AGEN/BSEN 112 Final project: Moving and Temperament of Cattle

Authors

Elly Vo, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
Taetum Baxa, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
Ved Patel, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
Brady Giles, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
Tami M. Brown-Brandl, USDA-ARS US Meat Animal Research CenterFollow
Rossana Villa-Rojas, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

First Advisor

Rossana Villa-Rojas

Second Advisor

Tami Brown-Brandl

Date of this Version

Spring 2023

Citation

Vo, E., Baxa, T., Patel, V. & Giles, B., AGEN/BSEN 112 Final project: Moving and Temperament of Cattle, UNL Digital Commons, 2023. Accessed (date) from URL

Comments

This file is an excellent example of a AGEN/BSEN 112 Final project report. This was completed in May of 2023

Abstract

Cattle movement and weather may affect the body temperature of cows which in turn affects their natural behavior and can influence their metabolism. Cattle take several days to resume their normal eating patterns after being overheated, and that can affect dairy production. This project was assigned to study the effect of temperament (calm vs excitable) and evaporative cooling on the body temperature of moving animals to optimize the environmental conditions around the cattle and consequently, dairy production.

The project began with processing of a data set from Dr. Tami Brown-Brandl who was the client/adviser for the group. The data contained the body temperature of six heifer cows recorded every minute for 24 hours. During the recording period the cows were moved around from their pen, and either had water sprayed on them to aid in their cooling, or left dry. The cows were classified by their temperament as calm or excitable, depending on their reaction to the presence of humans.

The results from the analysis showed movement of cattle had a consistent effect on their average body temperature. As time went on during the movement process, all cattle saw an increase in body temperature with excitable cows reaching a higher maximum temperature than calm cows. Unaided cooling (dry treatment) was also affected by temperament of the cows. Calm heifer’s temperature dropped 0.1 °C about every 2 hours, while excitable heifer’s temperature dropped 0.1 °C about every 6 hours. Evaporative cooling or wet treatments help the heifers shorten excess periods of elevated body temperature with no notable difference due to temperament. Based on the analysis it is recommended to treat all heifers with a wet treatment after movement in an effort to keep heifers calm and therefore easier to corral and handle.