Smid Anne-Marieke C, Boone Vanessa, Jarbeau Melanie, Lombard Jason, Barkema Herman W
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada T2N 4N1.
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada T2N 4N1.
J Dairy Sci. 2023 Nov;106(11):7711-7724. doi: 10.3168/jds.2023-23344. Epub 2023 Aug 23.
Dairy cows are highly motivated to access pasture and have a partial preference for alternative forms of outdoor access (e.g., deep-bedded outdoor sand or wood-chip packs). In addition, Canadians value the provision of outdoor access to dairy cows as they perceive it as important for good cow welfare. In contrast to Europe, Oceania, and the United States, little data exist on the use of outdoor access on Canadian dairy farms. Therefore, our objective was to assess current outdoor access practices for dairy cows in Canada. An online questionnaire was used to determine housing and outdoor access practices for lactating cows, dry cows, pregnant heifers, and weaned, nonpregnant heifers on Canadian dairy farms. The questionnaire was distributed by the 10 provincial milk boards between November 2020 and August 2021, resulting in an 8.9% response rate (n = 903 completed questionnaires). In total, 75% (n = 675) of respondents provided some form of outdoor access to at least 1 cattle class on their farm. Pasture was the most frequently used form of outdoor access for all cattle classes. Based on a weighted average, a total of 29% and 48% of Canadian dairy farms provided lactating and dry cows, respectively, access to pasture; for youngstock, these numbers were 48% and 27% for pregnant heifers and weaned, nonpregnant heifers, respectively. Herd size (for each cow class), indoor housing system, and region were all associated with the provision of pasture. Farms with larger lactating herds less often provided access to pasture; larger herd sizes in terms of weaned, nonpregnant heifers, pregnant heifers, and dry cows were also associated with a lower likelihood of access to pasture. Farms using indoor bedded pack housing for their lactating cows more often provided pasture to this cattle class than farms with freestall or tiestall housing; this likelihood did not differ between farms with tie or freestall housing for this cattle class. Dry cows or pregnant heifers housed in a tiestall were more often provided pasture than freestall-housed dry cows or pregnant heifers. Housing type for weaned, nonpregnant heifers was not associated with the likelihood of pasture provision. Farms in British Columbia or on Canada's East Coast (i.e., Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island) more often provided lactating cows pasture compared with farms in other regions. For the other 3 cattle classes, farms on the East Coast of Canada more often provided pasture than farms in other parts of Canada. These results will inform future decisions regarding outdoor access for Canadian dairy cattle and may also aid in identifying future areas of research. For example, our results may aid in designing housing systems that facilitate outdoor access in larger herds and in areas that are subject to more extreme weather conditions.
奶牛有很高的积极性去进入牧场，并且对其他形式的户外空间（如铺垫深厚的户外沙地或木屑区域）有一定偏好。此外，加拿大人重视为奶牛提供户外空间，因为他们认为这对奶牛的良好福利很重要。与欧洲、大洋洲和美国不同，关于加拿大奶牛场户外空间使用情况的数据很少。因此，我们的目标是评估加拿大奶牛目前的户外空间使用情况。通过在线问卷来确定加拿大奶牛场中泌乳奶牛、干奶牛、怀孕小母牛以及断奶未怀孕小母牛的饲养和户外空间使用情况。该问卷在2020年11月至2021年8月期间由10个省级牛奶委员会分发，回复率为8.9%（n = 903份完整问卷）。总体而言，75%（n = 675）的受访者在其农场为至少一个牛群类别提供了某种形式的户外空间。牧场是所有牛群类别最常使用的户外空间形式。基于加权平均值，分别有29%和48%的加拿大奶牛场为泌乳奶牛和干奶牛提供了进入牧场的机会；对于幼畜，怀孕小母牛和断奶未怀孕小母牛的这一比例分别为48%和27%。牛群规模（针对每个奶牛类别）、室内饲养系统和地区都与牧场的提供情况相关。泌乳牛群规模较大的农场提供牧场的频率较低；断奶未怀孕小母牛、怀孕小母牛和干奶牛的较大牛群规模也与进入牧场的可能性较低相关。为泌乳奶牛采用室内铺垫区域饲养的农场比采用散栏或栓系饲养的农场更常为该牛群类别提供牧场；对于该牛群类别，采用栓系或散栏饲养的农场之间这种可能性没有差异。与散栏饲养的干奶牛或怀孕小母牛相比，栓系饲养的干奶牛或怀孕小母牛更常被提供牧场。断奶未怀孕小母牛的饲养类型与提供牧场的可能性无关。与其他地区的农场相比，不列颠哥伦比亚省或加拿大东海岸（即新斯科舍省、新不伦瑞克省和爱德华王子岛）的农场更常为泌乳奶牛提供牧场。对于其他三个牛群类别，加拿大东海岸的农场比加拿大其他地区的农场更常提供牧场。这些结果将为加拿大奶牛户外空间使用的未来决策提供参考，也可能有助于确定未来的研究领域。例如，我们的结果可能有助于设计便于大型牛群以及在气候条件更极端地区的奶牛进入户外空间的饲养系统。
