Dairy calves’ preference for rearing substrate

Worth, G.M.; Schütz, Karin E.; Stewart, Mairi; Cave, Vanessa M.; Foster, Mary; Sutherland, Mhairi A.

doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2015.04.003

Cited by 13 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 80 publications

(198 reference statements)

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“…Calves spent on average 17 h lying per day and lying times were similar among calves on all substrates, in the present study. These lying times are similar to calves reared on a range of substrates (Panivivat et al, 2004;Worth et al, 2015). Worth et al (2015) found that the calves housed on WS spent more time lying than calves on SA or stones and attributed this to the softness/compressibility of WS.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 64%

“…These lying times are similar to calves reared on a range of substrates (Panivivat et al, 2004;Worth et al, 2015). Worth et al (2015) found that the calves housed on WS spent more time lying than calves on SA or stones and attributed this to the softness/compressibility of WS. The similar lying times of calves on all 4 substrates evaluated in this study may suggest that calves found all these substrates relatively comfortable.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 64%

“…However, calves reared on WS performed more lying bouts than calves reared on PG or SA. Conversely, Sutherland et al (2013) and Worth et al (2015) found no difference in the number of lying bouts irrespective of rearing substrate. Lying behavior has been used as an indicator of dairy cow comfort and used to evaluate different flooring surfaces (Haley et al, 2001;Norring et al, 2008;Tucker et al, 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

“…One important aspect of calf management is the rearing substrate used as this can affect calf growth, hygiene, health, and behavior. Several rearing substrates used in calf rearing systems have been evaluated in the literature including concrete, granite fines, rice hulls, rubber mats, sand (SA), straw, stones, and sawdust/wood shavings (Panivivat et al, 2004;Hänninen et al, 2005;Hill et al, 2011;Camiloti et al, 2012;Sutherland et al, 2013;Worth et al, 2015). Rearing substrate can affect calf cleanliness (Panivivat et al, 2004), weight gain and the incidence of diarrhea/ scours (Panivivat et al, 2004;Hill et al, 2011), skin surface temperature (Sutherland et al, 2013), acute phase protein concentrations (Alsemgeest et al, 1995), and the level of bacterial contamination (Panivivat et al, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rearing substrate may also affect the motivation of animals to perform specific behaviors if those behaviors are restricted in the home pen; for example, calves reared on stones performed more play behavior than calves reared on WS when removed from the home pen and put into an arena test (Sutherland et al, 2014a). Dairy calves also show a clear preference for lying on dry WS and an aversion to lying on bare concrete (Camiloti et al, 2012) and prefer lying on WS than on SA (Worth et al, 2015). However, some organic substrates are becoming difficult or expensive for farmers to obtain, have higher moisture absorbent properties, and have higher bacteria contamination (Panivivat et al, 2004;Sutherland et al, 2014b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Health, physiology, and behavior of dairy calves reared on 4 different substrates

Sutherland

Worth²,

Cameron

et al. 2017

Journal of Dairy Science

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The objective of this study was to compare the health, physiology, and behavior of group-housed calves reared on wood shavings with those reared on alternative surfaces. At 1 wk of age, 80 calves were moved into 1 of 20 experimental pens (n = 4 calves/pen) where they remained until 6 wk of age. Pens had floors covered with pea gravel (PG), rubber chip (RC), sand (SA), or wood shavings (WS; n = 5 pens/substrate). Body weight, cleanliness, health, and skin surface and vaginal temperature were recorded at 1, 3, and 6 wk of age. Escherichia coli numbers were assessed on the skin surface of the shoulder and in the feces of calves at 3 and 6 wk of age. Blood samples were taken at 1, 3, and 6 wk of age to measure hematological values and cortisol, IgG, and lactate concentrations. Behaviors (lying, running, and self-grooming) were recorded in the home pen at 1, 3, and 6 wk of age using video recorders and accelerometer data loggers. At 6 wk of age, calves were tested individually in an arena test and behavior was recorded continuously for 20 min. Body weight did not differ among calves reared on PG, RC, SA, or WS, regardless of age. All calves were clean and no calves displayed any signs of lameness, leg lesions, or injuries at wk 1, 3, or 6, regardless of substrate. The number of E. coli recovered from a surface area of 100 cm on the shoulder of each calf was affected by rearing substrate, with more E. coli recovered from calves reared on WS than PG, RC, or SA at 3 and 6 wk of age. Fecal E. coli counts were not affected by rearing substrate at 3 or 6 wk of age. Over the entire study period, calves reared on PG and SA had lower skin temperatures than calves reared on RC or WS, but skin temperature was similar between calves reared on PG and SA. However, vaginal temperature did not differ among calves reared on different substrates at 1, 3, or 6 wk of age. Hematology values and cortisol, IgG, and lactate concentrations of calves were similar among rearing substrates over the 6-wk study period. In the home pen, rearing substrate did not influence time spent lying; however, calves reared on WS performed more lying bouts than calves reared on PG or SA. In addition, rearing substrate did not influence the time calves spent running; however, calves reared on WS spent more time self-grooming than calves reared on PG, RC, and SA. During a 20-min arena test, running, bucks, jumps, and kicks performed by calves was not affected by rearing substrate. In conclusion, the physiology and behavior of calves reared on PG, RC, and SA was similar to WS, which is considered the preferred rearing substrate to use when rearing calves. Therefore, PG, RC, and SA may be acceptable substrate options when rearing group-housed dairy calves.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 64%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 64%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 71%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Health, physiology, and behavior of dairy calves reared on 4 different substrates

Sutherland

Worth²,

Cameron

et al. 2017

Journal of Dairy Science

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Material and food exploration by zoo‐housed animals can inform cognition and enrichment apparatus design

2022

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To robustly study zoo animal cognition and provide effective enrichment, we must provide animals with carefully designed apparatus made from appropriate (safe, attractive, practical) materials. However, all too often, this design phase is overlooked or omitted from the literature. We evaluated how a troop of 12 ringtailed lemurs (Lemur catta) explored a range of novel materials and whole foods during outdoor social testing. These items were not intended to test cognition or be enriching; rather we viewed them as the potential "building blocks" from which to build our future apparatus. Lemurs preferred to explore wooden surfaces, but had no preference for manipulanda made from different materials. Large amounts of metal and untreated wood should be avoided in the future; metal produced too much heat and glare, and wood was damaged by biting/chewing. Lemurs used one or two hands to explore manipulanda, and simple touching was more common than twisting or pulling. However, lemurs were most likely to explore by smell than touch or by mouth. Social testing preserved "normal" conditions for the lemurs, including natural food stealing and scrounging in high-and low-ranking individuals, respectively. Our findings culminated in the development of a static, low-level cognitive task apparatus, constructed from modular plastic units. We encourage other researchers to report how they develop cognitive and enrichment apparatuses and consider a similar preference-testing approach.

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Dairy goats prefer to use different flooring types to perform different behaviours

Sutherland

Lowe

Watson

et al. 2017

Applied Animal Behaviour Science

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Dairy calves’ preference for rearing substrate

Cited by 13 publications

References 80 publications

Health, physiology, and behavior of dairy calves reared on 4 different substrates

Health, physiology, and behavior of dairy calves reared on 4 different substrates

Material and food exploration by zoo‐housed animals can inform cognition and enrichment apparatus design

Dairy goats prefer to use different flooring types to perform different behaviours

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