December 2013

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Ferme Paquet et frèresWhere longevity comes first

Carousel, robot or parlour?All great, but to each his own

Photos : Bullvine

HERD PROFILE H

Owned by the Pâquet family since 1902, thefarm began breeding Holsteins in 1962, whenbrothers Normand and Bertrand were at thehelm. The herd has developed continuallysince then and today comprises 200 head.The herd’s 110 cows are classified 11 EX, 56 VGand 39 GP, and have an average production of11 664 kg of milk, with 4.0% fat and 3.3% protein,for BCAs of 250-272-257.

Those who keep abreast of show results willhave seen the herd’s latest star, Paquet KorailGoldwyn, shown by Andrée and Daniel’sdaughter Ariane, triumph in her class at theClassique des jeunes ruraux, in Quebec, in2012. This year, in Rimouski, Korail won firstplace in the Senior Yearling class. She is adaughter of Paquet Karolie Stormatic, EX, aSuperior Lactation holder with a productionof 42 477 kg of milk in only three lactations(246-278-257), and a granddaughter of PaquetKellie Cousteau, VG-86 6*, a cow with seven

daughters, 1 EX, 5 VG and 1 GP, that togetherhave earned nine Superior Lactation awardsand one Super 3.

Korail’s granddam, Paquet Kelline Torrent,GP-84 4*, a cow that François describes as a“strong with long stature and show style”, isthe dam of 11 daughters classified 82% GP or better. Paquet Kolya Goldwyn, EX-92, isanother of Kelline’s granddaughters. CrownedIntermediate Champion and Grand Championin Rimouski, in 2010, Kolya is currently aleading figure in the herd and is a regularembryo donor. With two Superior Lactationawards to her name, one for a 305-day yieldof 23 070 kg of milk, at 5 years and 6 months (423-450-405), she is the dam of 12daughters, with the eldest a year old. Kolya’sdam, Paquet Kolza Titanic, EX-90 3*, whose 5daughters include 1 EX and 3 VG, is a SuperiorLactation holder with a production record ofmore than 70 000 kg of milk in four lactations

(271-262-272), in addition to being a generousembryo donor.

It is in good part thanks to this family that thePâquets won both the Junior Exhibitor (in atie with Ferme Hudon et fils) and Breederbanners in addition to finishing in secondplace for the Breeder and Exhibitor bannersat the Rimouski show last August. This familyalso produces the majority of the embryosharvested on the farm. On that score, PaquetKolita Goldwyn, VG-87-2yr, the top-producingcow in the Bas-St-Laurent Holstein Club in2012, at the age of 2, and endowed with an LPIof 3216, is the first animal of the herd to fill aninternational order. On the Pâquet farm, theembryos are implanted into ordinary cows,but not necessarily yearling heifers. Sincethese matings often yield large calves, thebreeders prefer to avoid exposing their futuredairy cows to difficult calvings.

Ferme Pâquet et frèresWhere herd longevity is the strong suit

nown far and wide, the red roof is the familiar emblem of Ferme Pâquet et frères inc., the thriving operation that,under the guidance of brothers Bertrand and Normand Pâquet and Ghislaine Boulianne, Normand’s wife, wasawarded Silver and Gold medals by the Ordre national du mérite agricole, the first 1984 and the latter in 1989.

These breeders were following in the footsteps of their parents, Léo Pâquet and Rose-Aimée Belzile, who, in 1986, receivedthe title of Famille terrienne de l'année (renamed Famille agricole de l'année in 1988). Today, the farm’s current owners, brothersDaniel and François Pâquet, Normand’s sons, their cousin Yves, Bertrand’s son, and Andrée Rioux, Daniel’s wife, are keepingto that path and maintaining the operation’s well-established reputation for high quality.

By Michel Dostie

Editor

Translation byNicole De Rouin

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Under its iconic red roof, Ferme Pâquetet frères inc., houses a 200-head herd inwhich cow longevity is the strong suit.

HERD PROFILE H

The “F” family, descendants of HaljoyTradition Frances, EX USA 2*, a cow that thebreeders acquired in 1987, is also rousinginterest. Frances’ daughter Paquet FrancelleLindy, EX-93 6E 5*, represents the family’sseventh generation of VG or EX cows andexemplifies the longevity that is characteristicof the Pâquet herd. She won first Mature Cowat the Amqui show, in 2006, and wasnominated My Favourite Cow by the Bas-St-Laurent Holstein Club, in 2009. Born in 1996,

she gave birth to her last calf at the age of 13 years and 2 months, going on to producefor 389 days. Her lifetime production, in eightlactations, totals 103 607 kg of milk. On thereproductive side, she is the dam of 18 daughters, all classified GP or better.

Three generations later, Paquet FranciskaStorm, EX-93 3E 3*, is another cow true toform in this family known for its longevity andhigh milk production. In eight lactations, she

produced 140 895 kg of milk, with 3.7% fat and3.3% protein, earning BCAs of 255-250-254.She is the dam of five daughters, all classifiedGP or better, including Paquet Filante, aSuperior Lactation holder with a productionof over 33 000 kg of milk in two lactations (298-293-295).

Paquet Lilia Radius, EX-91, is the descendantof another family of importance to the Pâquetherd. With four VG dams and one EX 6E

Ferme Pâquet et frères was incorporated by Bertrand andNormand in 1980. The number of shareholders doubled in 1988,when their respective sons, Daniel, who had just completed hisFarm Management diploma, and Yves, joined the operation. Tenyears later, Daniel and Yves retained ownership when their parentsretired and transferred their share of the operation. In 2005, theteam again grew to four shareholders, with the addition ofFrançois, Daniel’s brother, armed with a newly obtained bachelor’sdegree in agricultural sciences, and Andrée Rioux, Daniel’s wife,an agronomist who until then had been working as a managementconsultant. Daniel and François’ mother, Ghislaine Boulianne, hasalso been very involved in the operation on a continual basis. “TheGold Medal from the Ordre du mérite is very much her,” insistsFrançois. Ghislaine is also a keen hockey fan and is president ofthe Vallée Matapédia regional minor hockey association. In thatcapacity, she was the dynamo behind her region’s victory in theKraft Hockey Goes On contest last March, which brought theorganization a sum of $100 000.

The shareholders discuss and make all of their decisions jointly,from sire selection to seeding, and they all share in the work onthe farm, as much in the barn as in the fields. In addition, each ofthe partners also has specific responsibilities. Milking is Françoisand Daniel’s realm, but it is Daniel who manages the herd,particularly matings, calvings and veterinary follow-up, whileFrançois, who is also a director of the Bas-St-Laurent HolsteinClub, takes more interest in feeding. François also manages thefields, 250 ha of cropland, with 55 ha seeded to barley and the restdevoted to alfalfa and timothy, which are harvested as silage orhay. Grain corn and supplements are added to the animals’ ration.Andrée is in charge of calf care and administrative tasks, whileYves is responsible for operating and maintaining the farmmachinery. The farm also has 263 ha of woodland, but because thelumber market is of little value right now, that section remainsunexploited.

In addition to the shareholders, and their parents who are stillactive on the farm, the operation also counts on the help of anemployee on weekends and during the summer months.

There’s vitality under the red roof

Paquet Francelle Lindy, EX-93 6E 5*, the first of the Pâquet cows toclassify EX, and nominated My Favourite Cow by the Bas-St-LaurentHolstein Club in 2009, has a lifetime production of 103 607 kg of milk

and is the dam of 18 daughters, all classified GP or better.

Paquet Kellie Cousteau, VG-86 6*, is the dam of seven classifieddaughters, 1 EX, 5 VG and 1 GP-84, that together have earned nine

Superior Lactation awards and one Super 3.

among her six maternal ancestors, Lilia,Honourable Mention Grand Champion inAmqui in 2012, and the holder of a SuperiorLactation certificate, is an unparalleled milkproducer. At 4 years and 11 months, after 115 daysin milk, she has a projected yield of 15 398 kg,with 3.4% fat and 3.2% protein, and BCAs of314-286-314. Her granddam, Paquet LilianeMorgan, VG-89 1*, is the dam of threedaughters, all classified VG. Lilia’s udder ishigh, wide and modern-looking, say thePâquets, and she is now used as an embryodonor. Because Goldwyn is absent among herforerunners, it is easy to have her bred withthe leading sons of this legendary bull.

A fourth family raising the Pâquets’ hopes isthat of Paquet Rudeur Rudolph, VG-86 5*.With a lifetime production exceeding 100 000 kg,she is the dam of six daughters all classifiedGP or better. Among them are Paquet NannieStoneham, VG-86, the herd’s first cow to adda Super 3 to her pedigree, and Paquet NigeriaDundee, EX-91 1*, the holder of a SuperiorLactation and dam to Paquet Niria BMWLeader, EX, second Senior Two-Year-Old inAmqui, in 2010, and the holder of two SuperiorLactation certificates.

These breeders also have high hopes for thefamily of Paquet Anetta Rudolph. ClassifiedVG, Anetta has earned two Superior Lactationawards and was the winner of the productiontrophies of the Bas-St-Laurent Club in both2007 and 2008. Her dam, Paquet AnisetteCasper, VG 3*, was milked until the age of 12,for a total production of 93 655 kg of milk.

Selection

Although many of their animals havehigh LPIs – which the breeders attributeto good milk yields with high componentsfrom healthy and high classified cows –the focus of their breeding program isnot so much on that index as on longevity.In view of that, they attach a great dealof importance to sound matings, favouringproven sires with particular emphasison high milk production, health, andgood feet and legs.

But that doesn’t mean they close thedoor to young bulls, which for manyyears were well to the fore in this herdthat in fact was recognized as aParticipating Herd. This is less the casetoday, because high embryo productionreduces the number of services.Nonetheless, the young bulls theyselect must be descendants of adistinguished maternal family, with apedigree featuring a large number of EXcows.

Today, 95 per cent of the animals in thePâquet herd are registered under the farm’sprefix. The breeders do buy a good animalnow and again to bring new blood into theherd, but, as Daniel admits, “it’s moremotivating to work with our Paquet families.”

In the show ring

After acquiring a taste for the show ring inAmqui, the Pâquets first showed their animalsin Rimouski in 1976, where the daughters ofPaquet Olivette Miro won renown in thegroup class. Show participation is also afamily affair. In the beginning, Normand andBertrand were aided by their brother Jean-Marc, an agronomist with a passion forshows, who came to lend a hand for theoccasion. Shows are blue chip stock for thePâquets, who take part as a family andconsider shows to be good way to take avacation. They open the season at the Valléede la Matapédia show, in Amqui, to whichthey are very much committed. A propos,Andrée Rioux was chair of the region’sSociété d'agriculture for five years. ThePaquets then take part in the Rimouski show,mainly for the children, although the distancemakes it more demanding. “When the resultsare good, it’s motivating for the children,”claims Andrée Rioux. And if some of theiranimals make it possible, the family alsoheads to the Spring Show or the provincialfinals. �

At Ferme Pâquet et frères, Andrée Riouxis in charge of calf care in addition toadministrative tasks.

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François Pâquet, left, and his brother Daniel share the responsibility for milking.

A few decades ago, the milking parlour wasthe first option offered to dairy producers. In1968, that was the system chosen by the threeChampagne brothers, in Sainte-Agathe, in theLotbinière region, who had decided at thetime to merge their herds under the NewArmagh prefix. One of the operation’s fiveshareholders, Fred Martineau, who is incharge of the herd along with SteveChampagne, says today that he is verysatisfied with the equipment and doesn’texpect to abandon it. Obviously, a number ofimprovements have been made between theinstallation of the initial single-6 parlour andthat of the double-8 they use today, includingthe recently added retracting arms thatsupport the milker units.

These producers let economic consi de -rations be their guide. The equipment is stillvery functional and updates cost little. Withthe upcoming generation in mind, they thusintend to maintain a debt level that will allow

the younger farmers to set themselves up andalso ensure that the outgoing generation willbe able to retire.

Ferme Champagne et frères has also adopteda management philosophy that is somewhatout of the ordinary. While most farms choosetheir equipment to reduce the time requiredfor milking as much as possible (a maximumof one to one and a half hours), theseproducers have instead opted to have theequipment operating for a maximum amountof time to make it more cost-effective. Milkingthe 200 to 250 cows (the same equipmentcould handle twice that number) thus takesalmost the entire day. Two of the partners arein charge of the milking operation as well asother herd management tasks, and employeescomplete the team. Accordingly, newlycalved cows are milked four times a day,those in the second group, three times, andthe others, twice, all in an order determinedby the producers.

Choosing a carousel

Other producers have opted for a carouselsystem. This is the case of the Drapeaufamily, of Sainte-Françoise, in the Lotbinièreregion (Dragon prefix). When planning newfacilities for their 180 cows housed in tiestalls, the Drapeau brothers visited a numberof farms before making their choice. Dominicexplains that because their previousexperience with robotic feeding had provedunsatisfactory, robotic milking was not anoption for them. The efficiency of the carouselsystem, where milking is done continuouslyand employees don’t have to move around,was of particular interest to them. Moreover,from a financial point of view, the differencein cost compared to a milking parlour wasn’tvery high. And finally, after seeing olderequipment that was still working well on anumber of farms in the United States, theywere reassured by the reliability of thissystem.

Carousel, robot or parlour?All great, but to each his own

ith the increasing size of herds on the one hand and the desire for an easier lifestyle on the other, producers,researchers, and industrial manufacturers are certainly preoccupied with improving milking efficiency. Newtechnologies have also made an appearance on the market, providing additional tools for testing and monitoring.

No matter how efficient the equipment, however, producers must choose according to their individual needs and theparticularities of their farms. La Revue spoke to a few dairy producers who use one or another of these systems.

By Michel Dostie

Editor

Translation byNicole De Rouin

FEATUREF

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At Ferme Drapeau et frères,Dragon prefix, the carousel iscurrently used for 500 cows butcould handle double that number.

Eleven years later, Dominic says they still likeit and think it’s one of the sound decisionsthey’ve made. Indeed, they now milk about500 cows three times a day with that sameequipment but, according to Dominic, couldeasily milk up to 1000. He also adds thatworking with this equipment makes theemployees happy as well, which means theydon’t have any trouble hiring people. Finally,the automatic gates makes it possible toretain any cows requiring special care aftermilking, which avoids adding to their stressby going to find them in the barn.

That opinion is shared by Gervais Pelletier, ofFerme Pellerat, in Saint-Roch-des-Aulnais.His farm is equipped with a 32-stall carouselthat was installed five years ago. For Gervaisand his brother Jean-Guy, the carousel wasthe obvious choice because the equipmentenables them to milk more cows for the sameinvestment. Milking on their farm takes about2 hours for 250 to 300 cows, with threemilkings per day in the fall. A full revolutionlasts 10 minutes, leaving ample time aftermilking to observe the animals without thembeing disturbed. Moreover, having experiencedworking with a milking parlour, Gervais findsthat the cows are not as stressed in thecarousel. They enter the carousel calmly, heconcludes.

Robotics enthusiasts abound

Other large herd owners have instead optedfor robotic milking. A case in point is SylvainLandry, of Ferme Lansi, in Saint-Albert, in theBois-Francs region. When Sylvain beganusing robotic milking in 2001, he was apioneer in Quebec. He made the move afterspending a number of years visiting differentoperations in America.

He opted for robotics mainly because thesystem allowed operators time to talk withvisitors, the employees seemed happier, andthe cows were obviously at ease. Moreover,the equipment operates 24 hours a day, 365days a year, and, so long as preventivemaintenance is ensured, underlines Mr.Landry, it’s very reliable. On the Lansi farm,the cows are generally milked 3.2 to 3.3 timesa day, but that frequency can reach 6 timesdaily for cows in early lactation. The Landryfarm began automated milking with 4 robotsand now has 9, the last of which wereacquired recently because the transfer of thefarm to the next generation is now assured,and the herd has been expanded to 450 cows.

As for the smaller herds

The appeal of roboticmilking is not exclusive tolarge herd operators.Because one robot canhandle about 50 cows,many producers haveadopted this system. Onesuch example is Luc Julien,of Venance Julien et filsinc., a dairy farm located inSaint-Alban, in the Portneufarea, where robotics madean appearance five yearsago. Suffering from a sleepproblem, which fortunatelyhas now been resolved,Luc was looking for a wayto reduce his workload.Faced with hiring additionalstaff or robotizing milking,he chose the latter. Unlike other producers,he had confidence in robotics because hehad been using a robotic feeding system forthe past 20 years and had always beensatisfied with it.

Although he admits that the early stages werechallenging, mainly because they wereadapting to a free-stall setup at the sametime, he says that he is very happy with thedecision today. The first in Portneuf county toacquire a milking robot, Luc’s initial concernsabout the reliability of the equipment havesince vanished. Production has remainedsteady and the system providing informationon each animal lives up to his expectations,particularly for its help in detecting heat.

The 60 cows in the Julien farm’s herd, whichincludes 12 EX and 45 VG, are milked anaverage of 2.9 times per day, but some gothrough 4 times daily. As well, some cowsmay be milked conventionally near the end oflactation. Luc’s brother Yves explains that thispractice frees up the robot, which could havetrouble keeping up with demand during peakperiods. Like the other producers interviewed,Luc Julien stresses the importance of cowhealth and mobility, vaccines and a strongimmune system.

At Ferme Géno, in Saint-Marc-des-Carrières,the author of these lines was struck by thepeaceful atmosphere in the barn. Steve Naud,one of the farm’s owners along with hisbrother and his nephew, says he noticed the

same thing in the barns he visited beforemaking his final choice. After a fire destroyedtheir dairy barn in August 2011, building newfacilities became imperative for theseproducers. Steve Naud, a keen Holsteinbreeder, says the idea of losing his neat andtidy rows of cows caused a pang of anguish,but, he explains, “We were afraid of notmoving with the times, and told ourselves that2012 was not the time to get attached to ourcows.” Moreover, when thinking about whomight eventually take over the farm – afemale candidate if it should come to pass –the owners wanted to reduce the physicaldemands of the job. Hence they chose to buytwo milking robots for the 70 or so cows thatconstitute their herd.

For these producers, as for the othersinterviewed, adapting to robotics occurred atthe same time as the shift to free-stallhousing, and it was this latter change thatproved the most demanding. Indeed, in all thecases mentioned above, the cows quicklybecame accustomed to the robot, andproducers say that only a few cows neededto be culled.

Using a milking robot, and likewise housingcows in a free-stall barn, also required thatbreeders make adjustments to prepare forvisits by classifiers. Obviously, being able todisplay an udder to its advantage is stillimportant during these visits, says SteveNaud.

On Tony Sauvageau’s farm in Saint-Thuribe, the barn has been equipped with a milking robot since June 2013.According to this owner, the cows adapted easily to the equipment,

which now allows him to milk three times a day.

Good management is the key to success

Contrary to what some might think, the robotdoesn’t work by itself, and good herdmanagement remains essential. In that regard,all the producers interviewed expressed thesame view and will strongly advise anyonewho is thinking of buying a robot in the hopeof “off-loading the cows” against makingsuch an investment, because it wouldn’t be agood fit. Although a robot does allow for moreflexibility in the schedule, someone still needsto be there, they say. “You have to work out anew routine for supervision,” adds SteveNaud.

Sylvain Landry stresses that a robot is like anamplifier. If the herd is well managed,performance will improve, but if managementisn’t up to the mark, the negative conse -quences will be that much greater. That’swhy you have to be devoted to your cows andreally love the job of dairy producer to gainfrom it.

In the early 2000s, when robotic milking wascoming onto the market in Quebec, no onereally had any advice about how to succeed.Now we’re well aware that the cows must behealthy, with sound feet and legs, and that wehave to take action as soon as there’s anysign of lameness. For Steve Naud, that’s oneof the key elements of management.

Another factor that seems important is thequality of the housing facilities. A lack ofspace in the alleys or in front of the robot orthe feed bunks, for example, may prevent youfrom obtaining the results you were hoping

for. There have also beenproblems in barns wherethere were too many cowsfor each robot, underlinesSteve Naud. Hence he andhis associates bought two.

My cows are tied,what can I do?

Building a new barn toinstall milking robots isn’tfor every producerhowever. For those whoseanimals are housed in tiestalls, the Quebec firmMilkomax, located inSainte-Monique, nearNicolet, has developed a

mobile robot. It is in fact a robot alreadyavailable on the market that these inventorsplaced on an apparatus that can move up anddown the alley, stopping at each cow. Twoproducers from the Portneuf area haveacquired the equipment: Tony Sauvageau, ofSaint-Thuribe, and Dany Langlois, of Sainte-Christine-d'Auvergne.

In both these cases, the purchase requiredno specific changes to the layout of the barn,which meant the cows adapted quickly,explains Mr. Sauvageau. He was also lookingto enhance his quality of life and so opted forthe robot rather than hiring additional staff,saying he is quite happy with his choice. Heparticularly likes the automatic detacher,which removes the milker unit from each teatindependently. Since this apparatus requiresthat the cows back up, Mr.Sauvageau initially had to interveneto train them. Now many of thecows back up on their own as soonas the robot is positioned behindthem. The 42 cows are milkedevery five hours, three times a day.

On the Langlois farm, theexperience began in May 2012.With no one to take over the farm,the two brothers were looking fora solution to improve their qualityof life, provided it was justifiablefrom an economic viewpoint. Theidea that the robot could increaseproduction by about 10 per centmeant it answered that require -ment. According to Dany Langlois,the designers’ promise proved trueon their farm.

In the end, it wasn’t the cows that had toovercome the main obstacle, but rather theproducers, says Dany Langlois. Specifically,they had to learn to use computer technology.On the Langlois farm, the milking robot works24 hours a day and milking is done on acontinual basis, with 2.9 to 3.6 milkings perday. First-calf cows are the exception; thebrothers initially milk the new heifers twice aday so they can be there and guide them inbacking up, although they do take theprecaution of training the animals prior tocalving.

The robot keeps you posted

If something is not working properly, the robotimmediately informs the person in charge. Forsome, this a definite advantage. Someonedoes have to be on duty, but two or threepeople can share the job, which makes iteasier to tolerate. At Ferme Lansi, if anemployee is required to come in at night, heor she will start work later the next morningso as to be able to catch up on lost sleep.

There are others, however, who find theresponsibility hard to shoulder. As FredMartineau, who uses a milking parlour,underlines, when the milking is done and thework day is over, you can be sure you won’tbe disturbed because the robot has aproblem. Likewise for Gervais Pelletier, whohad that experience with a robotic feedingsystem and had no desire to suffer the samestress for milking. �

FEATUREF

In Saint-Alban, the cows in the Lucyves herd, including 12 EX and 45 VG, willingly head for the milking robot.

On the Géno farm, two milking robots were installed in thenew barn that was built following the fire in August 2011.