Effects of Pasture on Lameness in Dairy Cows
- 1 March 2007
- journal article
- Published by American Dairy Science Association in Journal of Dairy Science
- Vol. 90 (3), 1209-1214
- https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.s0022-0302(07)71608-9
Abstract
This study tested whether providing cows a 4-wk period on pasture would improve gait and change lying behavior. Eighteen groups, each of 4 lactating Holstein cows initially housed in a freestall barn, were assigned to either continued housing in the same freestall barn, or moved to pasture to provide changes in both physical environment and diet. To assess lameness, gait scores (1 to 5) were recorded weekly for 4 wk. Gait improved by an average of 0.22 units/wk for those cows kept on pasture. We also recorded 4 specific gait attributes (head bob, back arch, tracking up, and reluctance to bear weight evenly on all 4 hooves), and found that the latter 2 attributes also improved during the pasture period. Improved gait for cows on pasture was not because of increased lying times. Cows on pasture actually spent less time lying down than cows kept indoors (10.9 vs. 12.3 h/d), although this lying time was spread over a larger number of bouts (15.3 vs. 12.2 bouts). Cows housed on pasture also lost more weight and produced less milk relative to cows in freestalls, likely because of reduced nutrient intake. These results indicate that a period on pasture can be used to help lame cattle recover probably because pasture provides a more comfortable surface upon which cows stand, helping them to recover from hoof and leg injuries.Keywords
Funding Information
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
This publication has 31 references indexed in Scilit:
- Behaviour and claw health in tied dairy cows with varying access to exercise in an outdoor paddockApplied Animal Behaviour Science, 2004
- Effect of replacing time available for grazing with time available for eating maize silage and soyabean meal on milk yield and feeding behaviour in dairy cowsGrass and Forage Science, 2004
- Impact of lameness on behavior and productivity of lactating Holstein cowsApplied Animal Behaviour Science, 2003
- Behaviour of first lactation and adult dairy cows while housed and at pasture and its relationship with sole lesionsVeterinary Record, 1993
- Effects of lameness on the behaviour of cows during the summerVeterinary Record, 1993
- Environmental factors associated with lameness in dairy cattlePreventive Veterinary Medicine, 1989
- The influence of concentrate amount on locomotion and clinical lameness in dairy cattleAnimal Science, 1988
- Quantitative functional anatomy of the lower limb with application to human gaitJournal of Biomechanics, 1987
- The passive elastic moment at the knee and its influence on human gaitJournal of Biomechanics, 1986
- The effect of forage supplementation on the behaviour of grazing dairy cowsApplied Animal Behaviour Science, 1986