Cattle Housing Research Articles

ANALYSIS OF THE ROLE OF BUMDes (Village Owned Enterprises) IN VILLAGE COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT (Case Study of BUMDes Makmu Beusaree Lambro Deyah Village, Kuta Baro District, Aceh Besar District)

The role of BUMDes has a positive impact on communities and villages in terms of improving the economy and community welfare by establishing several business units, namely cattle fattening, catfish farming, house rental, terraces, and shop houses. However, the presence of BUMDes Makmu Beusaree has not played a role in increasing people's income, employment, and reducing poverty. But for community participation and contribution and increasing community knowledge and skills, BUMDes has played a role. The income of the community after joining BUMDes increased from the first category of Rp. 0-1,000,000 to the second category of Rp. 1,000,000-2,000,000, but BUMDes has not had a significant effect on increasing income because only people who join BUMDes experience an increase in income. The active workforce absorbed by BUMDes is 14 people. After the existence of BUMDes, the poverty rate decreased by 6%. The participation and contribution of the Lambro Deyah community to BUMDes is very good, as seen from the average percentage interval, which is 84.70% of the community participating and contributing to BUMDes. The increase in knowledge and skills carried out by BUMDes management is by providing training to BUMDes members and the community such as training and socialization of making animal feed from straw.

Characterizing Management Practices in High- and Average-Performing Smallholder Dairy Farms under Contrasting Environmental Stresses in Tanzania

This study characterized breeding, housing, feeding and health management practices in positive deviants and typical average performing smallholder dairy farms in Tanzania. The objective was to distinguish management practices that positive deviant farms deploy differently from typical farms to ameliorate local prevalent environmental stresses. In a sample of 794 farms, positive deviants were classified on criteria of consistently outperforming typical farms (p < 0.05) in five production performance indicators: energy balance ≥ 0.35 Mcal NEL/d; disease-incidence density ≤ 12.75 per 100 animal-years at risk; daily milk yield ≥ 6.32 L/cow/day; age at first calving ≤ 1153.28 days; and calving interval ≤ 633.68 days. The study was a two-factor nested research design, with farms nested within the production environment, classified into low- and high-stress. Compared to typical farms, positive deviant farms had larger landholdings, as well as larger herds comprising more high-grade cattle housed in better quality zero-grazing stall units with larger floor spacing per animal. Positive deviants spent more on purchased fodder and water, and sourced professional veterinary services (p < 0.001) more frequently. These results show that management practices distinguishing positive deviants from typical farms were cattle upgrading, provision of larger animal floor spacing and investing more in cattle housing, fodder, watering, and professional veterinary services. These distinguishing practices can be associated with amelioration of feed scarcity, heat load stresses, and disease infections, as well as better animal welfare in positive deviant farms. Nutritional quality of the diet was not analyzed, for which research is recommended to ascertain whether the investments made by positive deviants are in quality of feeds.

Comparison of Cattle Housing Systems Based on the Criterion of Damage to Barn Equipment and Construction Errors.

Simple SummaryAs a result of many years of use, dairy cattle barns are subject to gradual wear and degradation. Damage to technical equipment can be identified in many areas in the barn. These areas are used by dairy cattle, so it is important to recognize the problem of damage and the associated health risks for animals. The problem of damage to internal equipment (e.g., damage to the floor, partitions between lying stalls, feed ladders, drinking bowls) applies to both tie-stall and freestall barns, which are the most common in dairy farms. Such premises became an inspiration to compare barns with a tie-stall system, a freestall system and their individual areas (lying, feeding, milking and social) in terms of the amount of damage but also construction errors. Most damage per one barn was found in the feeding area of objects with a tie-stall housing system. More cow health problems (e.g., laminitis, hoof problems) were identified in the barns with the freestall housing system. Equipment failures and construction errors may disrupt efficient and animal-safe dairy production in the barn. The results of the research study may be an incentive for farmers to check the barns in terms of their technical wear.Dairy cattle housing systems are the subject of numerous studies, in which a strong emphasis is placed on the comparison of animal welfare, animal behavior, production indicators and labor inputs. Dairy cattle housing systems are linked to specific livestock buildings, which is a prerequisite for undertaking studies comparing barns and their technical equipment. The aim of the study was to compare barns with two types of housing systems, i.e., tie-stall and freestall, including the identification of technical wear in various areas used by animals. This objective was linked to the assessment of animal health problems in livestock facilities. The research covered 38 dairy farms, 19 of which kept cows in the tie-stall system and 19 in the freestall system. The barns in these farms were examined for technical damage and construction errors, assessed in four areas: lying, feeding, milking and social. The research results confirmed significant differences in the degree of damage to technical equipment in individual areas of barns and between barns with tie-stall and freestall housing systems. The conclusions indicate the need to link the degradation of barns and their technical equipment, as well as design errors with the evaluation of dairy cattle welfare in future studies.

Opportunities (and challenges) in dairy cattle cognition research: A key area needed to design future high welfare housing systems

The ability of dairy cattle to adapt to husbandry systems and management routines is crucial for ensuring higher welfare and efficient production. However, this ability can be compromised by our limited knowledge of their cognitive abilities, which may result in suboptimal husbandry and management standards. In this narrative review, we highlight three topics of cattle cognition research that are currently understudied, and yet key to developing future high welfare dairy cattle housing systems: 1) transmission of information from cow to calf, 2) mechanisms to attenuate fear, and 3) cognitive processes involved in the human-cattle relationship. We review the currently available literature on all three topics and highlight promising research areas from an animal husbandry point of view. We conclude that future studies should focus on elucidating what, and how much, calves learn from their dam during prolonged cow-calf contact in dairy cattle systems. Such information could constitute an important part of the discussion of whether to keep cows and calves together for a longer time after calving in the dairy industry. Fear in the cattle group might be lowered by the use of calm companions and future studies could uncover if attenuation of fear might even be induced by conditioning positive experiences of cattle with unrelated stimuli such as odours. Lastly, the human-cattle relationship might benefit from utilising the already established training regimes from other species, for example positive reinforcement training or target training, which may have the potential to decrease risk of injury during handling for both the cow and the handler.

Prediction of 24-h and 6-h Periods before Calving Using a Multimodal Tail-Attached Device Equipped with a Thermistor and 3-Axis Accelerometer through Supervised Machine Learning

Simple SummaryRoutine visual observation of signs of imminent calving, such as softening of ligaments around the tailhead and udder distension, is time-consuming, and the resulting calving predictions are relatively unreliable. To address this issue, we used a multimodal tail-attached device (tail sensor) and developed calving prediction models through supervised machine learning. The tail sensor is equipped with a thermistor and 3-axis accelerometer, and can monitor tail skin temperature, activity intensity, lying time, posture changes (standing to lying or vice versa), and tail raising behavior. Using the sensor data with a non-sensor-based data (days to the expected calving date), we developed calving prediction models for 24-h and 6-h periods before calving and evaluated their predictive ability under two distinct housing conditions, tethering (tie-stall) and untethering (free-stall and individual pen). Our results demonstrated that calving prediction models based on tail sensor data with supervised machine learning have the potential to achieve effective calving prediction, irrespective of the cattle housing conditions.In this study, we developed calving prediction models for 24-h and 6-h periods before calving using data on physiological (tail skin temperature) and behavioral (activity intensity, lying time, posture change, and tail raising) parameters obtained using a multimodal tail-attached device (tail sensor). The efficiencies of the models were validated under tethering (tie-stall) and untethering (free-stall and individual pen) conditions. Data were collected from 33 and 30 pregnant cattle under tethering and untethering conditions, respectively, from approximately 15 days before the expected calving date. Based on pre-calving changes, 40 features (8 physiological and 32 behavioral) were extracted from the sensor data, and one non-sensor-based feature (days to the expected calving date) was added to develop models using a support vector machine. Cross-validation showed that calving within the next 24 h under tethering and untethering conditions was predicted with a sensitivity of 97% and 93% and precision of 80% and 76%, respectively, while calving within the next 6 h was predicted with a sensitivity of 91% and 90% and precision of 88% and 90%, respectively. Calving prediction models based on the tail sensor data with supervised machine learning have the potential to achieve effective calving prediction, irrespective of the cattle housing conditions.

Estimating risk probabilities for sickness from behavioural patterns to identify health challenges in dairy cows with multivariate cumulative sum control charts

Dairy cattle housing is characterised by increasing herd sizes and the need for assisting technical tools to monitor the cows’ health. This study investigated the combination of logistic regression models with multivariate cumulative sum (MCUSUM) control charts in healthmonitoring of dairy cattle. Sensor information of 618 cows with 791 lactations (138 438 cow days), nine behavioural variables were included as parts of the behavioural patterns: physical activity (“neck activity”, “leg activity”, “walking duration”), resting (“lying duration”, “standing duration”, “transitions from lying to standing”) and feeding (“feeding duration”, “rumination duration”, “inactivity duration”) behaviour. For each of these behavioural patterns, a logistic regression model with the health status (sick vs not sick) as a dependent variable was designed after a variable selection (herd level) based on the herd dataset with 618 cows (618 lactations; 115 547 cow days), which included the variables of each behaviour pattern and the stage of lactation nested in the number of lactations as explanatory variables. The explanatory variables were added stepwise to the model, with the final model being selected with respect to the lowest values of Akaike’s and Bayes’ information criteria. Each model was then applied to a dataset with 173 cows (22 891 cow days) at cow level, resulting in individual daily risk probabilities for getting sick. Thus, risk probabilities of each behavioural pattern were estimated and included in the MCUSUM control charts to identify cows at risk of disease. The performance of the MCUSUM control charts was cross-validated to identify the best fitting reference value k and the threshold value h. Alerts given within 5 days prior to diagnosis were counted as detected sicknesses. The performance resulted in a block sensitivity of 70.9–81.4%, specificity of 87.9–94.2% and a false-positive rate of 5.8–12.1%. The performance was confirmed while testing the entire algorithm resulting in a mean area under the receiver operating characteristics curve of 0.89. Calculating precision and the F1-score resulted in a precision of 49.0–60.9% (training: 48.8–63.5%) and an F1-score of 61.1–65.7% in testing (training: 61.0–67.0%). The precision-recall curve (PRC) was derived from precision and recall with an area under the PRC of 0.70 in training and testing. In summary, the present study was able to develop an algorithm showing good classification potential for the online monitoring of sickness behaviour.

Ammonia emission prediction for dairy cattle housing from reaction kinetic modeling to the barn scale

One way to estimate ammonia emission rates from naturally ventilated housing systems is to scale-up mechanistic modeling results. However, obtaining the relevant data to set initial and boundary conditions adequately is usually very challenging and for a whole barn barely possible. This study has investigated the potential of coupling different mechanistic modeling approaches towards an overarching barn scale ammonia emission model, which might permit ammonia emission projections for naturally ventilated housing systems with minimal measurement efforts. To this end, we combined an ammonia volatilization model for shallow urine or slurry puddles with a dynamic mechanistic model of digestion and excretion of nitrogen, an empirical model to estimate urination volumes, semi-empirical models for pH and temperature dynamics of the puddles and a mechanistic air flow model. The ammonia volatilization model was integrated with a time step of one second over a period of twenty-four hours, while the relevant boundary conditions were updated on an hourly base (determined by the other mentioned submodels). Projections and uncertainties of the approach were investigated for a farm case with about ten months of on-farm measurements in a naturally ventilated dairy cattle building with scraped solid floor in Northern Germany. The results showed that the nested model was in general capable to reproduce the long-term emission trend and variability, while the short-term variability was damped compared with the emission measurements. A sensitivity study indicated that particularly a refinement of the submodules for urine puddle alkalizing, urination volume and urea concentration distributions as well as for local near-surface wind speeds have a great potential to further improve the overall model accuracy. The cleaning efficiency of the scraper has turned out to be a crucial and sensitive parameter in the modeling, which so far has been described insufficiently by measurements or modeling approaches.

Verification Analysis of Volume Flow Measured by a Direct Method and by Two Indirect CO2 Balance Methods

Ammonia and greenhouse gases have a negative impact on the environment. The most important agricultural sources of ammonia are dairy cattle housing systems, which are mainly naturally ventilated. Estimating emissions for naturally ventilated barns (NVB) is challenging due to the large number of influencing factors. Most notably, the direct coupling of the inside flow regime with ambient and turbulent weather conditions causes difficulties in measuring ventilation rates, gas concentrations and emissions; thus, different methods are available. In this study, we compared the outputs of total volume flow obtained by two indirect methods (CO2 mass balance) to the direct method. The latter we assume in this study as the reference method since it is a fundamental approach that estimates airflow on the inlet. In the context of mass balancing, we compared wind related (sampling method 1) and non-wind related (sampling method 2) approaches for measuring CO2 concentrations. The total volume flow calculations were based on hourly measurements of CO2 concentrations obtained by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer. Data were collected over a period of six months. The values of the total volume flow were filtered for prevailing southern winds (90∘ angle). The wind related method (sampling method 1) in stable cross-inflow conditions produces more accurate and realistic values in terms of the general representation of the values in comparison with direct method and can be considered further for measurements of volume flow in the NVBs.

Distribution of staphylococcal and mammaliicoccal species from compost-bedded pack or sand-bedded freestall dairy farms

The purpose of this prospective observational study was to determine whether dairy cattle housing types were associated with staphylococcal and mammaliicoccal populations found on teat skin, bedding, and in bulk tank milk. Twenty herds (n = 10 sand-bedded freestall herds; n = 10 compost-bedded pack herds) were enrolled. Each herd was visited twice for sample collection, and at each visit, 5 niches were sampled, including bulk tank milk, composite teat skin swab samples collected before premilking teat preparation, composite teat skin swab samples collected after premilking teat preparation, unused fresh bedding, and used bedding. All samples were plated on Mannitol salt agar and Columbia blood agar and staphylococcal-like colonies were selected for further evaluation. Bacterial colonies were speciated using MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. All species were grouped into 4 categories included host-adapted, opportunistic, environmental, and unclassified. Absolute numbers and proportions of each genus and species were calculated. Proportional data were compared between groups using Fisher's exact test. Data representing 471 staphylococcal-like organisms were analyzed. Overall, 27 different staphylococcal and mammaliicoccal species were identified. Staphylococcus chromogenes was the only species identified from all 20 farms. A total of 20 different staphylococcal-like species were identified from bulk tank milk samples with the most prevalent species being S. chromogenes, followed by Staphylococcus aureus and Mammaliicoccus sciuri. Overall, more staphylococcal and mammaliicoccal isolates were identified among used bedding than unused bedding. The increased numbers of isolates within used bedding were primarily from used sand bedding samples, with 79% (76/96) of used bedding isolates being identified from sand bedding and only 20.8% (20/96) from used compost-bedded pack samples. When comparing categories found among sample types, more unclassified species were found in used sand bedding than in used compost-bedded pack samples. This finding is possibly related to the composting temperatures resulting in reduced growth or destruction of bacterial species. The prevalence of S. aureus was high in bulk tank milk for all herds, regardless of herd type, which may represent the influence of unmeasured management factors. Overall, staphylococcal and mammaliicoccal species were highly prevalent among samples from both farm types.

Views of Consumers, Farmers and Stakeholders on Alternative Dairy Cattle Housing Systems.

Simple SummarySustainable alternative housing systems for dairy cattle depend on being accepted by key categories like farmers, stakeholders, and consumers. Alongside tie-stall and cubicle housing systems, alternative free-walk systems (compost-bedded pack and artificial floor systems) are available today. This study aimed to determine and compare the acceptance of (alternative) housing systems and attitudes to certain aspects of housing systems for dairy cattle among Slovenian consumers, farmers, and stakeholders. They were asked online about their views on the most important aspects (animals, farmers, products, environment) of housing systems as well as the acceptance of four housing systems and related issues. The results reveal differences in attitude and acceptance among the main groups of respondents. Consumers, stakeholders, and conventional farmers preferred the artificial floor system, while organic farmers preferred the compost-bedded pack housing system. Consumers and organic farmers showed below-average scores for all aspects analyzed concerning animals, products, and the environment, whereas conventional farmers and stakeholders had shown above-average scores for aspects related to animals and the environment and negative attitudes to products. The findings suggest the need to tailor information about different housing systems to specific groups.Alternative housing systems for dairy cattle have recently emerged, such as compost-bedded packs and artificial floor ones. To determine their acceptability among categories of people with a connection to animal husbandry, this study aimed to identify and compare the acceptability of (alternative) housing systems and attitudes to aspects of housing systems for dairy cattle among Slovenian consumers, farmers, and stakeholders. Farmers (N = 306), consumers (N = 508), and stakeholders (N = 40) were interviewed about their views on the main aspects (animals, farmers, products, environment) of housing systems for dairy cattle, the acceptance of four housing systems, and important housing features. The results show that consumers, stakeholders, and conventional farmers preferred housing systems with an artificial floor, while organic farmers preferred a housing system with a compost-bedded pack. Consumers and organic farmers expressed the greatest acceptance of almost every aspect of the housing system, except for a sufficient income for farmers and a low workload. Conventional farmers and stakeholders hold similar views, except for the expectation that the animals have enough space to move around, the image of the landscape, and the animals’ health and wellbeing, where stakeholders showed more acceptance than conventional farmers. The results imply that systematically planned information aimed at different target categories is needed to increase the acceptance of (alternative) housing systems for cattle.

Effect of a High Welfare Floor and a Concrete Slatted Floor on the Growth Performance, Behavior and Cleanliness of Charolais and Limousin Heifers: A Case Study.

Simple SummaryThe barn floor needs to provide a confident and comfortable walking surface while retaining durability and affordability. The floor of the barn is also important in order to achieve the best performance, health and welfare of the animals. Therefore, we compared a high welfare floor (HWF), which should offer higher comfort, to a concrete slatted floor (CSF), which is a standard housing system for cattle rearing. In the trials, Charolais and Limousin heifers were used testing the latter systems. We observed that heifers housed on an HWF tended to exhibit more species-specific behaviors, namely rubbing, grooming and aggression, and seemed to be cleaner than those housed on a CSF.Various floor systems are used in cattle housing with different characteristics in terms of roughness, abrasion, wetness, bedding material, ease of cleaning, etc. Thus, the activity and welfare of the animals are greatly influenced by the type of floor. The floor of the barn can influence the development of health diseases, technopathies and the production and quality of animal products. Therefore, in the present case study, we studied the effects of two different flooring systems on the performance and on some behavioral and cleanliness parameters in heifers. Two floor systems (concrete slatted flooring (CSF) and high welfare flooring (HWF)) and two breeds (Charolais and Limousin) were used in the experiment. Heifers on HWF tended to show a higher frequency of grooming, rubbing and aggression than those on CSF, but not of standing, lying, eating, drinking, rumination, resting, stereotypies and covering of the animals. In addition, animals housed on HWF also appeared to show higher cleanliness than those housed on CSF. Results indicated that animals housed on HWF exhibited more social and self-care behaviors, suggesting that animals housed on such floors show more species-specific behaviors and have higher welfare.

Housing Management Practices and Microclimate of Cattle Shed in Cauvery Delta Region of Tamil Nadu

Background: In India, most of the farmers are shifting towards organized dairy cattle farming system from paddy cultivation and extensive system of rearing due to scarcity of water resources and intense variance in climatic conditions. Hence, the present study provided valuable information about the existing dairy cattle housing in Cauvery delta region of Tamil Nadu. Methods: The study on existing management practices of dairy cattle was conducted randomly among 90 farmers of Cauvery delta region, Tamil Nadu. A structured interview schedule was developed and pre-tested and the data on existing management practices were collected with the help of a pre-tested interview schedule. The data were collected by personal interview of the respondents individually at their animal house. The information on dairy production system and management practices were collected and the micro climate of different dairy cattle shed were recorded and analyzed. Result: In Cauvery delta region, the majority of farmers (48.89%) engaged in rearing crossbred dairy cattle were in the middle age group and educated. Further, animal husbandry is either the primary (25.56%) or secondary (74.44%) profession of the farmers. From the study, it is understood that more than 70 per cent of farmers housed their dairy cattle in loose type of housing, adjacent to their home with east-west orientation. The most common roofing pattern adopted for their cattle sheds is gable type (54.45%), with a roofing material of galvanized iron sheet (30.00%). The black globe humidity index (BGHI) and heat load index (HLI) calculated for dairy cattle shed with different roofing structures showed significant difference (P less than 0.05) between thatched and tiled shed.

Associations between Animal Welfare Indicators and Animal-Related Factors of Slaughter Cattle in Austria.

Simple SummaryThe aims of this study were (1) to evaluate the prevalence of lameness, dirtiness of the body surface, and abomasal disorders of slaughter cattle; and (2) to determine the association between these welfare indicators and animal-related factors (e.g., housing type, carcass weight, and transportation and waiting duration of the animals). In contrast to dirtiness (level of contamination of the body surface, also referred to as cleanliness) and the prevalence of abomasal disorders, the determined lameness prevalence was very low. The husbandry of cattle was identified as a significant influencing factor for both the dirtiness and occurrence of abomasal disorders of slaughter cattle.Three cattle welfare indicators (lameness, dirtiness, and abomasal disorders) were evaluated in 412 slaughter cattle in a cross-sectional study in Austria. The aims of this study were (1) to evaluate the prevalence of lameness, dirtiness of slaughter cattle, and abomasal disorders; and (2) to determine the association between these welfare indicators and animal-related factors (e.g., housing type, carcass weight, transportation and waiting duration of the animals). The lameness prevalence was 0.73%, the abomasal disorders prevalence was 52.43%, and 88.59% of all cattle were contaminated. The latter result indicates that the cattle were kept in a dirty environment. The occurrence of abomasal disorders was associated with cattle housing systems (p ≤ 0.00) and slaughter weight (p = 0.03). The odds for abomasal disorders were 28.0 times higher for cattle housed on slatted flooring compared to cattle kept in a tethered system. The chance for occurrence of abomasal disorders was 3.6 times higher for cattle with a low carcass weight compared to cattle with a high carcass weight. Furthermore, significant associations were found between dirtiness (also referred to as cleanliness or contamination) and husbandry system, sex, and breed. Cattle housed in deep litter boxes had 40.8 times higher odds of being contaminated compared to cattle in a tethered housing system. Cows (odds: 32.9) and heifers (odds: 4.4) had higher odds of being contaminated with feces compared to bulls, whereby female calves (odds: 0.09) and male calves (odds: 0.02) had significantly lower odds of being contaminated. Furthermore, the breeds Brown Swiss (odds: 0.26) and Holstein-Friesian (odds: 0.14) had a significantly lower chance of being contaminated compared to Simmental cattle. Other collected factors, such as production system, transportation duration, life days of the cattle, average daily weight gain, carcass classification, and fat coverage, showed no association with the collected welfare indicators. The study presented here indicates that welfare indicators evaluated for slaughter cattle are suitable to assess cattle welfare, and improvements in husbandry may positively impact both the abomasal physiology and cleanliness of cattle.

Husbandry practices and constraints of smallholder dairy production in Dilla Zuriya district, Gedeo Zone, Ethiopia

The study assessed dairy cattle management practices and identified constraints at smallholder dairy farms in Dilla-Zuriya District. A cross-sectional survey was undertaken on 120 purposely selected smallholder dairy farmers from three potential kebeles (Chichu, Andida and Gola). A Structured questionnaire was developed and applied to collect data. Descriptive statistics procedures of SPSS were followed to analyse the collected data. The result showed that most farmers (70.9%) produce milk primarily for income generation under a mixed crop-livestock production system. The herds mean of the local and cross breeds cattle in the study area were 5.23 and 2.41, respectively. Banana and Enset leaves and stems were the primary feed resources of the study area. Besides, farmers use natural grazing pasture and home fruit and vegetable leftovers as animal feed. The watering frequency was twice a day, either from river or pipe. Traditional houses made from locally available construction materials like mud and wood are the typical dairy cattle housing system. Except for calves, all types of dairy cattle were kept together in the same house. Feed shortage, limited access to, and the high purchasing cost of improved dairy heifers were the top two pressing constraints of dairy production in the study area. Therefore, enhancing the quality and accessibility of feed and applying breed improvement technologies are highly recommended to support dairy production.

Environmental sustainability: farmers' views of housing systems for cattle

In the establishment and maintenance of a housing system for cattle by farmers, their perception of housing systems plays an important role in their decision to choose the environmentally sustainable housing system. The aim of this study was to determine farmers’ attitudes towards their role, environmental sustainability, and perceived government support, to determine whether the role of cattle farmers influences their perceptions of different cattle housing systems, and to create a typology of cattle farmers based on these attitudes. The paper was based on online surveys (n = 306) and five focus groups with Slovenian cattle farmers (n = 42). Results show that the majority of participants placed a higher value on production than on the environment, but had adopted animal and environmentally friendly housing systems to achieve higher production and profits and to receive full direct payments. Four groups of cattle farmers based on the attitudes towards their role, environmental sustainability, and perceived governmental support were identified: Productivists, Traditionalists, Abandoners, and Environmentalists. Most respondents belonged to the Productivist group, who believed that environmental measures have a negative impact on agricultural development. A characteristic of the smaller Traditionalist group is that these farmers claimed to have an obligation to preserve or improve the environment for future generations. For Environmentalists, environmentally friendly agriculture is most important. The smallest group identified consists of farmers who indicated their role as a farmer was not important because they were likely to give up farming. Systematically planned communication aimed at different groups of farmers is needed to promote acceptance of changes in housing systems for cattle that reduce the greenhouse effect. HIGHLIGHTS The majority of farmers placed a higher value on production than on the environment. They had adopted animal and environmentally friendly housing systems to achieve higher production and profits and to receive full direct payments. There were four groups of cattle farmers: Productivists, Traditionalists, Abandoners, and Environmentalists.

Management Practices and Production Constraints of Indigenous Somali Cattle Breed in Shabelle Zone, Somali Regional State, Ethiopia

This study was conducted in Shabelle zone of Somali Regional State to assess management practices and production constraints of indigenous Somali Cattle. A total of 200 household heads were selected from four cattle potential districts; Dhanan, Ber’ano, Godey & Adadle. The relevant information was collected through semi-structured questionnaire, focus group discussion, key informants interview, and personal observations. Majority of the respondents were illiterate. The average cattle holding size was 8.97 heads/household and cattle were mainly kept for milk production. The major feed resources in the study area were natural pasture and crop residue, and communal grazing was the most important feeding system in the area. Feed shortage was a problem hindering cattle production in the study area during dry season mainly January up to March. Animals traveled long distances to watering points (>5 km) during dry season, while in wet season, animals were watered in nearby water sources. Cattle housing was open kraal fenced with the thorned plenty acacia trees and calves were housed separately from other cattle. Breeding in the study area was uncontrolled and was bred with their own or neighbors’ bull. Age at first mating, age at first calving and calving interval were 3.25 years, 4.05 years and 16.56 months, respectively. The daily milk yield and lactation length were 2.22 liters and 8.07 months, respectively. The production and reproduction performance of Somali cattle was relatively higher than other local breeds in the country mainly in terms of milk yield and fertility potential under the existing environmental conditions. The major constraints of cattle production were feed shortage, disease, water scarcity, lack of veterinary services, marketing problem and predator. Among those constraints, inadequate supply of quality feed, diseases and water shortage were the main reasons for low productivity of cattle and are the major factors limiting productivity. Therefore, to sustain the production system in the study areas, it is recommended to improve the current condition of communal rangelands through management of degraded areas by awareness creation on the value of these common resources and development of rules and regulation to sustain the existing resource and implement over the utilization of communal/pastoral rangeland management systems to reduce constraints such as shortage of feed, drought and grazing land deterioration which perpetuated through time due to land-use changes and seasonal fluctuation).

Adaptation Strategy with Climate Induced Salinity Disaster in the Coastal Area of Bangladesh

This study examined explanatory responses to saline-water intrusion in the coastal areas of Bangladesh which are renowned for providing ecological and livelihood services. The goal of this study is to look at the different adaption strategies which coastal people have been using to deal with the growing salty water incursion. To this end, the researchers conducted a survey on 100 (one hundred) coastal people (Female 37% & Male 63%) chosen at a random basis from two unions (the lowest tier of local government) namely Perikhali union of Rampal upazila under Bagerhat district and Banishanta union of Dacope upazila under Khulna District at the southwest coast of Bangladesh. Agriculture (30%) and fisheries (27%) were the main livelihoods of the respondents. While looking at their existing problems due to salinity, it is seen that around 65% people are to move 3 - 5 (three to five) kilometres to get water access, low yield from agriculture (47%) and conversion of agricultural land (25%), acute crisis of grazing land (50%), damaged housing of cattle (30%) and fisheries (92%) are being affected due to salinity. Along with the impact, locals also have adaptation like seasonal water storage (31%), desalination (30%) and rainwater harvesting (26%) for water related impact. For agriculture, farmers are rotating crops (32%), cultivating saline tolerant varieties and others have switched from rice cultivation to other crops (30%) and cultivating saline tolerant variety (32%). In livestock, farmers are using better management practices (39%) followed by complete shift of livestock rearing (20%) to other businesses. Shifting from freshwater fish to marine water fish and crab/prawn cultivation (38%) found the most adaptation practices by the communities. For long term resilience to salinity induced disaster, collection of safe water (93%), quality seed (57%), disease control (47%) in livestock and quality hatchlings are the main barriers identified by the communities. For strengthening the current adaptation practices, rainwater harvesting (41%), household filtering of water (34%), ensuring of quality seeds (67%) and interest free loan to women through local NGOs have been stressed by the communities, local government officials as well as civil societies. Changes in land use patterns, use of contemporary technologies in agriculture, crop diversification, growing saline tolerant crops, income sources diversification, cultivating of saline tolerant fishes, utilization of savings, and rainwater harvesting are all prevalent adaptation strategies in the studied area. Moreover, to effectively address salinity in the coastal area of Bangladesh, the study also recommends increasing budget allocation for saline-water intrusion adaptation in the targeted institutions, staff capacity enhancement in water salinity monitoring, and provision of sophisticated equipment and technology.

Isotopic Signatures of Methane Emissions From Dairy Farms in California’s San Joaquin Valley

AbstractIn this study, we present seasonal atmospheric measurements of δ13CCH4 from dairy farms in the San Joaquin Valley of California. We used δ13CCH4 to characterize emissions from enteric fermentation by measuring downwind of cattle housing (e.g., freestall barns, corrals) and from manure management areas (e.g., anaerobic manure lagoons) with a mobile platform equipped with cavity ring‐down spectrometers. Across seasons, the δ13CCH4 from enteric fermentation source areas ranged from −69.7 ± 0.6 per mil (‰) to −51.6 ± 0.1‰ while the δ13CCH4 from manure lagoons ranged from −49.5 ± 0.1‰ to −40.5 ± 0.2‰. Measurements of δ13CCH4 of enteric CH4 suggest a greater than 10‰ difference between cattle production groups in accordance with diet. Isotopic signatures of CH4 were used to characterize enteric and manure CH4 from downwind plume sampling of dairies. Our findings show that δ13CCH4 measurements could improve the attribution of CH4 emissions from dairy sources at scales ranging from individual facilities to regions and help constrain the relative contributions from these different sources of emissions to the CH4 budget.

Development of microclimate control system in cattle barns for cattle housing in the Perm region

The economic efficiency of intensive livestock farming on an industrial basis depends on the rational housing of animals, which is largely determined by the presence of an optimal microclimate in the premises. Whatever breed and pedigree qualities the animals may have, without creating the necessary microclimate conditions they are unable to maintain their health and show their potential productive capabilities due to heredity. Between 2018 and 2020, 11 farms in Perm Region were surveyed for respiratory and digestive diseases, skin diseases, and in some cases stress was observed in the animals. The costs of heating livestock buildings are, as a rule, much lower than the losses due to mortality, loss of productivity and overconsumption of feed. The physical properties of the air environment are factors that are not constant and are subject to large fluctuations. To optimize the microclimate in a livestock building, a program algorithm has been developed for a computer. That will create a system, which provides optimal conditions for the maintenance and service of animals and increase the life safety on livestock farms. In this regard, in order to improve conditions for keeping calves and cows, a project for a device to control the parameters of the microclimate in farms in the Perm region has been developed. The microclimate control system is developed on the basis of: Order of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation from October 21, 2000 № 622 “On approval of Veterinary rules of keeping cattle for its reproduction, rearing and realization” and Set of rules 106.13330.2012 “Cattle - breeding, poultry - breeding and beast - breeding buildings and premises”. At the heart of the monitoring is an automated analysis and regulation of microclimate parameters. Hardware-software implementation is made on PLC Omron.

The influence of zeolite-mineral feed additives on the growth and development of young cattle in Yakutia

This article presents the results of the study to determine the effect of zeolite-mineral feed additives when feeding young Simmental cattle in the conditions of Yakutia. Scientific and economic experiments to determine the optimal norms of local mineral feed additives were carried out in the conditions of Central Yakutia. The experiment was performed on young bulls of the Simmental cattle breed during the age of between 12 and 18 months. The experimental animals were selected by the analog method, which took into account the indicators of age, live weight and clinical indicators. During the experiment animals were kept under identical conditions. The difference was that the experimental groups were additionally given a mineral feed supplement – hongurin in different doses and Kempendyai salt with the daily basic diet. Animals in the cold season were kept in a small cattle house, fastened. During the experiments the optimal rate of inclusion of a zeolite-mineral feed additive was established, which allowed to maximize the growth rates of live weight while maintaining all clinical and physiological norms of the body. Thus, at the end of the experiment the animals of the II and III experimental groups were heavier than their peers from the test group by 2.93% and 4.28%. As a result, the animals of the experimental groups reached a live weight of 382.5 and 385.3 kg versus 371.6 kg in the test group. Growth rate indicators in test group bulls equaled 564.44 g, and for bulls in the II and III experimental groups 630 g and 650.56 g, respectively (indicators are higher by 11.62% and 15.26%). Thus, the use of zeolite-mineral feed additives in feeding young Simmental cattle in Yakutia has shown efficiency.