Research Project

Responsible

  • Christine Brenninkmeyer
  • Ute Knierim

In cooperation with

  • Sabine Dippel, Christoph Winckler, Division of Livestock Sciences, Department of Sustainable Agricultural Systems, University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences (BOKU), Vienna
  • Jan Brinkmann, Solveig March, Research Centre for Animal Production, Georg-August-University of Goettingen, Vechta

Funding

European Commission, Sixth Framework Programme

Duration

2004-2007

Animal welfare of dairy cows in cubicle systems with a focus on lameness and lesions

Projekttext

Lameness currently ranks third as culling reason of dairy cows after mastitis and infertility. Moreover, lameness and integument alterations affect the well-being of cows and, therefore, are relevant to animal welfare.

In an epidemiologic study that takes place within the scope of the EU-project Welfare-Quality®, factors and farm conditions that influence lameness and skin lesions were analysed. Special attention is given to housing conditions and different management strategies.

Publications

  • Dippel, S., Dolezal, M., Brenninkmeyer, C., Brinkmann, J., March, S., Knierim, U., Winckler, C. (2009): Risk factors for lameness in freestall-housed dairy cows across two breeds, farming systems, and countries. J. Dairy Sci. 92, 5476-5486
  • Dippel, S., Dolezal, M., Brenninkmeyer, C., Brinkmann, J., March, S., Knierim, U., Winckler, C. (2009): Risk factors for lameness in cubicle housed Austrian Simmental dairy cows. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 90, 102-112
  • Brenninkmeyer, C., Dippel, S., Winckler, C., Knierim, U. (2009): Aufsteh- und Abliegezeiten bei Milchvieh in Liegeboxenlaufställen: Lassen sich Rückschlüsse auf die Liegeboxen-Qualität ziehen? In: Aktuelle Arbeiten zur artgemäßen Tierhaltung 2009, KTBL-Schrift 479, KTBL, Darmstadt, 105-113
  • BRENNINKMEYER, C., DIPPEL, S., BRINKMANN, J., MARCH, S., WINCKLER, C., KNIERIM, U. (2008): Risk factors for hock lesions in cubicle housed dairy cows in Germany and Austria. In: Book of abstracts of the 4th International Workshop on the Assessment of Animal Welfare at Farm and Group Level (WAFL), 10-13 September, Ghent, Belgium, 48
  • BRENNINKMEYER, C., DIPPEL, S., MARCH, S., BRINKMANN, J., WINCKLER, C., KNIERIM, U. (2007): Reliability of a subjective lameness scoring system for dairy cows. Animal Welfare 16, 127-129