Invited review: Effects of heat stress on dairy cattle welfare

The effects of high ambient temperatures on production animals, once thought to be limited to tropical areas, has extended into northern latitudes in response to the increasing global temperature. The number of days where the temperature-humidity index (THI) exceeds the comfort threshold (>72) is increasing in the northern United States, Canada, and Europe. Compounded by the increasing number of dairy animals and the intensification of production, heat stress has become one of the most important challenges facing the dairy industry today. The objectives of this review were to present an overview of the effects of heat stress on dairy cattle welfare and highlight important research gaps in the literature. We…

• DF
  Dairy Farmers of Canada
• Z
  Zoetis
• NI
  Novus International
• NS
  Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada