Competitive behaviour of dairy cows at a concentrate self-feeder

Abstract

We investigated whether feeding cows are disturbed by butting of other cows during the time they are in a concentrate self-feeder, and whether this leads to concentrate leftovers. Forty dairy cows were observed while visiting two self-feeders. If a cow was butted visiting the self-feeder, it was considered as 'disturbed visit'. When retreating from the feeder within five seconds after being butted, the visit was also considered 'interrupted'. Half of the visits were disturbed, and 42% of visits were also interrupted. Visits were disturbed particularly when cows' own feed was dispensed, and in 63% of disturbed visits concentrates were left over. The non-lactating cows, denied concentrates, won leftover concentrates after butting the previous visitor more often than lactating cows. Cows' weight correlated negatively with visiting and receiving butting. Initiated butting correlated positively with winning leftover concentrates. There is a need for further development of automatic feeders to secure individual concentrate feeding.

Short communication: Lameness impairs feeding behavior of dairy cows

“…Competition for feed has previously been reported to increase aggressive interactions (DeVries et al, 2004), as well as to reduce feeding time and feed intake (DeVries and von Collings et al, 2011). It has also been reported to have disadvantageous effects on younger, smaller, newly calved, and high-yielding cows (Katainen et al, 2005;Val-Laillet et al, 2008;Huzzey et al, 2012). Feeding rate can be interpreted as an indicator of social pressure among group members (Nielsen, 1999;Collings et al, 2011), which suggests that competition had an adverse effect on lame primiparous cows in the current study.…”

Effects of Housing and Management Factors on Selected Indicators of the Welfare Quality® Protocol in Loose-Housed Dairy Cows

“…Similarly, de Vries et al [ 12 ] found a positive relationship between the presence of cow brushes and an increasing number of displacements. Competitive behaviour of dairy cows at a concentrate self-feeder were examined by Katainen et al [ 84 ]. The authors reported that nearly half of the visits (42%) at the concentrate feeder were interrupted by butting of other cows.…”

Initial experiments with an electronic feeding station for ewes

“…Hence, an entrance-exit gate that protects the ewes while consuming their ration seems to be a necessity. Entrance-exit gates are not regularly used in commercial dairy herds, but Katainen et al (2005) showed that displacements from the EFS were quite frequent. For dry sows, all commercial models of EFS now have entrance-exit gates and usually also rear entry-side exit design (Hunter & Smith, 1991).…”

“…For dairy cows the feeding station is just an open stall with an open rear entrance/exit, but Katainen et al (2005) observed that 42% of the visits to the feeding station were interrupted. An entrance gate to prevent bullying and displacements is considered to be a prerequisite in feeding stations for pigs (Edwards et al, 1988).…”