Flight distance of dairy cows and its relationship to daily routine management procedures and productivity

The objectives of this study were to determine to what extent the flight distance of cows to humans was influenced by sire and management procedures before and after maturity, and whether there was a correlation between the flight distance and productivity on commercial dairy farms. Flight distance of 84 Holstein cows, the stockperson's daily routine management procedures and production performance were recorded repeatedly on eight commercial dairy farms. The management procedures for the animals at the suckling, growing, lactating and dry stages were classified into four categories by degree of tactile interactions between the stockperson and the animal: hand procedures with touch on (category A), nearby (category B) and apart (category C) from the animal, and machinery procedures (category D). There was no apparent sire effect on flight distance ( P  = 0.08), whereas the flight distance ranged from 1.17 ± 0.86 to 4.47 ± 2.01 m by farm ( P  < 0.01), and gradually shortened with repetition ( P  < 0.05). Regression analysis indicated that the length of time of category B at the suckling stage and category B at the dry stage accounted for 37% and 32% of the variation in flight distance, respectively. As for the total time of the four procedure categories, growing stage was the prime predictor of flight distance, which accounted for 36% of the variation. Flight distance tended to correlate with the first calving age ( r  = 0.66, P  = 0.07). These results suggest the importance of non-producing periods, before maturity and during the dry period, on the subsequent and lifelong advantages of a good relationship between the stockperson and their animals.