Applied · 11 min · Topic universe
Stocking and cow flow
Stocking density is stalls, bunk, and time — not a head count on a clipboard. UW Dairyland: overstocking steals lying and eating, and the fresh pen feels it first.
The system
Housing relationships · not a barn plan
Field notes
Short articles on this topic
Two to four minutes. The weekly unit an agent can add without rebuilding the system.
3 min · 2026-09-07
They closed a crossover to add stalls
Head count fit. The timid half walked a dead-end alley.
Read the note3 min · 2026-09-07
Hidden stocking is lockup plus hold
The stall sheet said 100%. The cows stood from breakfast through the second parlor turn.
Read the note
The numbers
Benchmarks, not a ration
Ranges from extension and textbooks. Use them to read the cow, not to write a formula.
Design target
1 : 1stall / cow
UW Dairyland adult-cow housing — one stall per cow is the design target; transition even tighter.
Stocking Density — UW Dairyland InitiativeLying-time goal
~12 hper day
Alarm: Night video of standers in the crossover
When stalls allow it, cows lie about 12 hours. Overstocking and lockup steal from that budget.
Stocking Density — UW Dairyland InitiativeFresh / transition bunk
~30 inper cow
Dairyland transition housing — about 30 inches of bunk. Late-lactation pens are often planned tighter, but timid cows still lose.
Transition Cow Housing — UW Dairyland Initiative
Spot it
What you see · what it means · what to check
Check yourself
Five questions from this universe
1 of 5
Why is “how many cows are in the pen” a weak stocking number?
Sources
- Stocking Density — UW Dairyland Initiative
- Transition Cow Housing — UW Dairyland Initiative
System figures are educational plates drawn from public-domain veterinary teaching anatomy (udder, claw, uterus, and housing relationships). They are not scanned specimens. Educational only.
Not a veterinary diagnosis, prescription, or ration formula.