Heat Stress: Bad for Dairy Cows and the People Who Care for Them

Details

• Personal Author:
  Douphrate D ; Hagevoort R ; Nonnenmann M
• Description:
  Heat stress in dairy cows has long been recognized as having significant negative impacts on dairy production parameters, including milk yield and reproduction, and therefore is a substantial financial burden to dairy producers. It's estimated that problems related to heat stress on the farm can cost in excess of $900 a year in the U.S. alone. Advances in dairy management, such as cooling systems and nutritional adjustments during heat stress, have helped to alleviate some of the production impacts. When subjected to heat stress, cows respond by reducing their intake, changes occur in their endocrine status, there's a reduction in rumination and nutrient absorption and increased maintenance requirements, resulting in a decreasing availability of nutrients for production and subsequent losses in bodyweight. Heat stress is an accumulation of heat as a net result of a combination of heat and humidity superimposed on the amount of metabolic heat produced by the animal's digestive system. This explains why high-producing cows, consuming and digesting large quantities of feed and producing lots of metabolic heat, are the first animals impacted by heat stress. When cows no longer have a means to dissipate this heat through cooling, either through management practices or by nighttime cooling, they become heat stressed and will respond with reduced feed intakes. Cooling systems to comfort cows during heat stress can consist of a combination of shades, fans, misters, soakers or even complete indoor facilities with evaporative cooling systems, much like those found in green houses. Dairy cows are not the only ones on the farm that need help when dealing with heat stress; dairy farm employees need help managing heat stress as well. The workforce demographics on a dairy farm have changed over the past 20 years. For example, new employees on the farm may have no previous agricultural experience. Many producers who have "grown up" in the industry are aware of the hazards of heat stress. New employees, however, may not have previous experience working on the farm under hot environmental conditions. Furthermore, an acclimatization period of several weeks is needed for individuals who have not been exposed to high heat conditions. All employees are at risk of heat stress and heat-related illness during hot periods. Employees at greater risk are those 65 years or older, are overweight, have heart disease or high blood pressure, or take medications that may be affected by extreme heat. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Agriculture Animals Cattle Dairy Products Heat Stress Disorders Hot Temperature Livestock Occupational Health Safety Temperature
• Keywords:
  Agricultural Workers Animal Handlers Cattle Industry Dairy Products Heat Exposure Heat Stress Hot Environments Outdoor Workers Safety Education Temperature Effects Worker Safety

  More +
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article ; Lay Publication
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; Iowa ; New Mexico ; OSHA Region 6 ; OSHA Region 7 ; OSHA Region 8 ; Texas
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20052249
• Citation:
  Prog Dairyman 2013 Aug; :1-3
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2013
• NORA Priority Area:
  Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
• Performing Organization:
  Colorado State University - Ft. Collins
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20030915
• Source Full Name:
  The Progressive Dairyman
• End Date:
  20270914
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:33d89d0f14b801741101dd89913f973c6abee728996589903561c568578f602fa46d6af2269597b6056e1e0b0a91df95565a3079df452e6ed30b7c02fcbf01b1
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/211804/cdc_211804_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 117.47 KB ]