Relationships Between Building Design, Management System and Dairy Cow Welfare

Abstract

As part of a larger on-farm dairy cow welfare and behaviour project, data were collected from 22 commercial dairy farms over two winters (2000-2001 and 2001-2002). A further winter of farm sampling will complete the project (2002-2003), with five types of housing and production systems being assessed: high-, medium- and low-milk-production herds with cubicle housing, high-production herds with zero grazing and cubicle housing, and medium-production herds with straw courts. All cows in one early or mid-lactation group from each farm were observed. For the current analysis, locomotion, cleanliness and body condition were scored for the group, and an audit of building quality was carried out. Analysis of the available data shows that some aspects of building design affect the welfare of dairy cows. A positive correlation was found between mean body condition score of the cows and mean locomotion score (P = 0.047). Body condition score correlated negatively with the number of cows in the group (P = 0.049). Negative correlations were found between locomotion score and the ratio of cubicles to cows (P = 0.033) and between the size of cubicles and leg cleanliness (P = 0.012). Trends were also seen in the relationships between farm type and locomotion score (P = 0.048), production level and locomotion score (P = 0.074) and cow cleanliness and cubicle size (P = 0.061). These results indicate that the quality of the housing and the management system can affect cow welfare. These measures may be useful to include in on-farm welfare assessment schemes.

Assessment of dairy cows comfort in Algerian farms by the Welfare Quality® Protocol

“…This proportion was lower than that of De Boyer des Roches et al (2014) in France (19.1%). This low frequency of cows lying outside the lying area was highly dependent on the level of maintenance of the lying area (Sunderland, 2002;Bowell et al, 2003), its size and density which forced some cows (the dominated) to lie outside the lying area (Phillips, 2002;Mattiello et al, 2009;Krug, Haskell, Nunes, & StilWell, 2015). This explains the significant correlation found between this measure and comfort (r = -0.33; p = 0.0008) (Figure 2).…”

“…This level of dirtiness reflects the poor rearing conditions that constitute a degraded animal environment and depend on a low frequency of bedding replacement (Norring et al, 2008), hygiene of lying area (Bowell et al, 2003;Hulsen, 2007;Leach, Knierim, & Whay, 2009, Ruud, Boe, & Osteras, 2010, Andreasen & Folkman, 2012 and dirty skin and hair can cause itching, decrease thermoregulatory and antimicrobial defense properties and may cause dermatitis (Winckler et al, 2003).…”

“…This cannot be done without satisfaction of their basic needs (food, movement, rest and lying). When these needs were altered, cows present an increased risk for lameness (Bowell, Rennie, Tierney, Lawrence, & Haskell, 2003) and injuries (Winckler, 2008;Plesch, Broerkens, Laister, Winckler, & Knierim, 2010).…”

Evaluation of Compacted Forage Feed on Kupang Cattle Feeding Behavior

“…Cattle may spend up to 14 h per day lying (Wierenga and Hopster, 1990) with about half of the resting period ruminating. Disturbances of resting may be associated with insufficient recuperation, frustration (Munksgaard and Simonsen, 1996), experience of discomfort or pain and increased risks for health problems such as lameness (Singh et al, 1994;Bowell et al, 2003) or lesions (Wechsler et al, 2000;Norring et al, 2008). Wafer and dried pellet treatments have a low in resting duration.…”

Management of Donkeys in Assisted Interventions: A Snapshot

“…In the field of animal husbandry, it is widely accepted that optimizing management means preventing a range of health and behavioral problems that can impact not only animal welfare, but also the economic well-being of farmers. This issue is extensively described regarding various livestock species [ 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ], including, more recently, donkeys [ 18 ]. This should also apply to AAIs: if an animal represents a means to improve users’ quality of life, it should enjoy ideal conditions to lead a good existence in relation to the fulfillment of its needs.…”