Cow Welfare: Find out what your cows need to be healthy and productive
How?can you?tell?if your?cow’s?welfare?is good or bad??And why?is?prioritizing?it crucial?to?the efficiency of?your farm??Let’s find out in this Blog series!?
‘Cows?need?to be comfortable and free from stress?so that they can?as healthy and productive as possible.’?
This is what?Colin Reece, Global Farm Solutions Market Support Director,?says?about the importance of?caring?for your cows?and ensuring their?well-being.??In these?Blog episodes,?we will investigate?what?this?cornerstone for efficiency?is,?the?factors affecting?it, and how?you can achieve it through useful?dairy herd improvements.?
What happens if you choose to ignore it??To fully convey the aftermath of?poor?cow?welfare, we will also?cover?the main issues?that come with making bad decisions?and their consequences on your farm’s efficiency and profitability.?
Animal welfare is made up of Five Freedoms?
When asked to define animal welfare, Colin refers to the?‘Five basic freedoms’, introduced by the Farm Animal Welfare Council in 2009,?which are?considered the?foundational principles?for?keeping cows?healthy and stress-free.?
If you are?wondering what they are, here is an?overview:?
The red flags of?poor?cow welfare?
At this point,?we can say that?cow welfare?is?the way cattle?respond?to a?combination of several factors related to the environment and farm management practices.?So,?the better they?are, the?more?relaxed?the?animals?will be and, as a result, this?will?enable them to fulfil?their?performance?potential.?
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On the other hand, if herd well-being is low?or poor, animals will give clear signs of restlessness?and will?be likely to suffer from?health issues with?negative?effects on efficiency.??
When talking about the main indicators of?poor?cow welfare, Colin states:?
‘When you enter a barn, the first aspect to focus on is the?number of cows standing?that are?not feeding or?laying down. The higher it is, the worse their well-being.??It?may?indicate that?the number?of?cubicles?is?not?sufficient?or?that they?are not comfortable?enough?and, if animals do not spend enough time lying down, they?may?suffer from lameness. This painful?condition?prevents them from eating,?resulting in?a decrease in milk production and an increase in?treatment costs.?
Moreover,?it can also be a sign of issues with?rumination and feeding. In fact,?cows perform well in these respects when?most of the herd is eating or lying?down.?Another indicator?of?issues with feeding?are?cows’?tails: if many of them are?swishing?their?tails,?it?could reflect poor rumen health,?and?excessive tail?movement can be?caused?by?irritation?in the?hindgut.?
To?determine?whether?cows are scared or stressed,?try getting closer to them: if they run away, it is a clear sign of?a?stressed environment,?which?may?cause a decrease in milk production.?In fact,?cows are?fundamentally?inquisitive animals and?normally?some cows will want to come?up?to you?to?find out who and what you are.’?
So?far,?thanks to Colin’s advice,?we have?gone?over?the?crucial?Freedoms you should ensure?for?your cows?in order to?have?healthier,?better-yielding?animals,?and?we?also?mentioned some of the?main indicators of?poor?cow?welfare.?
But there?is still so much to?say: make sure?you don’t?miss our next Blog episode!?
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