Investigating Rubber Mats on Concrete Slats in Deep Pit Confinement Buildings for Finishing Cattle-progress Report

Confinement housing of beef cattle is becoming more common due to increased environmental concerns and the desire to capture potential efficiencies in cattle performance and manure value. Deep pit facilities with slatted floors are being built, however one of the disadvantages may be the effect on feet and legs and performance consequences forcattle being on concrete slats for extended periods of time. Rubber mats constructed to be installed over the slats are being used to overcome these issues. No comparable data has been gathered in typical U.S feeding situations to measure potential benefit of these mats. This investigation is attempting to gather data to determine potential advantages of the mats