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The effect of environment on the behaviour and welfare dairy cattle
Zetková, Mariana ; Chaloupková, Helena (advisor) ; Valníčková, Barbora (referee)
Behavior and welfare of dairy cattle is determined by many factors of its surroundings. Whether we consider the environment of it´s habitat or stockpeople work. The goal of this thesis is describe influence of the behavior, health and production.
In a stable, there are some important factors. One of them is a micro-climate. Cattle is very liable to body-heat stres, because of its not-so-good body heat draining. Another thing stockpeople should focus on is bedding. Wet or pouled bedding is not only uncomfortable, but it also can cause lactal glad and lower limb health problems. Limping and udder infection are very frequent problem of cattle breeding.
In matter of cattle´s social behaviour, we must consider a it´s sense for hierarchy. Make groups by cattle´s age, size, or lactal phase and by other features. Enouhg space for feeding and a rest, to pretend any mutual aggressive interaction thus avoid stres or injuries of cattle.
Although a care and an attitude of stockpeople is being underetimated in many cases, they play a big role in animal breeding. The behaviour of stockpeople, for example, has an influence on animal´s feelings about people. If a milker is calm and has positive attitude, cows are more accessible and calmer while are giving milk. That affects milk production and cow´s mood as well.
A frequent topic to debate is prenatal stres of dairy cows. It is cause of taking calves away from their cow mother. However, opinions on this theme aren´t united and this topic is, as is stated at the beginnig of this paragraph, full of contradiction.
If we want to provide comfort to dairy cows, the main target is to provide them a proper place to sleep in, rest in, feeding, to care about their bodies, etc. That also means, that we should provide them the oportunity to natural behaviour and treat them as living beings, that percieve stimulus from their environment.
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