Relationship between daily activities duration and oestrus in dairy cows over the year

Marek Vrhel,Luděk Stádník,Jan Pytlík,Jaromír Ducháček,Mojmír Vacek,Radim Codl

doi:10.2754/avb202291010011

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the amounts of time that selected crossbreeds of Holstein (H), Red-Holstein (R), and Czech Fleckvieh (C) cattle spent chewing, eating, being physically active using a Vitalimetr 5P neck responder during the period around oestrus in all seasons of the year. Oestrus and the days preceding it greatly affected the times of events of increased activity, eating, and rumination. Eating and chewing times were longest for H cows, at 51–74%, and shortest for C cows, at > 88%. The number of events of increased activity was highest (533.4 ± 8.94 events, P < 0.01) for cows R 51–74%. Oestrus in dairy cows was manifested by decreases in the times of chewing and eating and the frequency of events of increased activity. Feeding time decreased by 8.01 min from the second day before oestrus to the day of oestrus. Rumination time also decreased from the second day before oestrus to the day of oestrus. Rumination time on the day of oestrus decreased by an average of 61.80 min but increased the next day by 33.39 min. In contrast, events of increased activity were highest on the day of oestrus (623 ± 7.68 events). Our findings on differences between breeds, lactation order, and months may contribute to the improvement of algorithms for detecting oestrus, thereby improving the economic status of farms.

Highlights

The aim of this study was to evaluate the amounts of time that selected crossbreeds of Holstein (H), Red-Holstein (R), and Czech Fleckvieh (C) cattle spent chewing, eating, being physically active using a Vitalimetr 5P neck responder during the period around oestrus in all seasons of the year
The activity of dairy cows changes during oestrus, with physical activity increasing at the expense of rumination and feeding times (Reith et al 2014)
The following average values were determined for the period around oestrus: eating time, 282.27 min; rumination time, 462.94 min; and 495 events of increased activity

Summary

Introduction

The aim of this study was to evaluate the amounts of time that selected crossbreeds of Holstein (H), Red-Holstein (R), and Czech Fleckvieh (C) cattle spent chewing, eating, being physically active using a Vitalimetr 5P neck responder during the period around oestrus in all seasons of the year. Oestrus and the days preceding it greatly affected the times of events of increased activity, eating, and rumination. Oestrus in dairy cows was manifested by decreases in the times of chewing and eating and the frequency of events of increased activity. Rumination time on the day of oestrus decreased by an average of 61.80 min but increased the day by 33.39 min. The activity of dairy cows changes during oestrus, with physical activity increasing at the expense of rumination and feeding times (Reith et al 2014). Decreases in rumination and feeding times or an increase in physical activity may be used to predict oestrus in dairy cows. The Vitalimetr 5P neck responder can detect changes in dairy cows in chewing, eating, and activity, providing a tool for monitoring oestrus and other indicators to help the management of farms.

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