Description

Practice abstract

Stenhammar Estate Management in central Sweden is run by HM The King Carl XVI Gustaf with certified organic suckler cows, crop production and forestry. The farm has 280 cows of the breeds Angus, Simmental and crossbreds. The farm has 250 ha semi-natural grasslands. A great part has been restored in the latest 20 years, a considerable achievement of natural conservation. 

The grazing management emphasises the importance of handling the animals in a way that is safe both for the animals and the stockpersons. The pastures are vast and divided into many paddocks and there is a great number of cattle. Both the number of enclosures and the number of animals is large, which means a lot of handling with many human-animal interactions. For this reason, a great deal of effort is made to ensure that the animals are calm and easy to handle. Taking time but also gaining time and security. 

Training routines and contact with animals. As the animals are moved several times during the season they get used to this. Moving and loading works well. The animal groups are moved between the paddocks every two weeks. They are used to this and to the stockperson. 

Working with the flight zone. The animals are also handled and moved inside the stable, where the human-animal distance animal is shorter. As a general rule, when moving a group, the stockperson pays attention to the closest animal, stops when the animal backs off (flight zone) and respects this distance, moving them at this distance. In this way, the animals are not stressed and the stockperson can be close to the group of animals. 

Using the animals’ temperament. The breeding focuses on animals that are calm. On the pasture there is a calm individual in each group, for example an older cow who knows the area and leads the way to the new paddock. 

A big pen for easy loading. On the pastures, extra big pens are set up, big enough for driving into them. The animals get used to going into the pen when moved between paddocks. In the big pen there’s a smaller pen made of gates for loading animals on a waggon. 

Routines leads to calm animals. Doing the job the same way each time the animals are moved makes them calm. There’s also logic in paddocks and paths that is easy for the animals to understand. 

Context profil