Over the last five years, I have found myself circling around four key concepts: Performance. Philosophy. Animals. And Equality. And I have found myself thinking in and with circles. It began with the various references to circles we can find in the philosophy of Henri Bergson - in his idea of the field …

In the European Union, cattle registration has been harmonised, and every farmer has to report cattle deaths to a national computer database. However, there is no obligation to mention the reason for culling, death or slaughter. In dairy farming, the herd is constantly renewed by letting in some young …

Several studies have suggested that precision livestock farming (PLF) is a useful tool foranimal welfare management and assessment. Location, posture and movement of an individual are key elements in identifying the animal and recording its behaviour. Currently, multiple technologies are available for …

Over the last decades, the increased demand in beef by the growing population led to an industrialization and intensification of the production systems. This resulted in many issues such as environmental impact, animal welfare, consumers acceptability, resource-use efficiency, growing reliance on edible …

Inbreeding rates in the Holstein Friesian dairy cattle breed are rapidly increasing, by which the negative effects of inbreeding depression on performance are becoming increasingly remarkable. To avoid the effects of inbreeding depression, crossbreeding strategies may be applied. Crossbreeding results …

The aim of the research is to help the Maasai to restore the ecosystem in order to get more feed for their livestock, but also for wildlife. This has become an issue mainly because of the droughts, erosion, dividing of land and overgrazing. These circumstances are different comparing with the past. The …

The current situation of the Icelandic dairy production and the desire of the Icelandic farmers are the occasion of this study. The main objective of the study is to identify opportunities in feeding management to improve the production of the Icelandic dairy farms. The four important subjects within …

Energy efficiency, greenhouse gas reduction and cost price of a green gas supply chain were evaluated. This supply chain is based on co-digestion of dairy cattle manure and maize, biogas upgrading and injection into a distribution gas grid. A defined reference scenario reflects the current state of practice, …

Good reproduction is key for successful dairyfarming. Detection of estrus is the first step in getting acow pregnant. Visual detection of estrus is a challengingjob, to aid the farmer, estrus detection tools (EDT), suchas pedometers, neck mounted collars to measure activityand pressure sensing devices …

Heathland, with its frail character, has always been one of the most essential habitats for almost all indigenous reptile species in the Netherlands. Situated in the Drents-Friese Wold National Park, the Doldersummerveld ranks as one of the best developed heathland areas of Western Europe and counts …