Assessment of Heat Stress Impact on Daily Activity Pattern of Dairy Cattle
The behaviour of dairy cattle changes when they are exposed to settings that cause heat stress. As a result, the analysis of changes in behaviour may serve as an indicator of abnormalities in either the environment or the body itself. In addition, precision livestock farming tools enable the individ...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Agroprint Timisoara
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Scientific Papers Animal Science and Biotechnologies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://spasb.ro/index.php/public_html/article/view/32 |
| _version_ | 1797214610170839040 |
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| author | Ciprian Radu Adina-Mirela Ariton Andra-Sabina Neculai-Văleanu |
| author_facet | Ciprian Radu Adina-Mirela Ariton Andra-Sabina Neculai-Văleanu |
| author_sort | Ciprian Radu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The behaviour of dairy cattle changes when they are exposed to settings that cause heat stress. As a result, the analysis of changes in behaviour may serve as an indicator of abnormalities in either the environment or the body itself. In addition, precision livestock farming tools enable the individual and ongoing monitoring of animal behaviour, which might serve as a method for determining whether or not animals are treated properly. The goal of this study was to assess the effect that heat stress has on the behaviour of dairy cows. The research was conducted during the summer of 2022, in a dairy farm located in the north-east of Romania. A total 40 cows, with ages ranging from 3 to 5 years, average days in milk (DIM) and milk production of 85 +/- 35 days, respectively 21 +/- 2.2 kg (mean +/- SD) were included in the study. Temperature and Heat Index (THI) were computed each day, for the entire period of the study. Data regarding the individual activity pattern of each animal were provided by the AfiFarm software. The findings indicated that heat stress impacted animal behaviour, a significant correlation being observed between heat stressed and non-heat-stressed regarding the activity period (p <0.05), respectively the rest period (p <0.05). As the THI increased, the general activity and resting pattern were modified, implicitly impacting animal welfare. Precision livestock farming sensors and analysis of daily patterns may be excellent tools for monitoring animal behaviour and detecting heat stress-related changes. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T05:34:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-390773c302ac4dad8494930383534ac6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1841-9364 2344-4576 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T11:16:54Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | Agroprint Timisoara |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Papers Animal Science and Biotechnologies |
| spelling | doaj.art-390773c302ac4dad8494930383534ac62024-04-11T07:35:30ZengAgroprint TimisoaraScientific Papers Animal Science and Biotechnologies1841-93642344-45762023-06-0156117517532Assessment of Heat Stress Impact on Daily Activity Pattern of Dairy CattleCiprian Radu0Adina-Mirela Ariton1Andra-Sabina Neculai-Văleanu2Research and Development Station for Cattle Breeding Dancu, Iaşi - Ungheni Alley No. 9, 707252, Iaşi, RomaniaResearch and Development Station for Cattle Breeding Dancu, Iaşi - Ungheni Alley No. 9, 707252, Iaşi, RomaniaResearch and Development Station for Cattle Breeding Dancu, Iaşi - Ungheni Alley No. 9, 707252, Iaşi, RomaniaThe behaviour of dairy cattle changes when they are exposed to settings that cause heat stress. As a result, the analysis of changes in behaviour may serve as an indicator of abnormalities in either the environment or the body itself. In addition, precision livestock farming tools enable the individual and ongoing monitoring of animal behaviour, which might serve as a method for determining whether or not animals are treated properly. The goal of this study was to assess the effect that heat stress has on the behaviour of dairy cows. The research was conducted during the summer of 2022, in a dairy farm located in the north-east of Romania. A total 40 cows, with ages ranging from 3 to 5 years, average days in milk (DIM) and milk production of 85 +/- 35 days, respectively 21 +/- 2.2 kg (mean +/- SD) were included in the study. Temperature and Heat Index (THI) were computed each day, for the entire period of the study. Data regarding the individual activity pattern of each animal were provided by the AfiFarm software. The findings indicated that heat stress impacted animal behaviour, a significant correlation being observed between heat stressed and non-heat-stressed regarding the activity period (p <0.05), respectively the rest period (p <0.05). As the THI increased, the general activity and resting pattern were modified, implicitly impacting animal welfare. Precision livestock farming sensors and analysis of daily patterns may be excellent tools for monitoring animal behaviour and detecting heat stress-related changes.https://spasb.ro/index.php/public_html/article/view/32activity patterndairy cowsheat stressprecision livestock farming |
| spellingShingle | Ciprian Radu Adina-Mirela Ariton Andra-Sabina Neculai-Văleanu Assessment of Heat Stress Impact on Daily Activity Pattern of Dairy Cattle Scientific Papers Animal Science and Biotechnologies activity pattern dairy cows heat stress precision livestock farming |
| title | Assessment of Heat Stress Impact on Daily Activity Pattern of Dairy Cattle |
| title_full | Assessment of Heat Stress Impact on Daily Activity Pattern of Dairy Cattle |
| title_fullStr | Assessment of Heat Stress Impact on Daily Activity Pattern of Dairy Cattle |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessment of Heat Stress Impact on Daily Activity Pattern of Dairy Cattle |
| title_short | Assessment of Heat Stress Impact on Daily Activity Pattern of Dairy Cattle |
| title_sort | assessment of heat stress impact on daily activity pattern of dairy cattle |
| topic | activity pattern dairy cows heat stress precision livestock farming |
| url | https://spasb.ro/index.php/public_html/article/view/32 |
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