“Even a cow with severe udder health problems can be brought back to an acceptable level”.

Bertus and Tineke Zwijnenburg proudly show off their Vreugdenhil statuettes: five years of first-class milk in a row. A remarkable achievement, especially when Bertus tells us that things were very different six years ago. There were many udder health problems that they could not solve. How did they manage to tackle the problems? The dairy farmers from Papekop in Utrecht will be happy to tell you!

“Bertus is never going to do that”, said Tineke when specialist Wim Streefland first drove onto the farm six years ago with the AHV solutions. Because of udder health problems that seemed unsolveable, Bertus and Tineke decided to give AHV a chance. And with success – in fact, the Zwijnenburg family are now enthusiastic experts and have already brought many neighbours and fellow farmers into contact with the AHV solutions. “Dairy farmers see what it does to our cows here, it is really remarkable”, says Bertus satisfied .

Incredible how quickly you see improvement in udder health

Zwijnenburg is achieving remarkably good health results with the AHV approach. Six years ago they were very dissatisfied with the somatic cell count. “We then started using the AHV Quick Tablet and AHV Extra Tablet with cows that had been given a special attention. Gradually, I saw the cows improve and the problems diminish”, Bertus recalls, who is now very satisfied with the somatic cell count (80). Meanwhile, the udder health of Zwijnenburg’s 65-strong herd is excellent. “I am 100% on top of it”, says Bertus, who gives cows immediate attention based on milk recording data. “One AHV Extra Tablet is often enough to tackle problems.” Even a cow with severe udder health problems according to milk recording data, can Bertus get back to an acceptable level. “I then give them an AHV Quick Tablet, the AHV Aspi, in addition to the AHV Extra Tablet. It is amazing how quickly you can see an improvement. Bertus now only uses AHV solutions for udder health. The vet is now only involved on the farm for dehorning and caesarean sections.

“It is just unimaginable how quickly it works for udder health problems.”

Ten-year-old cow back on its feet

“You have to learn to work with the AHV solutions,” says Wim Streefland of AHV. “With our Quorum Sensing technique, the biofilm in the cow’s body is loosened, allowing the cow’s immune system to clear it up itself. This works differently to regular remedies, and you can also see this in the cow. That is why we really work together with the farmer and why the farmer needs to have proper guidance”, he says. That intensive guidance is clearly visible when you look at the WhatsApp conversations between Wim and Bertus. Videos of twins, a cow that is not starting properly or another problem can be found there. After Wim advises which solution Bertus can use for this, the videos of energetic, eating cows soon follow. Cow 36 is a good example. A ten year old cow that had a tough calving, which made her not want to stand up anymore. “Thanks to AHV Milk Start and AHV Aspi, we got her through it,” says Bertus, showing the cow now walking among the herd again. 

“The advantage of AHV is also your contact with your personal specialist. You do not have to wait long for your specialist to arrive. If necessary, AHV will also contact a vet. In this way I can be sure that I am getting the best health advice.”