Animal Welfare Program, Faculty of Land and Food Systems, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
J Dairy Sci. 2012 Nov;95(11):6409-15. doi: 10.3168/jds.2011-5208. Epub 2012 Sep 7.
Providing cattle with access to pasture has been shown to yield benefits, including access to more space, fewer agonistic interactions, better air quality, and the ability to perform a greater range of normal behaviors. Preference for pasture appears to depend on several parameters, including weather conditions and availability of shade. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the preference for pasture versus inside a freestall barn with variable stocking densities at the stalls. We also investigated the effect of temperature-humidity index (THI) and precipitation on this preference. Overall, cows spent on average 13.7±2.6 h/d (mean ± SD) on pasture (ranging from 7.2 to 18.0 h/d across days); at night (between 2000 and 0600 h) cows spent the majority of their time (78.5±27.8%) on pasture. Stall availability had no effect on time spent outside, but time spent on pasture decreased with increasing THI during the day and declined during nights with more rainfall. Stall usage changed depending on stall availability; standing with 2 and 4 feet in the stall and lying time indoors decreased with decreasing stall availability. Indoor lying time also increased with higher THI and more precipitation. In conclusion, cows preferred to be outside at night; they were much more likely to remain indoors during the day, even when overstocked.
为牛提供牧场被证明是有益的，包括更多的空间、减少争斗、更好的空气质量和能够表现出更大范围的正常行为。对牧场的偏好似乎取决于几个参数，包括天气条件和遮荫的可用性。本研究的主要目的是评估在不同畜栏密度的自由放养畜栏内与牧场之间的偏好。我们还研究了温度-湿度指数（THI）和降水对这种偏好的影响。总体而言，奶牛平均每天在牧场上花费 13.7±2.6 小时（每天的时间范围为 7.2 到 18.0 小时）；在夜间（2000 点到 0600 点之间），奶牛大部分时间（78.5±27.8%）都在牧场上。畜栏的可用性对场外时间没有影响，但随着白天 THI 的增加，奶牛在牧场上的时间减少，夜间降雨量增加，奶牛在牧场上的时间也减少。畜栏的使用取决于畜栏的可用性；在畜栏中站立和躺着的时间随着畜栏的减少而减少。随着 THI 升高和降雨量增加，室内躺着的时间也会增加。总之，奶牛更喜欢夜间在户外；即使过度拥挤，它们白天也更有可能留在室内。
