Nizzi Ellynn, Foris Borbala, Weary Daniel M, Boudon Anne, von Keyserlingk Marina A G
Animal Welfare Program, Faculty of Land and Food Systems, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
PEGASE, INRAE, Institut Agro, Saint-Gilles, France.
JDS Commun. 2024 Sep 2;6(1):104-109. doi: 10.3168/jdsc.2024-0585. eCollection 2025 Jan.
Water is an essential resource for dairy cows, and its consumption is closely linked to feed intake. Social competition can lead to changes in drinking behavior, especially for subordinate cows. We studied how changes in stocking density at the feeder (1 or 2 cows per feeder), and drinker (6 or 12 cows per drinker) and a temporal feed restriction (14- or 24-h access) affects drinking in 4 groups of 6 cows each, following a Latin square design. We recorded drinking behavior within each group of 6 focal cows, and 2 were identified as most dominant, 2 as most subordinate, and the 2 others as intermediate, based on success in agonistic interactions at the drinker. Cows drank less water when feed availability was restricted (on average 5.3 ± 3.4 [SE] L/d less; 4.5% average difference). Subordinate cows also spent less time drinking when overstocked (9.3 ± 6.7 min/d less; 24.3% difference). During treatments with more competition, cows were more likely to be observed drinking in the hours after the peak in drinking observed for the control treatment. A high level of competition among group-housed animals is considered a welfare problem and can lead to injuries and reduced production. Our findings provide evidence that feed restriction and higher stocking density of cows at the drinker and feeders changes the drinking behavior of cows, with subordinate animals experiencing more pronounced effects.
水是奶牛的一种必需资源，其消耗量与采食量密切相关。社会竞争会导致饮水行为发生变化，尤其是对处于从属地位的奶牛而言。我们采用拉丁方设计，研究了采食器处饲养密度的变化（每个采食器1头或2头奶牛）、饮水器处饲养密度的变化（每个饮水器6头或12头奶牛）以及限时采食（14小时或24小时采食时间）对4组奶牛（每组6头）饮水行为的影响。我们记录了每组6头焦点奶牛的饮水行为，并根据在饮水器处争斗互动的胜负情况，将其中2头确定为最具优势的奶牛，2头确定为最从属的奶牛，另外2头为中间地位的奶牛。当饲料供应受到限制时，奶牛的饮水量减少（平均每天少5.3±3.4[标准误]升；平均差异为4.5%）。当过度拥挤时，从属奶牛饮水的时间也会减少（每天少9.3±6.7分钟；差异为24.3%）。在竞争更激烈的处理过程中，与对照处理相比，在观察到的饮水高峰期过后的几个小时内，更有可能观察到奶牛在饮水。群体饲养动物之间的高度竞争被认为是一个福利问题，会导致受伤和产量下降。我们的研究结果表明，饲料限制以及奶牛在饮水器和采食器处更高的饲养密度会改变奶牛的饮水行为，从属动物受到的影响更为明显。
