Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, N1G 2W1, Canada.
Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, N1G 2W1, Canada.
J Dairy Sci. 2018 Apr;101(4):3367-3373. doi: 10.3168/jds.2017-13743. Epub 2018 Feb 4.
Identification of the associations of cow feeding behavior with productivity is important for supporting recommendations of strategies that optimize milk yield and composition. The objective of this study was to identify associations between measures of feeding behavior and milk production using data collated from studies of the feeding behavior of lactating dairy cows. A database containing behavior and production data for 132 dairy cow-week observations (mean of 7 d of consecutive data per cow) was assembled from 5 studies. Cows averaged (mean ± standard deviation) 1.8 ± 0.9 lactations, 108.4 ± 42.7 d in milk, and 654.6 ± 71.4 kg of body weight during each observation week. Production data included dry matter intake (27.0 ± 3.1 kg/d), milk yield (43.0 ± 7.0 kg/d), milk fat content (3.60 ± 0.49%), and milk protein content (3.05 ± 0.25%). Behavioral data included feeding time (230.4 ± 35.5 min/d), feeding rate (0.13 ± 0.03 kg/min), meal frequency (9.0 ± 2.0 meals/d), meal size (3.2 ± 0.9 kg/meal), daily mealtime (279.6 ± 51.7 min/d), and rumination time (516.0 ± 90.7 min/d). Data were analyzed in multivariable mixed-effect regression models to identify which behavioral variables, when accounting for other cow-level factors (days in milk, parity, and body weight) and dietary characteristics (forage level, nutrient content, and particle distribution), were associated with measures of production. Dry matter intake was associated with feeding time (+0.02 kg/min) and tended to be associated with rumination time (+0.003 kg/min) and meal frequency (+0.2 kg/meal). Similarly, milk yield was associated with feeding time (+0.03 kg/min) and rumination time (+0.02 kg/min), and tended to be associated with meal frequency (+0.3 kg/meal). Milk fat yield was associated with meal frequency (+0.02 kg/meal). Overall, our results suggest that milk yield and component production may be improved in situations where cows are able to increase their time spent feeding, in more frequent meals, and time spent ruminating.
确定奶牛的喂养行为与产奶量之间的关联对于支持优化产奶量和组成的策略非常重要。本研究的目的是使用从泌乳奶牛喂养行为研究中收集的数据来确定喂养行为和产奶量之间的关联。从 5 项研究中收集了包含 132 个奶牛周观察值（每个奶牛连续 7 天的数据平均值）的行为和生产数据的数据库。奶牛在每个观察周的平均（平均值±标准偏差）泌乳次数为 1.8±0.9 次，泌乳天数为 108.4±42.7 天，体重为 654.6±71.4kg。生产数据包括干物质摄入量（27.0±3.1kg/d）、产奶量（43.0±7.0kg/d）、乳脂含量（3.60±0.49%）和乳蛋白含量（3.05±0.25%）。行为数据包括采食时间（230.4±35.5min/d）、采食速度（0.13±0.03kg/min）、采食频率（9.0±2.0 次/d）、采食次数（3.2±0.9kg/次）、每日采食时间（279.6±51.7min/d）和反刍时间（516.0±90.7min/d）。使用多变量混合效应回归模型分析数据，以确定在考虑其他奶牛水平因素（泌乳天数、胎次和体重）和饮食特征（粗饲料水平、营养成分和颗粒分布）时，哪些行为变量与产奶量相关。干物质采食量与采食时间（+0.02kg/min）相关，并且与反刍时间（+0.003kg/min）和采食频率（+0.2kg/次）相关。同样，产奶量与采食时间（+0.03kg/min）和反刍时间（+0.02kg/min）相关，并且与采食频率（+0.3kg/次）相关。乳脂产量与采食频率（+0.02kg/次）相关。总体而言，我们的结果表明，在奶牛增加采食时间、增加采食频率和反刍时间的情况下，产奶量和组成成分可能会得到提高。
