How to Start & Manage a Micro Dairy, Step 10: Choosing and Building the Structures

Reader Contribution by Steve Judge
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The type of barn you choose for your micro dairy depends on many factors — space, available storage, and most especially, climate. This last one is particularly important to Bob-White Systems, which is based in Vermont. You see, it gets cold in Vermont. One January morning in the early 1990s when I was milking 70 Jerseys, I woke up and stared at the outside thermometer in disbelief. It read 43 degrees below zero at 5:00 AM! In addition to the extreme cold, it gets muddy and snowy in Vermont. So, I built a small, 22′ x 38′ tie barn with four stalls. The actual stable area is 18′ x 22′ with additional space for a wash room, utility room, milk room, toilet room and a small entry. 

This type of barn has worked well for Bob-White Systems. Here are some of my tips and advice to keep in mind when building your own micro dairy barn:

• The size of the stable — the space where the cows are kept in the barn — is important. It should contain 1,000 cubic feet per cow for proper ventilation. The cows alone will be enough to heat the space during the coldest days. Cows’ breath is moisture laden so I chose to install a good variable-speed, wall-mounted exhaust fan. The incoming air flows over the cows’ backs from head to tail. In the winter the fan is set to keep the temperature of the stable area between 45 and 50 degrees F.

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