Page 356 - The Welfare of Cattle

CoW CoMfort daIrY housInG sYsteMs 333

Many of the welfare challenges we have discussed involve facility design issues that cannot be
easily addressed by later changes in management. Future efforts should encourage greater collabo-
ration between those designing, constructing, and renovating dairy facilities, and animal scientists
versed in the relevant scientific literature. Injecting science-based information about the needs of
the cows early on in the planning process may help prevent animal welfare issues before they occur
and in doing so help avoid the costs associated with expensive housing modifications.
We believe science can and should continue to play a central role in providing valuable infor-
mation about the impact different housing features have on animal welfare. However, the science
of cow comfort should be accompanied by a much greater appreciation of farms as complex, inter-
dependent systems. Failure to recognize this could result in science-based recommendations that
improve one dimension of cow comfort (e.g., lameness) at the expense of another (e.g., mastitis).
The challenges posed by considering these potential trade-offs are even more formidable when we
recognize they extend far beyond animal welfare concerns. Farmers are in the unenviable posi-
tion of having to constantly balance animal welfare concerns with other, equally urgent concerns
revolving around milk quality and safety, environmental stewardship, worker well-being and profit-
ability. More holistic research approaches that better reflect the interconnectedness of the farm as a
dynamic system will be needed if we are to foster genuinely sustainable solutions to the challenges
facing the dairy industry.

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