Vacas leiteiras e música clássica brasileira: um encontro inusitado

Abstract

Animal welfare is affected by many factors. It is a controversial subject, with great importance when raising animals. Music is one of the alternatives for environmental enrichment and well-being during milking, and its use has the objective of providing better living conditions, enhancing cow performance and human-animal interaction. The objective of this work was to verify the effect of music on the behavior in the milking parlor and the productivity of Holstein dairy cows. The music used was the Brazilian instrumental music Odeon, composed by Ernesto Nazareth and the productive variables analyzed were volume, density, pH, fat and protein contents and somatic cell count of milk. The behavioral variables were movementation score, micturition and defecation in the milking parlor. Sixteen multiparous cows were evaluated, with a mean age of 5.9 years and mean of 77 days in lactation, during 20 days in two milkings per day. The experimental period was divided, and in the first 10 days Group 1 was exposed to music from entering to exiting the milking parlour and Group 2 to routine milking sounds. In the second period, the groups were reversed. The incidence of music significantly affected the production of milk from Group 1, with an increase in production when cows were milked with music. The milk density produced by Group 2 cows was significantly affected by music. There was no effect on cow behavior, mean values of fat, pH, protein and somatic cell count. Based on these results, it is considered that the music acted positively and efficiently in the milk production of dairy cows of higher production, translated by the increase of their productivity.