Toward on-farm measurement of personality traits and their relationships to behavior and productivity of grazing dairy cattle.

There is growing evidence that animal personality is linked to a range of productivity traits in farm animals, including dairy cattle. To date, the methodology for assessing personality traits of dairy cattle is time consuming and often requires a test arena, which limits the opportunity for commercial farms to use personality traits of dairy cattle for individualized management. This study investigated whether personality traits of pastured dairy cattle, scored in short behavioral tests, are associated with daily behavioral patterns and milk production.

Dairy farmers' perspectives on providing cow-calf contact in the pasture-based systems of New Zealand.

Separation of the cow and calf shortly after birth is a common practice on commercial dairy farms around the world, but there are emerging concerns about this practice among citizens and other stakeholders. Continuous improvement of on-farm management practices in collaboration with dairy sector stakeholders increases the likelihood that farming systems evolve in a way that is consistent with societal expectations. Few commercial dairy farms provide extended cow-calf contact, and there is little understanding of how dairy farmers view this practice.

Do Walking Distance and Time Away from the Paddock Influence Daily Behaviour Patterns and Milk Yield of Grazing Dairy Cows?

In pasture-based systems, cows may spend several hours away from the paddock and may also walk several kilometres to meet daily milking requirements; this could lead cows to experience time constraints for grazing, ruminating and lying time in the paddock. This study investigated how walking distance and time spent away from the paddock affected daily behavioural patterns (i.e.