• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.759-769
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• 2021

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of stocking density on the behavior, productivity, and metabolism of periparturient Holstein cows as well as calf performance. Methods: A total of 48 periparturient cows were randomly assigned into three groups at 28 days (±3 days) before their expected calving date. The stocking densities of the groups, relative to the standard cubicle and feed bunk number, were i) 80% (13 cows), ii) 100% (16 cows), and iii) 120% (19 cows). Lying and rumination behavior was recorded using electronic data loggers and HR-Tags from d -21 ("d-" means days before calving) until the calving date, d 0. Lying time was assessed to determine the diurnal total hours spent lying per day. Rumination time was averaged in 2 hours interval periods over 24 hours during the experimental period. Results: Cows in the 80% group spent more time lying and ruminating between d -21 and d -7 and tended to ruminate more between d -14 and d 0. Calcium levels tended to be higher for cows in the 80% group, no other observable differences were found in monitored blood parameters. Moreover, 3.5% fat corrected milk and energy corrected milk yields were higher in 80% group in the first month of lactation. No other observable differences were found in the yield and composition of colostrum and milk in the first 10 months of lactation. The growth and performance of calves in the first week of life was not affected by stocking density of the dams. Conclusion: We concluded that lower stocking density may increase lying and ruminating behavior of prepartum Holstein cows. However, this did not translate into improved productivity and metabolism.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.11
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• pp.136-143
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• 2019

This study investigated the effects of environmental temperature and humidity on the physiological indicators such as respiratory rate, rectal temperature, and rumination time in cows. Twenty lactating Holstein cows were used for this study. The temperature/humidity index, which can be measured by the temperature and humidity of barns, was divided into three stages to distinguish the heat stress level of cows. The temperature and humidity indexes of each stage were classified into 70 ~ 75 for T1, 76 ~ 81 for T2, and 82 ~ 87 for T3, respectively. The respiratory rates per minute were 58.60 at T1, 66.12 at T2, and 84.05 at T3, respectively (P < 0.05), and the average rectal temperatures (℃) of the cows were 38.41 in T1, 38.69 in T2 and 39.05 in T3, respectively (P < 0.05). The body surface temperatures (℃) were 36.41 in T1, 36.51 in T2, and 37.39 in T3, respectively. The rumination times (minutes/day) were 473.10 in T1, 454.76 in T2, and 399.60 in T3, respectively (P < 0.05). As global warming continues to damage the dairy industry, further research is needed to improve the welfare of dairy cows and reduce their heat stress.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.397-404
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• 2012

This study was carried out to investigate the effects of stocking density on eating and ruminating behavior of Hanwoo steers (Bos taurus coreanae) in the finishing period. A total of 30 finishing Hanwoo steers ($631.3{\pm}11.4$ kg, 25 months old) were allocated to one of four stocking density groups comprising 1, 2, 3, and 4 steers per 32 $m^2$ pen [G1 (32 $m^2$), G2 (16 $m^2$), G3 (10.7 $m^2$) and G4 (8 $m^2$), respectively] in triplicate. Eating, rumination behaviors, as well as dry matter intake of steers were measured, and the results were subjected to analysis of variance with stocking density as the main effect. The results of eating behaviors over 48 hours are summarized as follows: Total intake was significantly (p<0.01) higher in G1, G2, and G3 compared to G4. Eating time was not different among the treatments, whereas ruminating time increased in the order of G1 > G2 > G3 > G4 (p<0.01). However, resting time and chewing time (sum of eating and ruminating) were not significantly different among the treatments. Number of boluses and number of total chews were highest in G1 (p<0.01), whereas number of chews per bolus was highest in G3 (p<0.01). Ruminating time per bolus as well as number of boluses per minute was not significantly different among the treatments. Number of defecations was higher in G1 and G2 animals compared to G3 and G4 animals (p<0.01). However, stocking density had no effect on drinking or urination. In conclusion, increasing stocking density (i.e. G4) per pen decreased voluntary intake, ruminating time, and total chewing number in the finishing period of Hanwoo steers. However, care must be taken in discussing stocking density in the present study as the space allowance per animal was satisfactory to meet the current animal welfare regulation in Korea and in Europe, although the beef production system in Korea is more intensive than in Europe.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.810-817
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• 2023

Objective: The aim was to compare the behavioral response to full separation of cows and calves maintained together for 100 days or 24 h. Methods: Twelve Holstein-Friesian cow-calf pairs were enrolled into either treatment or industry groups (n = 6 cow-calf pairs/group). The treatment cows and calves were maintained on pasture together for 106±8.6 d and temporarily separated twice a day for milking. The Industry cows and their calves, were separated within 24 h postpartum. Triaxial accelerometer neck-mounted sensors were fitted to cows 3 weeks before separation to measure hourly rumination and activity. Before separation, cow and calf behavior was observed by scan sampling for 15 min. During the separation process, frequency of vocalizations and turn arounds were recorded. At separation, cows were moved to an observation pen where behavior was recorded for 3 d. A CCTV camera was used to record video footage of cows within the observation pens and behavior was documented from the videos in 15 min intervals across the 3 d. Results: Before separation, industry calves were more likely to be near their mother than Treatment calves. During the separation process, vocalization and turn around behavior was similar between groups. After full separation, treatment cows vocalized three times more than industry cows. However, the frequency of time spent close to barrier, standing, lying, walking, and eating were similar between industry and treatment cows. Treatment cows had greater rumination duration, and were more active, than industry cows. Conclusion: These findings suggest a similar behavioral response to full calf separation and greater occurrence of vocalizations, from cows maintained in a long-term, pasture-based, cow-calf rearing system when ompared to cows separated within 24 h. However, further work is required to assess the impact of full separation on calf behavior.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.745-750
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• 2002

The effects of recording interval (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 30 min) on the estimation of some grazing behavior variables in beef cows and calves (<4 months old) were investigated in a daytime grazing (7 h) system utilizing a bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flugge) pasture (a 1.1 ha paddock and a 0.4 ha resting area). Recording intervals of 10-30 min tended to underestimate the time spent grazing and ruminating and overestimate the time spent resting by animals, whereas intervals of 1-5 min resulted in almost constant estimates. In all grazing activities, the errors of estimation became larger when the recording interval exceeded 5 min. The accuracy of estimation was higher for grazing time>rumination time>resting time. An increase in recording interval always decreased estimates of the distance walked by animals. It was concluded that recording intervals of 1-5 min provide reliable estimates of the time spent grazing, ruminating and resting. It was also concluded that positioning of animals at 1 min intervals may provide estimates of walking distance with acceptable bias toward underestimation.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.403-410
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• 2002

This study was performed to investigate the general prepartum behavioral ethogram of Bos taurus coreanae (Hanwoo cow). In this study, 4 pregnant cows were placed in a separate area. We recorded the behaviors of the cows using time lapse VCR for 48 hours and analyzed behaviors with the scan point sampling method. We observed maintenance behaviors, social behaviors and ingestion behaviors. During the observation period, the time budgets of behaviors in order of frequency were LD(lying down, 38.2%), ST(standing, 24.7%), EA(eating, 10.7%), WA(walking, 7.2%), LR(lying down rumination, 5.6%), SR(standing rumination, 3.3%), TW(tail wagging, 3.1%) and SG(self grooming, 1.8%). The time budgets of the other behaviors such as PG(pairwise grooming), FC(fly catching) were negligible (<1%).

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.115-122
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• 2004

This study was performed to investigate the behavioral characteristics of Hanwoo(Bos taurus coreanae) cows and their calves. Four cows and their calves were placed in pens. The behaviors of each cow and calf were recorded using a time lapse VCR from 07:00 h to 18:00 h for 6 days and were analyzed using the scan point sampling method. The cow's behaviors in order of frequency were LD(lying down, 25%), ST(standing, 23%), EA(eating, 13%), LR(lying down rumination, 10%) and SR(standing rumination, 7%). The cows spent less than 3% of their time PG(pairwise grooming) and SF(snifting). The calves mainly showed LD(52%), ST(28%), LF (lying flat, 4%), EA(3%) and WA(walking, 3%). The calves spent less than 2% of their time SF(sniffing) and SUK(suckling), The behavioral patterns of cows and their calves at 07:00 h, 12:00 h and 18:00 h were different, especially in ST and LD.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.267-270
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• 1996

Experiments were conducted to study the effects of a dark (06:00-12:00), light (12:00-18:00), dark (18:00-24:00), and light (00:00-06:00) cycle on the ruminating behavior of five fasting female goats. Rumination time and number of boli were not different in the dark and light periods of the fed state or in the second and third days of fasting. Ruminating time and number of boli increased in the dark (06:00-12:00) period compared to the light (12:00-18:00) period during the first day of fasting. Ruminating time was higher after the first day of fasting than the fed state, and decreased substantially after the first day of fasting than the fed state, and decreased substantially after the second and third days of fasting compared to the fed state or the first day of fasting. Number of boli/day was not different among the fed state, the second and third days of fasting but was higher after the first day fasting compared to the fed state.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.944-951
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• 2024

Objective: Parturition is crucial for dams, their calves, and cow managers. The prediction of calving time, which assists cow managers to decide on the relocation of cows to maternity pens and necessity of human supervision, is a pivotal aspect of livestock farming. However, existing methods of predicting calving time in dairy cows based on hormonal changes and clinical symptoms are time-consuming and yield unreliable predictions. Accordingly, we investigated whether heart rate variability (HRV) which is a non-invasive assessment of autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity and behavior during the prepartum period would be useful for predicting calving time in dairy cows. Methods: Eight pregnant cows were surveilled under electrocardiogram and video recordings for HRV and behavioral analyses, respectively. HRV parameters in time and frequency domains were evaluated. A 24-h time budget was calculated for each of six types of behavior (standing and lying with or without rumination, sleeping, and eating). Results: Heart rate on calving day is considerably higher than those recorded on the days preceding calving. Low frequency power declined, whereas high frequency power escalated on the calving day compared to the period between 24 and 48 h before calving. The time budget for ruminating while lying decreased and that while standing increased markedly on the calving day compared to those allocated on the preceding days; nonetheless, the total time budget for ruminating did not differ during the prepartum period. Conclusion: We elucidated the ANS activity and behavioral profiles during prepartum period. Our results confirm that HRV parameters and behavior are useful for predicting calving time, and interestingly indicate that the time budget for ruminating while standing (or lying) may serve as a valuable predictor of calving. Collectively, our findings lay the foundation for future investigations to determine other potential predictors and formulate an algorithm for predicting calving time.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.23 no.11
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• pp.1469-1475
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• 2010

A study was conducted to investigate the effects of methods of feeding a total mixed ration (TMR) on behavior patterns of growing Hanwoo steers. A total of 15 growing steers (13 months old) were assigned to the control (fed roughage and concentrate mix separately), TMR1 (fed restricted TMR), and TMR2 (fed TMR ad libitum) groups. Individual behaviors of steers were observed for 48 hours. Compared with the control, feeding restricted TMR (TMR1) resulted in short eating time, long ruminating time, short chewing time, high frequencies of defecation, urination, and drinking of water, great numbers of boluses and chews, long ruminating time per bolus, low feed value index, high eating and chewing efficiencies (p<0.05). Compared with feeding restricted TMR (TMR1), feeding TMR ad libitum (TMR2) resulted in 1.2 kg more daily feed DM intake, long eating and chewing times, short resting time, great frequencies of defecation, urination and drinking of water, more numbers of boluses and chews, long ruminating time per bolus, low feed value index, low eating and high ruminating efficiencies (p<0.05) and similar chewing efficiency (p>0.05). Considering all these results, the wet TMR feeding system induced generally more desirable eating and ruminating behaviors of growing Hanwoo steers, but made the barn floor wetter due to more defecation and urination.