INFLUENCE OF BREED AND EARLY MANAGEMENT ON EASE OF HANDLING AND OPEN-FIELD BEHAVIOR OF CATTLE

The activities of several types of cattle during handling tests are reported. Each animal was drafted from its group and isolated in a pen (sorting test). A handler then tried to keep it in a comer for 30 consecutive seconds during a maximum time of 2 min (restraint test). Two variables are reported: time necessary to sort the animal and time necessary to restrict the animal to a comer. The influences of the handler and rearing conditions on the two variables were assessed in the first trial. Fifteen male Salers (8 months old) were used. During the winter period (3 months), eight had been reared in free stalls and the others had suckled twice a day under human control. The animals were handled by ten experienced humans who had not had any previous contact with the animals. No difference between handlers for the two variables was found. Animals from the twice a day suckling system were easier to restrict to the comer than the others (P < 0.05). Thirty artificially reared dairy heifers (20 months old) of three breeds (Tarine, Montbeliarde and Friesian) were used in a second trial. The results for the two handling variables indicate that all these animals, irrespective of their breed, were easy to handle. Salers heifers of 1 year (n = 20) and 2 years (n = 18) of age from twice a day suckling (n = 20) and range management (n = 18 ) were compared. Results from handling tests and the general activity of the animals in an "open-field" test were studied. Animals from twice a day suckling management were more quickly sorted (P < 0.05) and restricted to the comer (P < 0.01) than those from the range system. Variables recorded in the open-field test and from handling tests were not significantly correlated.