This DATASETNAMEreadme.txt file was generated on [YYYYMMDD] by [Name] ------------------- GENERAL INFORMATION ------------------- 1. Title of dataset: Appendix 3: Barn construction data from suckler cow farms (n=39) and farms with DCC (n=6), collected by surveying the farmers and taking measurements in the barns. DCC = dam-calf contact 2. Contributor information: Name: Christopher Geßenhardt Role/Function: data collector, doctoral student Institution: Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO), Centre for Proper Housing of Ruminants and Pigs, Agroscope, Switzerland Address: Tänikon 1 CH-8356 Ettenhausen Email: christopher.gessenhardt@agroscope.admin.ch Name: Christina Barbara Rufener Role/Function: principal investigator Institution: Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO), Centre for Proper Housing of Ruminants and Pigs, Agroscope, Switzerland Address: Tänikon 1 CH-8356 Ettenhausen Email: christina.rufener@agroscope.admin.ch Name: Adrian Steiner Role/Function: supervisor Institution: University of Bern, Vetsuisse Faculty, Clinic for Ruminants, Bern, Switzerland Address: Bremgartenstrasse 109a CH-3001 Bern Email: adrian.steiner@unibe.ch 3. Date of data collection: 10-12-2022 - 15-04-2023 4. Geographic location of data collection: Switzerland 5. Keywords describing the subject of your dataset: barn construction, cow-calf contact, dairy dam-calf contact, housing systems, suckler cow 6. Information about funding sources that supported the collection of the data: Funding agency name: Swiss Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office Grant number: 2.22.01 ------------------- SHARING/ACCESS INFORMATION ------------------- 1. Licenses/restrictions placed on the data: cc by 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). 2. Links to publications that cite or use the data: https://doi.org/10.17236/sat00343 https://sat.gstsvs.ch/de/sat/sat-artikel/archiv/2025/012025/the-housing-of-cow-and-calf-an-overview-of-barn-design-management-and-behaviour-in-cow-calf-housi.html 3. Links to other publicly accessible locations of the data: https://sat.gstsvs.ch/de/sat/sat-artikel/archiv/2025/012025/the-housing-of-cow-and-calf-an-overview-of-barn-design-management-and-behaviour-in-cow-calf-housi.html 4. Links/relationships to additional data sets: https://sat.gstsvs.ch/de/sat/sat-artikel/archiv/2025/012025/the-housing-of-cow-and-calf-an-overview-of-barn-design-management-and-behaviour-in-cow-calf-housi.html 5. Was data derived from another source? yes/no. no. 6. Recommended citation for this dataset: Geßenhardt, C., Steiner, A., Rufener, C., 2025. The housing of cow and calf: An overview of barn design, management and behaviour in cow-calf housing systems. Schweizer Archiv für Tierheilkunde 167, 1/2025 S. 53-64. Verfügbar unter: DOI/URL --------------------- DATA & FILE OVERVIEW --------------------- 1. File List: Filename: Appendix 3: Barn construction data from suckler cow farms (n=39) and farms with DCC (n=6), collected by surveying the farmers and taking measurements in the barns. DCC = dam-calf contact File format : CSV File encoding : Short description: This table contains raw data on herd size and barn construction from 45 Swiss farms with cow-calf husbandry (suckler cow farms and farms with dairy dam-calf contact), collected between December 2022 and April 2023 by surveying the farmers and taking measurements in the barns. Date of creation: 24.01.2025 2. Relationship between files: / 3. Are there multiple versions of the dataset? yes/no : Name of file that was updated : Why was the file updated? When was the file updated? no -------------------------- METHODOLOGICAL INFORMATION -------------------------- 1. Description of methods used for collection/generation of data: https://sat.gstsvs.ch/de/sat/sat-artikel/archiv/2025/012025/the-housing-of-cow-and-calf-an-overview-of-barn-design-management-and-behaviour-in-cow-calf-housi.html 2. Methods for processing the data: Digitalisation, organisation and summarisation of handwritten data, collected in barns on farms with cow-calf contact. 3. Instrument- or software-specific information needed to interpret the data: none 4. Standards and calibration information: 5. Environmental/experimental conditions: Data collection took place on Swiss cow-calf farms in winter 2022/2023, which were distributed across Switzerland. Environmental conditions did not play a role in the collection of this data. 6. Describe any quality-assurance procedures performed on the data: 7. People involved with sample collection, processing, analysis and/or submission: Christopher Geßenhardt, Christina Barbara Rufener, Adrian Steiner ----------------------------------------- DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR: [FILENAME] ----------------------------------------- 1. Number of variables: 57 2. Number of cases/rows: 45 3. Variable List Betriebs-ID (Farm ID) Datum_Besuch (Date of farm visit and data collection) Produktionsform (Farm type, suckler cow vs. dairy dam-calf contact) Landwirtschaftliche_Zone (Agricultural zoning) Umstellung_vorher (Type of use of the barn before conversion or new building) gesamt_Kuehe (Number of cows on farm) beobachtet_Kuehe (Number of cows observed) gesamt_Kaelber (Number of calves on farm) beobachtet_Kaelber (Number of calves observed) gesamt_Rinder (Number of heifers on farm) beobachtet_Rinder (Number of heifers observed) Def_Aktivitaetsbereich (Definition of activity area) Flaeche Laufhof(m2) (Size of outdoor yard) Spaltenbreite_Stall(mm) (Slat width) Traenketyp_Kuehe (Type of cow drinking trough) Anzahl_Traenken_Kaelber (Number of calf drinking trough) Traenkehoehe_Kuehe(m) (Height of cow drinking trough) Traenkehoehe_Kaelber(m) (Height of calf drinking trough) Stalltyp (Barn type) Fressgittertyp (Type of feeding fence) Laenge_Fressbereich(m) (Length of the feeding area) Anzahl_Fressplaetze_Kuehe (Number of feeding places for adult animals) Fressplatz:Tier-VH(Kuh+Rind) (Ratio of adult animals to feeding places) Nutzung_Fressbereich_durch_Jungtiere (Use of the feeding area by juvenile animals) Nutzung_Fressbereich_durch_Kaelber (Use of the feeding area by calves) Fressplatzbreite_Lichtmass(m) (Width of feeding place) Abstand_zwFressgitterstaeben(m) (Width between bars of feeding fence) Boden_Fressbereich (Flooring in the feeding area) Fressplatzhoehe(m) (Height of the feeding place on the cow's feeding axis) Breite_Fressgang(m) (Width of feeding aisle) Anzahl_Liegeboxen-Kuehe (Number of lying cubicles) Liebereich_Kuehe_Typ (Type of cow`s lying area) Tier:Liegeplatz-VH (Ratio of adult animals to cubicles) Flaeche_Liegeflaeche(m2) (Size of lying area) Laenge_Liegeboxen(m) (Lenghth of cubicles) Breite_Liegeboxen_Lichtmass(m) (Width of cubciles) Tiefe_Kopfraum(m)_inkl.Kaelberschlupf (Length of head lunge space) Gangtiefe_Liegebereich (Width of lying aisle) Liegebereich_Kuehe_Untergrund (Flooring in the lying area) Typ_Begrenzung_Nacken (Type of neck limitation element) Hoehe_Begrenzung_Nacken(m) (Height of neck limitation element) Begrenzung_Front (Type of front limitation element) Hoehe_Begrenzung_Front (Height of front limitation element) Material_Matratze_Kuehe (Bedding material cows) Kalkung_Matratze (Application of calcium carbonate to the lying surfaces) Kaelberschlupf_Liegen_Typ (Type of calf creep area) Kaelberschlupf_Anzahl (Number of calf creep areas in the barn) KS_Liegen_Untergrund (Bedding material in the calf creep area) Flaeche_Kaelberschlupf(m2) (Size of the calf creep area) Eingang_KS (Type of gate/entrance to calf creep area) Breite_Eingang_Kaelberschlupf(m) (Witdh of gate/entrance to calf creep area) Hoehe_Eingang_Kaelberschlupf(m) (Height of gate/entrance to calf creep area) Kaelberfressbereich im Kaelberschlupf (Presence of a calf feeding area in the calf creep area) Kaelberfressbereich_Typ_Lokalisation (Type of calf feeding area) Fressplatzbreite_Kaelber(m) (Width of calf feeding place) Anzahl_Fressplaetze_Kaelber (Number of calf feeding places) Boden_Kaelberfressbereich (Flooring in the calf feeding area) 4. Missing data codes: 5. Specialized formats of other abbreviations used