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Behavioural interactions between dairy cows and their newborn calves
393
BEHAVIOURAL INTERACTIONS BETWEEN DAIRY COWS AND THEIR NEWBORN CALVES
S.A. EDWARDS
Department of Zoology, University of Reading, Reading (Gt. Britain)
,ABSTRACT
Behavioural interactions between 133 dairy cows and their calves were recorded in detail throughout the first six hours after calving. Calving was more difficult in most heifers than in cows. Heifers were slower to stand and commence licking their calves. Heifers spent significantly less time licking their calves during the first hour after calving, but the total licking over the six-hour period was unrelated to parity. Total rejection of the calf was shown by 10% of heifers. The delay before the calf stood varied from ten minutes to more than six hours (median 59 minutes, quartiles 37 and 84 minutes). The time between birth and first suckling, a major determinant of the subsequent passive-immunity level of the calf, showed great variation. A few calves (6%) sucked within the first hour of life, whilst 32% failed to suck within the first six hours. Calves of older cows took longer to suck and there was a higher probability that they would fail to suck within six hours. Cows which calved whilst in a group housed in a yard were compared with animals housed singly in a calving pen. In a group situation, calves left their mothers more often and the cow-calf distance was greater. Shortly before or after calving, some group-housed cows licked and followed alien calves. On rare occasions, these cows abandoned their own calf. Calves of cows in a group sucked no later than those in single pens but a few sucked first from an alien cow, even when not deserted by their dams. During the first six hours of life, 30% of calves of cows in a group cross-sucked at some time.
BEHAVIOURAL INTERACTIONS BETWEEN DAIRY COWS AND THEIR NEWBORN CALVES
S.A. EDWARDS
Department of Zoology, University of Reading, Reading (Gt. Britain)
,ABSTRACT
Behavioural interactions between 133 dairy cows and their calves were recorded in detail throughout the first six hours after calving. Calving was more difficult in most heifers than in cows. Heifers were slower to stand and commence licking their calves. Heifers spent significantly less time licking their calves during the first hour after calving, but the total licking over the six-hour period was unrelated to parity. Total rejection of the calf was shown by 10% of heifers. The delay before the calf stood varied from ten minutes to more than six hours (median 59 minutes, quartiles 37 and 84 minutes). The time between birth and first suckling, a major determinant of the subsequent passive-immunity level of the calf, showed great variation. A few calves (6%) sucked within the first hour of life, whilst 32% failed to suck within the first six hours. Calves of older cows took longer to suck and there was a higher probability that they would fail to suck within six hours. Cows which calved whilst in a group housed in a yard were compared with animals housed singly in a calving pen. In a group situation, calves left their mothers more often and the cow-calf distance was greater. Shortly before or after calving, some group-housed cows licked and followed alien calves. On rare occasions, these cows abandoned their own calf. Calves of cows in a group sucked no later than those in single pens but a few sucked first from an alien cow, even when not deserted by their dams. During the first six hours of life, 30% of calves of cows in a group cross-sucked at some time.