Effect of selected factors on the body condition of dairy cows managed in the free-stall and tie-stall housing systems

Abstract

The analysis involved results of 6891 body condition evaluations carried out on 680 Polish Holstein-Friesian Blackand-White cows from two herds belonging to the same owner, although managed in different husbandry systems. The evaluation was carried out within two years using a 5-point scale, with an accuracy of 0.25 points. It was found that the most frequent score was 3.0 BCS (more than 24% of cows), in the tie-stall system, and 3.25 BCS (over 26%), in the free-stall housing system. The distribution of BCS scores of the cows with different daily productivity, of different ages and evaluated in different seasons of the year was significantly correlated with the applied housing system. Cows with the highest daily milk yield (>35 kg), younger cows (in the second lactation) and those evaluated in the summer had the least favorable distribution of body condition scores and their average values as compared to other groups. It was shown that cows kept on tether were more often receiving extreme body condition scores, i.e. not more than 2.0 points or 4.0 and more BCS points, as compared to cows managed in the free-stall housing system.