Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa.
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa.
Domest Anim Endocrinol. 2023 Jan;82:106767. doi: 10.1016/j.domaniend.2022.106767. Epub 2022 Sep 16.
Health and welfare are inextricably linked within efficient and sustainable dairy production, and several potential risk factors may affect the well-being of dairy cows, including chronic stress. Although auditory stimuli could be used as a tool to decrease the potential stress that cows might experience, it is seldom applied to livestock production systems due to the perception that enrichment is an unnecessary expense. This study aimed to explore the effect of auditory stimuli as a form of enrichment in a Holstein herd by monitoring fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (fGCM) concentrations (a non-invasive, stress-associated biomarker). Cow activity level and milk yield were also measured. Nine cows in their second and third lactation were divided into 3 groups, using a Latin Square experimental design, exposing each cow group to each of the 3 treatments, namely constant exposure (CE), limited exposure (LE), and no exposure (NE) to classical music. FGCMs were quantified using a group-specific enzyme immunoassay detecting 11,17-dioxoandrostanes. Compared to LE and NE animals, cows exposed to constant music had significantly lower fGCM concentrations (P = 0.012), as well as higher milk yields (P < 0.0001) and lowered activity levels during the morning (P = 0.005) and the evening activity period (P = 0.048). These findings indicate that auditory stimuli in the form of classical music may have a positive effect on the welfare of cows as well as milk yield, which hold economic benefits for the producer and potentially reduces the number of cows needed for profitable production.
在高效和可持续的奶牛生产中，健康和福利是紧密相连的，有几个潜在的风险因素可能会影响奶牛的福祉，包括慢性压力。虽然听觉刺激可以作为一种减少奶牛可能经历的潜在压力的工具，但由于人们认为丰富化是一种不必要的花费，因此很少将其应用于畜牧业生产系统。本研究旨在通过监测粪便皮质醇代谢物（fGCM）浓度（一种非侵入性的应激相关生物标志物）来探讨听觉刺激作为一种丰容形式对荷斯坦牛群的影响。还测量了奶牛的活动水平和产奶量。使用拉丁方实验设计将 9 头处于第二和第三泌乳期的奶牛分为 3 组，每组奶牛暴露于 3 种处理中的 1 种，即古典音乐的持续暴露（CE）、有限暴露（LE）和无暴露（NE）。使用组特异性酶免疫测定法检测 11,17-二氧雄甾烷来定量 fGCM。与 LE 和 NE 动物相比，持续暴露于音乐的奶牛的 fGCM 浓度显著降低（P=0.012），产奶量更高（P<0.0001），且在早上（P=0.005）和晚上活动期间（P=0.048）的活动水平降低。这些发现表明，以古典音乐形式的听觉刺激可能对奶牛的福利和产奶量产生积极影响，这对生产者具有经济利益，并可能减少盈利生产所需的奶牛数量。
