Cow behaviour reveals all about health and welfare

It sounds almost too simple to be true, by watching cow behaviour dairy farmers can make small management changes that may boost production by up to 1000 litres a year. This is what a group of vets in the Netherlands have discovered – and they are now training vets and farmers in the CowSignals initiative worldwide.

Joep Driessen, a member of the Vetvice group, says the principle of CowSignals is simple – watch your cows’ behaviour closely, and take the necessary action to make their lives as happy and stress-free as possible.

Cows have six basic needs called the six freedoms of the pasture, says Mr Driessen. “Cows need a high amount of feed, water, light, air, space and rest. If you give it to them, they have no reason to become ill any more.”

In their natural environment cows have all of these needs fulfilled, so farmers should compare their behaviour indoors with that exhibited in the pasture, and note the differences. “Bring these freedoms into the barn and you get a very disease resistant management.”

One of the key acts farmers should watch for are cows that are waiting – happy cows are always eating, drinking, resting, walking or socialising. A cow waiting indicates a problem. If it is waiting in its cubicle it is likely the cubicle is too short, the cow is lame, or there is not enough lunge space – something is preventing it from lying down. Waiting in the corridor indicates the cow is afraid of slipping or of being bullied by another cow – space is the issue.

One of the most problematic areas is waiting time around milking, says Mr Driessen. “This is a real issue in the UK. Cows frequently have to wait for up to three hours to be milked, twice a day, that is six hours away from food and resting time.

“The longest time cows should have to wait to be milked is one hour, so farmers should split their herds into smaller milking groups – it may take more labour, but will improve yields and reduce lameness,” he says.

Every hour of extra lying time boosts milk yields by one litre a day. Investing in one comfortable cubicle a cow can boost lying time from nine hours to 14 hours and has direct results.

Cubicles should be bedded with sand or deep straw, with 3.5m of head space and a low rounded brisket locator. Cows should have one feeding place each, with easy access and ad-lib feed, he adds. Water and water tanks should be clean and accessible, with one tank or two high-pressure drinkers for every 20 cows.

Spacious sheds – including passages, feeding areas and cubicles – with safe walking surfaces not only improves resting time, but also prevent injuries and lameness. “A quarter of cows in Europe are lame – if you can prevent lameness and wounds you will get one extra year of life from your cows.”

Good lighting and ventilation are also essential, says Mr Driessen. By providing 16 hours at 200 lux, and eight at less than 50 lux, the cows eat more and rest better. Open barn sides with flexible walls provide far better ventilation than solid walls, improving cow health and feed intake.

“Observation is not just about what you can see, it’s about what you can hear – coughing, sliding hooves or slow-filling drinkers – and what you can smell if your coat smells when you come out of the building the ventilation is not good enough.

“Changes don’t have to be costly either – grinding the floor, moving cubicle pipes and opening side walls are the most common improvements made,” he adds.