Effect of weather on activity and lying behaviour in clinically healthy grazing dairy cows during the transition period
S. J. Hendriks A H , C. V. C. Phyn B , S.-A. Turner
C , K. R. Mueller D , B. Kuhn-Sherlock B , D. J. Donaghy A , J. M. Huzzey E and J. R. Roche B F G
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A School of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University, Private Bag 11222, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
B DairyNZ Ltd., Private Bag 3221, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand.
C Dairy Goat Co-operative, PO Box 1398, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand.
D School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Private Bag 11222, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
E Department of Animal Science, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407, USA.
F School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand.
G Present address: Ministry for Primary Industries, Wellington 6140, New Zealand.
H Corresponding author. Email: s.hendriks@massey.ac.nz
Animal Production Science 60(1) 148-153 https://doi.org/10.1071/AN18569
Submitted: 12 September 2018 Accepted: 9 March 2019 Published: 3 May 2019
Abstract
Lying behaviour and activity were measured in healthy grazing dairy cows during the transition from late gestation to early lactation (i.e. the transition period). Behaviour data derived from IceTag® or IceQube® (IceRobotics, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK) tri-axial accelerometers were collated from 311 cow parities of mixed age and breed (Holstein–Friesian, Jersey and crossbred Holstein–Friesian × Jersey) cows from four experiments. The IceTag and IceQube devices captured lying and step data at 1- and 15-min intervals respectively. Behaviour was recorded during the transition period (Day –21 prepartum to Day 34 postpartum) to determine daily lying time, number of lying bouts (LB), mean LB duration and number of steps. The effect of rainfall and air temperature on lying behaviour and activity during two periods, namely, prepartum (Day –21 to Day –3) and postpartum (Days 3–34) was evaluated. Multiple-regression analysis determined that decreased air temperature and increased rainfall is associated with a decline in daily lying time, number of LB and LB duration during both prepartum and postpartum periods. Exposure to both wet and cold conditions exacerbated the behavioural response. The results highlighted the importance of considering the effects of air temperature and rainfall and the interaction of these two climate variables when analysing lying behaviour and activity. Further work is required to quantify the trigger points for this activity modulation, to help understand the balance of welfare experiences in the life of a grazing cow.
Additional keywords: inclement weather, pasture, transition cow, winter.
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