Comportamento de vacas leiteiras confinadas em free-stall com camas de areia e borracha

Abstract

Among the various challenges faced in dairy cattle production in a free-stall confinement system, the choice of material used as bed surface is highlighted by its importance. When the bed does not provide enough comfort, the animals are exposed to stress conditions, which lead to the decrease of their welfare, consequently compromising the production. An animal may demonstrate its comfort or discomfort through behavior and physiological alterations. In light of the above, this work aimed at developing a comparative evaluation between the sand and rubber materials, for use in stalls in a free-stall model confinement installation. The experiment was performed in the Intensive Dairy Production System (IDPS) facilities of the Embrapa Gado de Leite, situated in the municipality of Coronel Pacheco, Zona da Mata region in Minas Gerais. Twenty individual beds (stalls) were used, with ten beds made of a polyester cover filled with rubber-crumbs (sub-product of tire vulcanization) and ten sand beds. The behavior of 18 Holstein cows was observed. The black globe temperature and humidity index (BGHI) and the radiating thermal load (RTL). The obtained results showed the preference of the animals to the sand bed, probable consequence of a higher physical and thermal comfort presented by this type of material.