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Social housing improves dairy calves’ performance in a competition test
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Suchon, Malina; Ede, Thomas; Vandresen, Bianca; von Keyserlingk, M.A.G — 2023-04-21 This study aimed to investigate the impact of early-life social housing on dairy calves' competitive skills. Calves were housed either individually (n=9) or in pairs (n=9). After 14 d of housing treatment, calves underwent a competition test for 5 d against a competitor. Pair housed calves performed better than individually housed calves: throughout the competition days, individually housed calves increased their latency to approach the milk bottle and decreased their time spent drinking in contrast to pair housed calves which exhibited stable latencies to reach the milk bottle and increased their time drinking. To control for the influence of personality on their competitive abilities, all calves were subjected to personality tests assessing boldness before being exposed to the housing treatment. Bolder calves tended to approach the milk bottle faster. Our results provide additional evidence of the beneficial effects of social housing on dairy calves’ behavioral development.
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Replication Data for: Automated, longitudinal measures of drinking behaviour provide insights into the social hierarchy in dairy cows
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Foris, Borbala; Vandresen, Bianca; Sheng, Kehan; Krahn, Joseph; Weary, D.M; von Keyserlingk, M.A.G — 2023-11-20 Water is an essential resource for dairy cattle, and in some circumstances cattle will compete with one another to gain access to water. Here we applied a Bayesian-based, Elo-rating method to assess the winning probabilities of 87 cows housed in a dynamic group and compared the resulting social hierarchies based on their steepness. We identified a hierarchy at the drinker with a steepness of 0.55±0.02 whereas the hierarchy detected at the feeder during the same time period was less steep (0.45±0.02), indicating smaller average differences between the winning probabilities of cows when competing for feed compared to competing for water. Individual cows’ winning probabilities at the feeder and drinker were moderately correlated (rs=0.55, P<0.001). However, cows at both the lower and upper ends of the hierarchy demonstrated a consistent alignment. We compared drinker hierarchies between periods with THI above and below 72 and found similar steepness (0.54±0.03 and 0.56±0.03 respectively) and the individual winning probabilities of cows were highly correlated between hot and normal periods (rs=0.87, P<0.001). Individual drinking behaviour was also associated with the drinker hierarchy, cows with higher winning probability had lower average daily visit frequency (hot: rs=-0.40, P<0.01, normal: rs=-0.33, P<0.01) and higher average daily water intake (hot: rs=0.38, P<0.01, normal: rs=0.37, P<0.01). We also found evidence that cows differ in when they drink, depending on their winning probability; less successful cows shifted their drinking times to before or after the visit peak after milking. Automatically identifying cows with consistently high or low winning probabilities using drinkers may inform grouping decisions and water provision on farms.
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“Dear Dairy, it’s not me, it’s you”: Australian public attitudes to dairy expressed through love and breakup letters
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Bolton, Sarah; Vandresen, Bianca; von Keyserlingk, M.A.G — 2024-07-03 To explore public attitudes to the dairy industry, a convenience sample of Australian citizens were asked to write their choice of a ‘love letter’ or ‘breakup letter’ to dairy. The present study provides results from the 19 letters submitted. Participants varied in age, gender identity, income and frequency of consumption of dairy products. The letters were on average 144 words long (range: 48-285), and were categorized into 8 love letters, 6 break-up letters, and 5 ‘distance’ letters that conveyed a conflicted stance. We undertook inductive thematic analysis of all letters, identifying three main themes: (1) personal relationship with dairy; (2) views about dairy as an industry; and (3) views on dairy products. Each theme and their underlying codes are described in the codebook.
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“The advice? Think bigger”: Community perspectives on dairy farming, including surplus calves – an Australian focus group study
Borealis
Bolton, Sarah; Vandresen, Bianca; von Keyserlingk, M.A.G — 2024-10-02 Citizens are becoming increasingly disconnected from food production. Despite this, many people still hold strong values about how food is produced. The aim of this study was to attain an in-depth understanding of Australian public attitudes towards sustainability and animal welfare in dairy production, as well as early life killing of surplus dairy calves and cow-calf separation; issues commonly identified as being out of step with public values. We conducted three focus group sessions, each with 8 Australians that varied in age, gender identity, income, and frequency of consumption of dairy products. Thematic analysis of the semi-structured discussions resulted in two key themes, each with underlying sub-themes: 1) Animal agriculture as an industry, including sustainability, farmers as people, and farming practices; and 2) Personal impacts and reflections as citizens, including ethical considerations, and consumer behaviors.
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Navigating challenges in applied animal behaviour and welfare research: A focus group study
Borealis
Vandresen, Bianca; Nogues, Emeline; von Keyserlingk, M.A.G — 2024-11-14 Academics in applied animal behaviour and welfare science may face challenges while working within the constraints imposed by institutional and regulatory frameworks. However, to our knowledge, no studies have attempted to describe the nature of these difficulties and whether there are regional differences. This database contains the supplementary materials of a focus group study with 47 delegates attending the 56th Congress of the International Society of Applied Ethology (ISAE) held in Tallinn, Estonia, in August 2023. Participants represented 33 countries covering five continents. Using a semi-structured discussion guide, participants were encouraged to discuss their challenges, proposed solutions to the identified challenges, and the role international societies could play in overcoming some of these challenges. All focus group discussions were audio-recorded, transcribed and subjected to thematic analyses. Three main themes were identified: (1) the discipline of animal behaviour and welfare, (2) conducting and sharing research, and (3) researcher welfare and networking. Participants described numerous barriers hindering their research process, originating from within their academic institutions, local governments, and journal guidelines but also arising from prejudice and other personal challenges. Many of the challenges identified were shared among all participants, regardless of region, but specific socio-demographic groups more strongly voiced some issues. While solutions were difficult to identify, many participants communicated their willingness to collaborate as a first step to striving for solutions to the identified challenges.

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(Author: Vandresen, Bianca)

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