Express method for assessing the influence of long-term transport stress on the physiological state of cows

The development of the dairy industry is one of the important and strategically significant areas of the agro-industrial complex of Russia. Due to the increase in livestock, the volume of animal transportation by road within one country or between several countries is also growing - transport stress is inevitable. When stress affects the body, as a rule, productive characteristics decrease, the natural resistance of the body to environmental influences decreases. Express – assessment of the impact of transport stress on a group of animals will reduce the loss of productive characteristics and will allow assessing the state of stress at the stage of animal acceptance. The purpose of the study was to develop and test an improved express method for assessing the impact of transport stress on Holstein-Friesian cows. The study assessed the clinical manifestations of stress in 30 animals aged 1,5 to 3 years. Individual assessment cards were developed, including 9 clinical signs, by which it is possible to analyze the impact of stress on the body of a highly productive animal. As a result of the study, an assessment of clinical characteristics was carried out on the 1st, 5th and 20th day. On the first day, 83% of the animals studied showed depressed or excited behavior. By the 5th day, the general condition of the animals could be assessed as stressful, with a tendency for it to decrease. By the 20th day, the condition of 82% of the animals was characterized as physiologically normal. The method was developed and tested in the conditions of the production complex, allowing for a short time to assess the presence of stress in animals, and to take timely measures to reduce its impact on the body.