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tierhygiene@vetmed.fu-berlin.de
In a long-term study, continuous monitoring of the microclimate in the barn and the physiological-ethological reactions of lactating dairy cows was carried out to improve the assessment of the heat load. The heat load was defined by the temperature-humidity index. Movement and rumination activity data as well as respiratory rate were recorded in a large number of animals with lactation-related differences and analyzed with regard to the response to the prevailing heat load. It was shown that the tested reactions of the animals correlated with the heat load. For an early detection of the individual heat load, physiological-ethological reactions should be combined in algorithms, so that complex deviations from the normal behavior of the animals act as a signal and recommendations for action regarding the climate management of the house are automatically generated.