Dairy Cattle Behavior

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Dairy Cattle Behavior
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Behavior

• Knowledge is necessary to manage successfully.
• Increasing confinement causes abnormal behavior.
• Result of genetics, simple learning, complex
  learning.
• Need to understand the natural habitat and needs
  for cattle.

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Simple learning
Training and Experience Learn by experience
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Habituation

• The adapting to or ignoring certain habit forming
  events.
• Barn music.
• Daily events.
• Flushing alleys.
• Misters.

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Operant Conditioning
A learned response to a certain stimuli Pavlov
theory Barn door up, hear comes feed Truck come
home, herd runs to barn Reinforced
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Insight Learning (Reasoning)

• Intuition not logic
• No right or wrong.
• Uses memory for other situations

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Imprinting (Socialization)
First approach to newborn Beef vs Dairy Hide
calves
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Memory

• Ability to remember
• Capacity to retain or recall
• Existence of dominance proves that they can
  remember

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Complex learning
To acquire and adapt knowledge Learn to do some
things Inherit ability to do others (Instinct)
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Behavior patterns

• Ingestive
• Eliminative
• Shelter-seeking
• Investigative
• Sexual
• Gregarious
• Agonistic combative
• Allelomimetic
• Maternal

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Social Actions
Older dominate younger Larger dominate
smaller Usually only in females Mixing strings
pecking order More space less consequences Less
feed, water, rest gtprod Leader follower Human
social ties to follow And perform
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Communication

• Sounds
• Smells
• Visuals
• Sight
• Homing Behavior