Elena Gala, Agustı´n del Prado - Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3), Leioa, Spain
Pol Llonch - Departament of Animal and Food Science, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Bellaterra (UAB), Spain
Arantxa Villagra - Centro de Investigacio´n en Tecnologı´a Animal (CITA), Valencian Institute for Agricultura Research (IVIA), Segorbe, Spain
Severino Pinto - Engineering for Livestock Management, Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy, (ATB), Potsdam, Germany
Projected temperature rise in the upcoming years due to climate change has increased
interest in studying the effects of heat stress in dairy cows. Environmental indices are commonly
used for detecting heat stress, but have been used mainly in studies focused on the
productivity-related effects of heat stress. The welfare approach involves identifying physiological
and behavioural measurements so as to start heat stress mitigation protocols before
the appearance of impending severe health or production issues. Therefore, there is growing
interest in studying the effects of heat stress on welfare. This systematic review seeks to
summarise the animal-based responses to heat stress (physiological and behavioural,
excluding productivity) that have been used in scientific literature.
Published: November 1, 2018
Elena Gala, Agustı´n del Prado - Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3), Leioa, Spain
Pol Llonch - Departament of Animal and Food Science, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Bellaterra (UAB), Spain
Arantxa Villagra - Centro de Investigacio´n en Tecnologı´a Animal (CITA), Valencian Institute for Agricultura Research (IVIA), Segorbe, Spain
Severino Pinto - Engineering for Livestock Management, Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy, (ATB), Potsdam, Germany
Projected temperature rise in the upcoming years due to climate change has increased
interest in studying the effects of heat stress in dairy cows. Environmental indices are commonly
used for detecting heat stress, but have been used mainly in studies focused on the
productivity-related effects of heat stress. The welfare approach involves identifying physiological
and behavioural measurements so as to start heat stress mitigation protocols before
the appearance of impending severe health or production issues. Therefore, there is growing
interest in studying the effects of heat stress on welfare. This systematic review seeks to
summarise the animal-based responses to heat stress (physiological and behavioural,
excluding productivity) that have been used in scientific literature.
Published: November 1, 2018