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Holstein calves' preference for potential physical enrichment items on different presentation schedules
Chenyu Zhang1, Darren T Juniper1, Reanne McDonald1
1School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 6EU, United Kingdom.
Journal of Dairy Science
|September 2, 2022
Summary
Dairy calves benefit from environmental enrichment, with a fixed, multi-item presentation schedule improving welfare. Calves showed a preference for nets with scented hay, indicating its multifunctional appeal.
Area of Science:
- Animal Welfare Science
- Behavioral Science
- Agricultural Science
Background:
- Impoverished housing environments can negatively impact animal welfare, potentially leading to frustration and reduced motivated behaviors.
- Physical enrichment is crucial for improving dairy calf welfare and understanding their behavioral responses to environmental stimuli.
- Social housing can influence an animal's interaction with enrichment items.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate an effective physical enrichment protocol to enhance dairy calf welfare.
- To determine dairy calves' preferences for and interactions with various enrichment items.
- To assess the influence of social housing on calves' use of enrichment items.
Main Methods:
- Experiment 1: Individually housed calves (n=27) received control, rotating enrichment, or fixed enrichment treatments with items like brushes, ropes, nets with hay, and dry teats.
- Behavioral observations included focal sampling and instantaneous scan sampling from 4 to 7 weeks of age.
- Experiment 2: Calves (n=24) were housed individually or in pairs and provided with a fixed set of enrichment items, with behaviors recorded from 2 to 5 weeks of age.
Main Results:
- Calves in fixed enrichment (FE) treatments interacted more with items than those in rotating enrichment (RE).
- Both RE and FE groups showed reduced non-nutritive oral behaviors compared to controls.
- Nets filled with strawberry-scented hay were interacted with most frequently across treatments and housing types.
- Pair housing decreased overall item interaction compared to individual housing.
Conclusions:
- Dairy calves prefer a fixed multi-item enrichment schedule over a rotating single-item schedule.
- Enrichment items, particularly nets with scented hay, are utilized more in individual housing than pair housing.
- A diurnal pattern in item usage was observed, with peak activity at specific times of day.
- Nets with scented hay appear to be the most multifunctional and attractive enrichment item tested.
