

How to prepare for building a stall?

First you will need to draw up a construction project and estimate. If the design is competent and correct, structures built with your own hands will last a long time and will practically not require major repairs or alterations.

When thinking about a project, you need to calculate how many heads of cattle will be in the barn. Both existing animals and the approximate future number of bulls and cows should be taken into account. To expand or reduce the premises, additional time and financial resources will be needed; an approximate calculation of the livestock will eliminate unnecessary costs. It is necessary to think about what type of housing for bulls is more convenient: tethered or loose.

The dimensions of the building for bulls are specified in certain standards. One cow or one bull has a barn area of at least 6 meters square. A cow with a calf needs at least 10 square meters of stall space.

Tip: A do-it-yourself bull barn assumes that the room from the inside will be divided into places using partitions. Places with optimal parameters will be at least 125 centimeters in width, the length of the fenced-off stall should be 260 centimeters.

How does construction happen?

The construction process has several stages, or stages, of construction. Initially, they begin to build the foundation, then they lay the floor, erect the walls, and cover the roof. At the last stage, the barn must be equipped with the necessary equipment.

What kind of foundation should I build?

Like any building, a barn cannot do without a foundation. A solid foundation is the key to the longevity of a structure. It can be arranged in three ways: monolithic, columnar or strip. To choose a method, you need to know the type of soil on which the shed will stand. The number of bulls will also influence the choice. A large number of cattle will put a lot of stress on the foundation of the structure. The material from which the barn is built also matters.

With the columnar method of installing the fundamental part of the building, you will not have to spend too much money; the method is the most cost-effective and simple and fast. But too much load on a columnar foundation is contraindicated. But it will be suitable if the barn is made of wood.

With the strongest monolithic foundation you will have to work with special equipment. The method will require financial costs. If the barn is made of brick, then the expenses will be worthwhile. The tape method can be used in different cases; it is more universal.

Be sure to waterproof the foundation. Any waterproofing material can be purchased. Creeping soils will require the construction of a special cushion, for which crushed stone or sand is suitable.

How to lay the floor?

The floorboards in the barn must be made of durable material that can easily withstand the weight of the bulls. Wooden floorboards in a cattle barn will not last long. The good strength of concrete floors will allow any number of large animals to stand on it. Any unpleasant household odor is easier to remove from the room. Concrete flooring will not be able to absorb it.

Concrete flooring in its pure form is cold. A removable shield made of wooden boards will correct the situation. It can be easily removed if necessary and ventilated.

Tip: Any covering in a barn requires soft bedding; hay or straw is suitable for this.

The floor should be slightly raised, with a slope of approximately four percent to the main barn surface, so that animal excrement flows in one direction. If you are building a farm at home, and for certain reasons you are not covering the floor with straw, you will need a slurry collector to equip it.

Requirements for the construction of walls

The dimensions of the future structure influence which barn wall material to choose. The tree can be used for small sheds. The material is not wear-resistant; for a herd of bulls with more than 20 animals, it is not used for the construction of a barn.

For large farms, brick is perfect. But you can build walls from cheaper foam blocks. The walls should have a few small holes to provide ventilation in the shed. Thanks to this, cows and bulls will be comfortable indoors in the summer. In cold weather, every hole closes. Their locations should be at a level of two and a half meters from the level of the floorboards. In a small barn, a special pipe is built into the walls.

Be sure to take care of the lighting of the stall. The windows will need to be placed at a distance of 120 centimeters from the flooring. They should open so fresh air can be brought into the shed.

What is needed to install a roof?

You can make your own roof from slate. The material has a low price and a long service life. It is advisable to build a two-row roof so that there is also an attic, since in winter cold it will not allow heat to quickly escape from the barn. Some household equipment can be stored in the attic; this is a convenient place to store hay for the bulls.

Tip: If there is no attic, the barn roof must be insulated with modern high-quality materials.

How to equip a shed?

The barn will definitely have feeders and drinking bowls for bulls, cows and calves. They are located throughout the barn so that there is excellent accessibility to them. The outside of the stall will be the best place to place feeders.

You can make feeders with your own hands. The height of its opposite sides will be 75 centimeters and 30. A low side will be located towards the stall so that the bull can easily reach the food. The width of the feeder should be forty centimeters. At the top, the sides should be sixty centimeters apart from each other.

It is advisable not to place either the feeder or the drinking bowl on the floor. The optimal height of their location above the flooring is 7 or 10 centimeters. Before making a wooden feeder, you will need to sand all the boards so that the bull or cow does not get hurt.

It is advisable to hang the drinking bowl in the far corner. An automatic design is preferred, allowing livestock to drink as needed.

About some construction features

Calves that are more demanding than adults, especially when born in the winter months, will need to build a house that protects them from the cold. Straw bales come in handy for this. An indoor straw house will provide the baby with comfort and warm coziness.

Calves can also be provided with purchased individual polyethylene boxes in the form of a hollow cylinder. They are light and light, with a one-way entrance. The boxes are easily disinfected, washed and moved or moved to a new location. Warmth is preserved under a kind of dome, the baby feels protected. The calf can be fed directly in the box. The design has a compartment for hay sheaves; the room is also equipped with a feed dispenser. A durable house has a service life of several years.

When building a shed, you should take into account the species that will live in the room. Different sizes correspond to different types of animals. You can build a shed from household tools that ensure the mobility of the building, which can be redone at any time. Wooden boards or metal pipes will do.

The calves will need a little space, and as they grow older, the stall position can be changed. If there are bulls and cows of different sizes in the barn, small individuals can be placed in a large stall and vice versa; each stall can also be changed in location.

The size of each stall should take into account the dimensions of the bull, cow or calf. A bottleneck will not allow the animal to rest properly and sleep well at night. And the quality of sleep is important during the fattening period of cattle; cows need to get enough sleep to produce large volumes of milk.