Behavior of Charolais Cattle on Pasture

Abstract

The behavior of grazing cattle has received much attention (Tribe, 1950, 1955; Hancock, 1953; Hafez and Schien, 1962). However, the results have been inconsistent and often confusing partly because some observations have been conducted only during daylight and inclement weather has been avoided for the convenience of the observer. In few studies have repeated trials on the same animals been conducted. It would appear that more information is needed in regard to the number of animals and observation days to obtain reliable measurements of animal behavior. It is an important criticism of grazing behavior studies that there is no standardized technique of observation and no comparison has yet been made of the many different methods now used. It was the purpose of this research to describe the behavior of beef cattle on pasture and to study the frequency of observation needed to obtain a complete picture of animal behavior during a 24-hr. grazing period. Copyright © 1970. American Society of Animal Science . Copyright 1970 by American Society of Animal Science