Association Between Individual Animal Traits, Competitive Success and Drinking Behavior in Dairy Cows After Milking.

ABSTRACT: After milking, dairy cows seek the nearest water trough, but access depends on competitive success. This study descriptively characterized individual drinking behavior after milking in association with physiological traits and competitive success in a herd of 42 lactating Brown Swiss cows held in a free-range barn. Cows were milked and fed twice a day, and the drinking behavior was video recorded after leaving the milking parlor during 22 milkings in July 2022. Water consumption and 33 behavioral parameters were recorded. Competitive success was defined by an index calculation. Milk production traits correlated positively with the number of trough visits, the total duration of drinking, the duration of water intake and drinking breaks, and the water volume consumed. High-yielding dairy cow

SUBMITTER: Burkhardt FK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11852067 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature