Quantitative and Qualitative Assessment of Cow Comfort After Facility Changes on Dairy Farms
Abstract
A cow comfort assessment was conducted on 60 Holstein-Friesian cows per farm on three categories of farms: 15 that changed the freestall area (CHANGE) after a previous assessment; 15 that did not change the freestall area (NOCHANGE) after a previous assessment; and 14 that were never evaluated (NEW). The CHANGE group had decreased lameness prevalence and increased lying time compared to the NOCHANGE group, the NEW group, and data from previous cow comfort assessments. Additionally, farmers in CHANGE and NOCHANGE groups more frequently identified the importance of risk factors associated with cow comfort than in their previous assessment. In conclusion, the CHANGE group improved in outcome measures of cow comfort, and farms in both CHANGE and NOCHANGE groups became more aware of risk factors regarding cow comfort than during a previous assessment.
Description
Keywords
Veterinary Science
Citation
Morabito, E. A. (2017). Quantitative and Qualitative Assessment of Cow Comfort After Facility Changes on Dairy Farms (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/27504