Producers spend millions of dollars each year renovating or building new facilities to improve cow comfort. Previous research has shown that when stalls are uncomfortable cows actually use them less. Because the cow is spending more time on wet concrete, they increase the risk of lameness.
Lying behaviour in cows can be measured manually or using electronic data loggers which are placed on the back leg of the cow. The data collected in this measurement can be useful in evaluating the benefits of changes in barn design or management. One interesting finding was the wide range in amount of time individual cows spent lying down within each farm. This shows that it is important to pay more attention to individual cows, instead of just the ‘average’ cow.
