In a recent study published in JDS Communications, published by Elsevier, researchers at the University of Florida showed that socializing with other calves and people even for just five minutes can improve calves’ overall well-being. The well-being of calves, including their physical and emotional health, is always a top priority in the dairy industry, especially during the weaning phase.
Lead researcher Emily K. Miller-Cushon, PhD, from the University of Florida Department of Animal Sciences, Gainesville, FL, USA, explained that assessing how a calf is feeling is usually done by observing behavior, especially abnormal behavior, which can include “suction”. or chewing on their pens or bedding, their penmates or human handlers – all of which are common in the post-calf feeding period.” These types of behaviors are generally considered signs of frustration and can affect calf health.
“Calves are active and seek stimulation after being fed milk, so providing more things like brushing can calm calves, reduce sucking after feeding and increase rest,” Miller-Cushon said.
Since studies have already shown that calves seek out human contact, the researchers set out to understand how the human-animal relationship might affect this sucking behavior. To find the answer, the team randomly assigned 28 Holstein heifer calves to individual or pair housing from birth to seven weeks of age and standardized their contact with humans during this period to include feeding and health examinations.
Calves began to be weaned at six weeks; during the four-day study period during weaning, the researchers introduced additional human contact and continuously recorded its effects on behavior. During this window, each calf received two days of normal human contact and two experimental days in which it received an additional five minutes of neck scratching with its familiar human handlers.
Why scratches on the neck? “We know from previous research that calves seem to enjoy tactile contact, including being brushed by humans. That kind of contact can lower their heart rate and make their calves lean into the scratches and stretch their necks more,” explained Miller-Cushon. “We also see that calves suck the pen less when they have a stationary brush to rub against.
After analyzing the video footage, the study team concluded that human contact has an effect on the calves’ behavior and helps promote calmness and well-being. Those five minutes spent with people reduced the suckling time of the calves and increased their amount of rest after eating. This decrease in sucking behavior was particularly pronounced in calves reared alone compared to calves that had a pen mate – indicating the importance of socialization not only with humans but also with other calves.
Miller-Cushon was careful to note that human contact did not eliminate sucking behavior in the study, however: “Our findings showed the benefits of human contact, but the results also suggest that our work does not stop at finding the most beneficial and natural.” methods of feeding and housing our dairy calves.”
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