Dairy cow and calf behavior and productivity when maintained together on a pasture-based system

Abstract

Objective: We determined the impact of maintaining pasture-based dairy cows and calves together over 100 days on cow milk production, cow and calf behavior, and calf liveweight and carcass quality.Methods: Six Holstein-Friesian cows and their male calves were monitored for 106 ± 8.6 days.Cows were temporarily separated twice a day for milking with calves remaining in the paddock.Cow and calf behaviors were recorded via scan sampling at 6 different timepoints, for the first 7 days and twice a week thereafter. Calves were weighed weekly and immediately processed for meat quality and rumen development analysis at 106 ± 8.6 days. Daily cow milk yields were collected from enrollment until 109 ± 8.6 days (3 days post-weaning). Results:The average daily gain of calves was 1.4 ± 0.73 kg/d, with an average carcass dressing percentage of 59%. Calves had the greatest frequency of observed close proximity to cow and suckling in the first two weeks and decreased with experiment duration. During separation for milking, cow vocalizations and attempts to return to their calf decreased over time. Reticulorumen weight was on target for calf age, but as a proportion of total stomach weight was lower than industry averages of calves the same age due to the larger abomasum. Cows produced an average of 12 ± 7.6 kg of milk yield per day over the 3-days before the calves were weaned and increased to mean of 31 ± 8.3 kg/d the 3 days after weaning, indicating a consumption of close to 20 kg per calf per day.

Behavioral responses to cow and calf separation: separation at 1 and 100 days after birth

“…Twelve Holstein-Friesian cow calf pairs were used in this study and allocated to one of two groups (treatment, n = 6 pairs; industry, n = 6 pairs). Treatment cow-calf pair management during the first 100 days of lactation are described by Mac et al [ 12 ]. Briefly, treatment cows (3.5±1.4 lactation) and calves were maintained together on pasture for over 100 d [ 12 ].…”

“…Treatment cow-calf pair management during the first 100 days of lactation are described by Mac et al [ 12 ]. Briefly, treatment cows (3.5±1.4 lactation) and calves were maintained together on pasture for over 100 d [ 12 ]. In this system cows were temporarily separated twice a day for milking while their calves remaining in the paddock.…”

“…Treatment calves had access to the entire paddock by walking under the electric tape. At the time of enrollment, treatment calves weighted 206±13.9 kg with an average daily gain of 1.4±0.2 kg/d and treatment cows were 106±8.6 days in milk producing an average of 11.2±5.6 kg/cow/d when maintained with their calves and 31.3±8.6 kg/d after separation [ 12 ]. Industry cows (3.7±1.8 lactation) representing the industry standard (calf removed within 24 h postpartum; [ 9 , 11 ]), were selected from the main herd and separated from their calf in the calving paddock within 24 h of calving.…”

“…Cow-calf contact systems allow calves to access relatively high volumes of milk, and calves maintained with the cow typically show greater rates of body weight gain when compared to rearing calves on artificial teat buckets [ 2 , 12 ] but the impact on cow milk production varies [ 2 ]. Greater calf milk consumption can increase milk production in the first lactation [ 13 ] but maintaining the cow and calf together has inconclusive health impacts compared to early separation [ 14 ].…”

“…Greater calf milk consumption can increase milk production in the first lactation [ 13 ] but maintaining the cow and calf together has inconclusive health impacts compared to early separation [ 14 ]. Longer duration cow-calf systems can be associated with increased labor requirements for physical separation of cows and calves for milking, decreased calf habituation to humans, and increased stress around full separation [ 3 , 12 , 15 ].…”