What type of loafing areas do housed dairy cattle prefer?

Providing continuously-housed dairy cows with a loafing area may allow them space to express behaviours that are affected by the housing environment. The aim of this study was to investigate whether dairy cows had a preference for loafing area type and if loafing area type affected behaviour performed within it. Three groups of 12 and one group of 11 lactating cows (n=47) were housed in a cubicle shed with two nearby loafing areas 1) a concrete-floored roofed area and 2) a grassed paddock fenced to the same size as the concrete area. After 3d baseline period without access, cows were trained to access the loafing areas over 2 days. A 5d preference test followed, where cows had free access to the cubicle shed and both loafing areas from 08:45 until 12:45 and 15:30 to 18:30. Behaviour was observed via live observations (scan sampling) in the mornings and afternoons and activity sensors (IceTags) continuously recorded lying bouts 24 h/d until the end of the experiment. Results of the live observations showed that the cows were in the paddock area for more of the scans than the concrete area (P