Grant and Leesa Williams installed their first Lely milking robots back in 2009, one of the first farms in the area to adopt the technology. But until recently, Leesa continued to manage a second rotary dairy on their Athlone property.
In late 2021 the family fired up six more Lely robots and finally switched off their rotary, becoming a fully robotic operation. We caught up with Leesa to ask her how it’s going.
In late 2021 the family fired up six more Lely robots and finally switched off their rotary, becoming a fully robotic operation. We caught up with Leesa to ask her how it’s going.
Leesa and Grant Williams
“When you’re so used to trying to get the cows in to get milked at four o’clock, even from the first night the pressure that it’s taken off everybody here, the whole mood has changed. It’s just beautiful.
“We had been walking the cows through the robots before going onto the rotary for about four days, and I think that helped. They weren’t scared to walk into the robots. The first night milking with the robots the cows were clanging and banging, I guess because all of a sudden they couldn't get out. But by the second milking the next morning, it was amazing. If you got them in the yard, they would generally walk into the robots themselves. So that’s gone really well.
“We’re in our busiest time with cows calving, and we don’t want to lose production with freshly calved cows, so we’re driving it ourselves a little bit right now, making them come in twice a day and tying back the one-way gate that leads cows into the network of sorting gates. Because some of them don’t realise they can push that gate open yet and we want to keep the cows flowing. That will come with time, but it’s just not something we’re prepared to hold up at this point.
“We had been walking the cows through the robots before going onto the rotary for about four days, and I think that helped. They weren’t scared to walk into the robots. The first night milking with the robots the cows were clanging and banging, I guess because all of a sudden they couldn't get out. But by the second milking the next morning, it was amazing. If you got them in the yard, they would generally walk into the robots themselves. So that’s gone really well.
“We’re in our busiest time with cows calving, and we don’t want to lose production with freshly calved cows, so we’re driving it ourselves a little bit right now, making them come in twice a day and tying back the one-way gate that leads cows into the network of sorting gates. Because some of them don’t realise they can push that gate open yet and we want to keep the cows flowing. That will come with time, but it’s just not something we’re prepared to hold up at this point.
“It’s a great lifestyle. It’s still farming, you’re just not having to put cups on cows while they’re kicking and you’re stretching to reach their udders. We want to keep farming, we love it. But we didn’t want to be doing the physical slog of putting cups on for another 20 years. We’ve also got five beautiful grandchildren and want to be able to be there for them.
“This gives me the flexibility to be with our kids and grandkids and still be part of the farming, without having to be tied morning and night to an actual milking role. Things can wait, like getting home to feed the calves or gathering some cows in. For me personally it’s been a real game-changer. It’s just a breath of fresh air.
“This gives me the flexibility to be with our kids and grandkids and still be part of the farming, without having to be tied morning and night to an actual milking role. Things can wait, like getting home to feed the calves or gathering some cows in. For me personally it’s been a real game-changer. It’s just a breath of fresh air.
“The guys from Lely Gippsland have been brilliant. They’ve worked hard to keep things moving along because they knew we really wanted to get the robots in before the cows were calving, to get them trained a little bit. So they put in some big hours to do that. And the support has been wonderful. They’re only a phone call away and they don’t make you feel stupid asking any questions, they’re more than happy to help.
“I've gained more confidence in the last few weeks with the support of the guys. I’m really excited and just so glad we’ve gone down that path.”
- Leesa Williams
“I've gained more confidence in the last few weeks with the support of the guys. I’m really excited and just so glad we’ve gone down that path.”
- Leesa Williams
