J. Dairy Sci. 106:9105–9114 https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2022-23177 © 2023, The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. and Fass Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association ® . This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Repeatabilities of individual measures of feed intake and body weight on in-house commercial dairy cattle using a 3-dimensional camera system J. Lassen,* J. R. Thomasen, and S. Borchersen VikingGenetics, Ebeltoftvej 16, 8960 Randers, Denmark ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION In this study a 3-dimensional (3D) camera system was set up to measure individual feed intake of dairy cows in a commercial in-house setting. The system was developed to identify the cows while eating, predict body weight based on the curvature of the back of the cow, and quantify the amount of feed eaten by the cow at each visit of eating. The identification of the cow was based on recognizing the patterns, colors, and cur- vatures of the back from a reference database obtained in a corridor after milking, where images were taken of all cows with a simultaneous reading of the electronic ear tag. Body weight is predicted using the curvatures of the back of the cow. Feed intake is quantified as the difference in surface of the feed a cow can reach before and after a visit is initiated. This estimate is in liters but converted to kilograms, using the density of the feed in the specific herd. A total of 9,142 cows were measured in 19 herds across 3 breeds: Jersey (2,513 cows), Red Dairy Cattle (2,813 cows), and Holstein (3,816 cows). Mean daily feed intake was higher for Red Dairy Cattle (61.72 kg) and Holstein (64.59 kg) than for Jersey (55.74 kg). Repeatability estimates for daily feed intake as a weekly average was 0.62, 0.65, and 0.63 for Jersey, Red Dairy, and Holstein cattle, respectively. Mean body weight was higher for Red Dairy (647.9 kg) and Holstein (683.8 kg) than for Jersey (469.6 kg). Repeatability estimates for body weight as a weekly average was 0.83, 0.85, and 0.88 for Jersey, Red Dairy, and Holstein, respectively. The perspectives in having such records available is huge both for the farmer and for the dairy industry. The records can both be used for improving management in farms on an individual cow level and herd level, but also for genetic evaluation and selection as well as testing feeding regimens. Feed intake can be measured on an individual level using a 3D camera system. Key words: feed intake, body weight, 3D camera, repeatability Received December 21, 2022. Accepted July 17, 2023. *Corresponding author: jalas@vikinggenetics.com Feed cost is up to 70% of the running cost for a farmer, so saving even a marginal amount of feed will make a huge impact on the return on a farm. A part of the variation in feed intake and efficiency is heritable, which make selection for improved feed efficiency pos- sible (Løvendahl et al., 2018). A limitation to imple- ment this is lack of data on the individual cow level recorded in commercial settings throughout the lacta- tion. So far, equipment for registering individual feed intake has primarily been on research farms and based on scale system that are expensive and time consuming to manage (Seymour et al., 2019). This includes the HOKO-system (Insentec B.V.) and GrowSafe auto- mated feeding system (GrowSafe Systems Ltd., Airdrie, Alberta, Canada). Feed intake measured in research farms is repeatable (0.66) as well as heritable (0.34; Berry et al., 2014), so selection can be performed to change the trait in the preferred direction. The Insentec monitoring system permits loose-housed cows to freely access several feeding and drinking stations, which allows researchers to collect continuous feeding and drinking behavioral data. The basis of this system is radio frequency identification ( RFID ) ear tags coupled with an automated barrier between the cow and the feed and water. The Insentec monitoring system per- forms well in several studies including Chapinal et al. (2007). A scale-based system with a physical barrier placed between the cow and the feed still is expected to influence the natural feeding behaviors of the cow. The ideal system measures, controls, and monitors in- dividual feed intake of the free-housed cow, whereas not interfering with feeding habits and not introduc- ing additional work or inhibiting workflow on the farm (Halachmi et al., 1998). In the last decade several studies have aimed at doing genetic analysis of feed intake on research farm data (Manzanilla Pech et al., 2014; Li et al., 2016). Often such analysis consists of registrations on fewer than 1,000 cows and face challenges on limited amount of data to do proper analysis. Therefore, international col- laborations have been set up (Berry et al., 2014; Tem- pelman et al., 2015; Baes et al., 2022). This has opened 9105
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