IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jagris/v13y2023i9p1829-d1242329.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Impact of Calf Rearing with Foster Cows on Calf Health, Welfare, and Veal Quality in Dairy Farms

Author

Listed:
  • Paweł Solarczyk

    (Department of Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Tomasz Sakowski

    (Department of Biotechnology and Nutrigenomics, Institute of Genetics and Animal Biotechnology, Polish Academy of Sciences, 05-552 Jastrzębiec, Poland)

  • Marcin Gołębiewski

    (Department of Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Jan Slósarz

    (Department of Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Grzegorz Grodkowski

    (Department of Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Kinga Grodkowska

    (Department of Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland)

  • Luisa Biondi

    (Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Catania, 95123 Catania, Italy)

  • Massimiliano Lanza

    (Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Catania, 95123 Catania, Italy)

  • Antonio Natalello

    (Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Catania, 95123 Catania, Italy)

  • Kamila Puppel

    (Department of Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland)

Abstract

This study assessed the impact of different calf rearing systems on calf health, behavior, meat quality, and oxidative stability. The study involved two groups of bull calves: conventionally penned calves (control, fed with use of automatic feeders) and calves reared alongside foster cows (experimental). The presence of foster cows was found to have a significant positive influence on calf health. Calves raised with foster cows experienced lower rates of diarrhea, delayed instances of coughing, and a reduced occurrence of rhinitis compared to conventionally reared calves. Behavioral observations revealed differences in sucking and licking behaviors between the two groups. Calves with foster cows displayed more consistent patterns of these behaviors, while conventionally reared calves exhibited greater variability. Additionally, the experimental group consistently achieved higher daily weight gains, suggesting the potential for larger and more valuable carcasses at slaughter. Importantly, there were no significant differences in the quality of veal between the two rearing groups. This included fatty acid composition, color attributes, and myoglobin levels, indicating consistent meat quality. In summary, this research highlights the advantages of rearing systems that prioritize calf health and behavior, emphasizing maternal care and natural behaviors. Such systems hold promise for improving calf welfare and enhancing the sustainability of the meat production industry. The integration of foster cows into dairy farming practices emerges as a practical and effective approach, particularly for the rearing of bull calves.

Suggested Citation

  • Paweł Solarczyk & Tomasz Sakowski & Marcin Gołębiewski & Jan Slósarz & Grzegorz Grodkowski & Kinga Grodkowska & Luisa Biondi & Massimiliano Lanza & Antonio Natalello & Kamila Puppel, 2023. "The Impact of Calf Rearing with Foster Cows on Calf Health, Welfare, and Veal Quality in Dairy Farms," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-23, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:13:y:2023:i:9:p:1829-:d:1242329
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/13/9/1829/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/13/9/1829/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Piotr Bórawski & Marek Bartłomiej Bórawski & Andrzej Parzonko & Ludwik Wicki & Tomasz Rokicki & Aleksandra Perkowska & James William Dunn, 2021. "Development of Organic Milk Production in Poland on the Background of the EU," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-25, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Adam Pawlewicz & Wojciech Gotkiewicz & Katarzyna Brodzińska & Katarzyna Pawlewicz & Bartosz Mickiewicz & Paweł Kluczek, 2022. "Organic Farming as an Alternative Maintenance Strategy in the Opinion of Farmers from Natura 2000 Areas," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(7), pages 1-22, March.
    2. Piotr Bórawski & Aneta Bełdycka-Bórawska & Lisa Holden & Tomasz Rokicki, 2022. "The Role of Renewable Energy Sources in Electricity Production in Poland and the Background of Energy Policy of the European Union at the Beginning of the COVID-19 Crisis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-17, November.
    3. Aneta Bełdycka-Bórawska & Piotr Bórawski & Lisa Holden & Tomasz Rokicki & Bogdan Klepacki, 2022. "Factors Shaping Performance of Polish Biodiesel Producers Participating in the Farm Accountancy Data Network in the Context of the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-25, October.
    4. Beata Kalinowska & Piotr Bórawski & Aneta Bełdycka-Bórawska & Bogdan Klepacki & Aleksandra Perkowska & Tomasz Rokicki, 2022. "Sustainable Development of Agriculture in Member States of the European Union," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-21, March.
    5. Bogdan Klepacki & Barbara Kusto & Piotr Bórawski & Aneta Bełdycka-Bórawska & Konrad Michalski & Aleksandra Perkowska & Tomasz Rokicki, 2021. "Investments in Renewable Energy Sources in Basic Units of Local Government in Rural Areas," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-17, May.
    6. Maria Zuba-Ciszewska & Aleksandra Kowalska & Aneta Brodziak & Louise Manning, 2023. "Organic Milk Production Sector in Poland: Driving the Potential to Meet Future Market, Societal and Environmental Challenges," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-21, June.
    7. Juan D. Borrero & Jesus Mariscal, 2022. "Predicting Time SeriesUsing an Automatic New Algorithm of the Kalman Filter," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 10(16), pages 1-13, August.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:13:y:2023:i:9:p:1829-:d:1242329. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.