Behaviour and leg injuries in dairy cows kept in cubicle systems with straw bedding or soft lying mats.

Posted in: Welfare by admin on January 1, 2000 | No Comments

In order to reduce straw input, soft lying mats are used increasingly instead of straw bedding in cubicle systems for dairy cows. This study aimed at comparing different types of soft lying mats with straw bedding regarding cow behaviour and leg injuries. Data were collected on 5 farms with straw and on 13 farms using four types of soft lying mats consisting of different materials. On each farm, lying behaviour of 10 cows was recorded automatically during 3 days by means of a pneumatically operated resting sensor fitted in a belt. In addition, standing up and lying down behaviour of sows was quantified by direct observations, and all cows on a given farm were checked once for leg injuries. There were no significant differences between cows kept in cubicle systems with soft lying mats and straw bedding regarding the total time spent lying per day and the number of lying bouts per day. Standing up and lying down behaviour also did not differ between cows with access to soft lying mats and straw bedding. Leg injuries were most frequent in the carpal and tarsal joints. Cows kept in cubicle systems with soft lying mats had a significantly higher incidence of both hairless patches more than 2 cm in diameter and scabs or wounds less than 2 cm in diameter located in the tarsal joints than cows with straw bedding. With the carpal joints, on the other hand, the incidence of leg injuries did not differ significantly between these two housing conditions. In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that soft lying mats are equivalent to straw bedding in terms of cow behaviour but less favourable with respect to leg injuries located in the tarsal joints.

Euthanasia of horses – alternatives to the bullet.

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THERMOGRAPHICAL QUANTIFICATION OF PHYSIOLOGICAL AND BEHAVIORAL RESPONSES OF GROUP-HOUSED YOUNG PIGS

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Effects of handling aids on calf behaviour.

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Calves raised in three different conditions were studied in response to three different handling aids. Intensively-reared intact Holstein males (Group 1), extensively-reared beef-breed females (Group 2), and extensively-reared castrated beef-breed males (Group 3) were studied. The handling treatments included an electric prod, an oar with rattles or manual urging. Calves from each group experienced one of the handling methods. The handling methods were only used when necessary to encourage forward movement through a solid-sided semi-circular chute. One day before and one day and one week after the movement tests, an approach test was conducted. The fewest treatment applications were required for calves that received the electric prod. These calves also ran more often and made more contact with the sides of the chute. Behaviour during the approach tests did not change after the handling aids were used. However, during the approach tests, regardless of treatment, Group 1 calves were less fearful of humans compared to calves in Groups 2 and 3. One week after the chute tests, all the calves that had experienced the electric prod retreated from the handler when they heard the buzzing sound of the electric prod. This suggests that after experiencing both the feeling and sound of the prod, the sound alone could be enough to encourage the calves to move.

Effect of feeding duration and rumen fill on behaviour in dairy cows.

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The feeding of dairy cows during the stable period is often accomplished within a rather short time, compared with the duration of eating and rumination among cows on pasture. In dairy cows restricted feeding may lead to significant increases in behavioural disturbances, such as stereotyped oral behaviours, compared with giving feed ad libitum. The aim of the present experiment was to test the hypothesis that oral manipulation of feed is a behavioural need in cattle, irrespective of actual rumen load. Twelve rumen fistulated cows were used and subjected to four different treatments: low rumen content+long duration of eating (A), high rumen content+short duration of eating (B), high rumen content+long duration of eating (=positive control) (C) and low rumen content+short duration of eating (=negative control) (D). To obtain treatment A and B, rumen content was transferred by hand from cow A to B through the rumen fistulaes. Each treatment lasted for 3 days with 2 weeks of recovery between each new treatment. This experiment was repeated twice during two consecutive years. All cows were fed the same mixture of silage, concentrate and hay. The cows were videotaped under normal conditions (24h), and on the third day of the experiment. From these videotapes, the behaviours (frequency and duration per 24 h) were analysed.Time spent eating differed significantly between the four treatments, with shortest eating-times in B and D. The cows with low rumen content (A and D) spent shorter time ruminating than the cows with filled rumen (B and C). The B and D cows (short duration of eating) spent longer time with behaviours related to feed-searching that the cows with long duration of eating (A and C). The C cows had fewer bouts of behaviours related to feed-searching than A, B and D cows. The time spent with stereotypies (tongue-rolling) was longer in D than in the other treatments. In conclusion, these results support the hypothesis that oral manipulation of feed is a behavioural need in cattle irrespective of rumen load. A low duration of feeding behaviours combined with a low rumen load, which is a common practice in certain categories of growing cattle or dry dairy cows, seriously impairs the welfare in cattle.

Aggression and social spacing in light horse (Equus caballus) mares and foals

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The aggression and spacing amongst light horse mares and their foals was examined while they were out at pasture. The mare-foal pairs were observed for approximately seven hours each day. The observations began when the foal was two months old and ended when the foals were approximately four months old. Observations of the foals continued until they were six months old. All occurrences of aggressive behaviour were recorded, along with the identity of those that were involved in the encounter. Aggression was also observed when the horses were fed supplemental grain. There were significant correlations between the rank of the mare with the rank of the foal (before and after weaning). There was also a significant correlation between rank and birth order, but this was only evident before weaning. The social relationships of the foals, along with their rank was not linked to their gender. The foals preferred to associate with the foals of the mares that their mother preferred to associate with both before and after weaning. As mares and foals increased in rank, so did the rate at which they would engage in aggressive encounters with other horses in the herd.

Thoroughbred bedding preferences, associated behaviour differences and their implications for equine welfare.

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The effect of space allowance on performance, aggression and immune competence of growing pigs housed on straw deep-litter at different group sizes.

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Research on the space requirements for pigs housed in large groups and on deep-straw bedding is limited. Group size was either 20 or 80 pigs per pen. The pigs were housed on deep straw and provided with either a low (50 kg/m2) or high (32 kg/m2) space allowance. Overall, low space allowance did not have an effect on average daily gain (ADG) but it did tend to improve growth efficiency. Pigs housed in groups of 80 had a lower ADG than pigs in groups of 20. The variation of ADG within each pen was similar for each treatment. At the low space allowance, there was a higher incidence of skin lesions among pigs. When exposed to an antigen challenge (Newcastle disease virus), pigs housed in the small space allowance had a lower humoral response. In conclusion, it was suggested that the welfare of pigs housed at the low space allowance was compromised. The lack of interaction between space allowance and group size, the poorer ADG seen in large groups, and the higher lesion scores and suppressed immune response of pigs housed under restricted space allowance were evidence of this conclusion.

Laying hen behaviour 1. Effects of cage type and startle stimuli

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This experiment examined the behavioural responses of two strains of laying hens to a number of startling stimuli when housed in two types of cages. The hen strains were DeKalb Delta and Hy-Line W36. The cages were either solid walled or open walled. The startling stimuli involved taping on the cages, loud noises, etc. The birds were observed for 30 minutes after being startled to record the behavioural response to the startle and the time required for the birds to return to normal behaviour. Minor differences were observed, but overall the authors conclude that cage type did not affect the response of the two strains to startling stimuli nor their return to normal behaviour. Neither solid nor open walled cages adversely affected the birds, nor did they confer any obvious advantages to the birds in handling stress.

Effects of an acute stressor on fear and on the social reinstatement responses of domestic chicks to cagemates and strangers

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Broiler chicks remained undisturbed or were exposed to an acute stressor (mechanical restraint) before measuring tonic immobility and fear responses one hour later (experiment 1). Exposing the birds to the stressor significantly prolonged their tonic immobility response and most likely their underlying fear levels as well. In experiment 2, the response of the undisturbed control chicks and the stressed chicks were assessed by placing them each individually in a runway with a goal box containing either familiar or unfamiliar chicks of the same age. Findings of the study indicated that stressed chicks emerged from the start box sooner and spent a greater amount of time near the stimulus birds, suggesting that exposure to a frightening event increased social reinstatement motivation. Social affiliation was even stronger when the goal box contained familiar chicks rather than strangers, regardless of prior treatment. This indicates that broiler chicks housed in groups of twelve can discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar cagemates when encountered in a novel situation. Therefore, sociality was positively associated with fearfulness and the chicks distinctly showed social discrimination in runway tests. Conclusions stated that fear and the capacity of social recognition in tests of social motivation were important to birds. Recommendations stated that exposure to frightening events before a test should be avoided and the identity of the birds in the runway goal box should be standardized and noted (i.e. familiar or unfamiliar).