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Röttgen V, Becker F, Tuchscherer A, Wrenzycki C, Düpjan S, Schön PC, Puppe B. Vocalization as an indicator of estrus climax in Holstein heifers during natural estrus and superovulation. J Dairy Sci 2018; 101:2383-2394. [PMID: 29331456 DOI: 10.3168/jds.2017-13412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2017] [Accepted: 11/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The reliable detection of estrus is an important scientific and practical challenge in dairy cattle farming. Female vocalization may indicate reproductive status, and preliminary evidence suggests that this information can be used to detect estrus in dairy cattle. The aim of this study was to associate the changes in the vocalization rate of dairy heifers with behavioral estrus indicators as well as test the influence of the type of estrus (natural estrus vs. superovulation-induced estrus). We analyzed 6 predefined estrus-related behavior patterns (standing to be mounted, head-side mounting, active mounting, chin resting, being mounted while not standing, and active sniffing in the anogenital region) and vocalization rates in the peri-estrus period (day of estrus ± 1 d) of 12 German Holstein heifers using audio-visual recordings. Each heifer was observed under natural estrus and a consecutive superovulation induced by FSH and cloprostenol. Estrus was determined by behavioral patterns and confirmed by clinical examination (vaginoscopy and ultrasound imaging of the ovaries) as well as by the concentration of peripheral progesterone. Estrus behavior and vocalization rates were analyzed in 3-h intervals (an average of 19 intervals for each heifer), and an estrus score was calculated based on the 6 behaviors. The interval with the highest estrus score (I0) was considered the estrus climax. We demonstrated similar time courses for the estrus score and vocalization rate independent of estrus type. However, in natural estrus, the maximum vocalization rate (±SE) occurred in the interval before estrus climax (I-1; 42.58 ± 21.89) and was significantly higher than that in any other interval except estrus climax (I0; 27.58 ± 9.76). During natural estrus, the vocalization rate was significantly higher within the interval before estrus climax (I-1; 42.58 ± 21.89 vs. 11.58 ± 5.51) than under superovulation. The results underscore the potential use of vocalization rate as a suitable indicator of estrus climax in automated estrus detection devices. Further studies and technical development are required to record and process individual vocalization rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Volker Röttgen
- Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), D-18196 Dummerstorf, Germany; Institute of Reproductive Biology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), D-18196 Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Frank Becker
- Institute of Reproductive Biology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), D-18196 Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Armin Tuchscherer
- Institute of Genetics and Biometry, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), D-18196 Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Christine Wrenzycki
- Chair of Molecular Reproductive Medicine, Clinic for Veterinary Obstetrics, Gynecology and Andrology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Justus-Liebig-University Giessen, D-35392 Giessen, Germany
| | - Sandra Düpjan
- Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), D-18196 Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Peter C Schön
- Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), D-18196 Dummerstorf, Germany
| | - Birger Puppe
- Institute of Behavioural Physiology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN), D-18196 Dummerstorf, Germany; Behavioural Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, University of Rostock, D-18059 Rostock, Germany.
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Chung Y, Lee J, Oh S, Park D, Chang HH, Kim S. Automatic Detection of Cow's Oestrus in Audio Surveillance System. ASIAN-AUSTRALASIAN JOURNAL OF ANIMAL SCIENCES 2014; 26:1030-7. [PMID: 25049882 PMCID: PMC4093488 DOI: 10.5713/ajas.2012.12628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2012] [Revised: 03/03/2013] [Accepted: 01/29/2013] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Early detection of anomalies is an important issue in the management of group-housed livestock. In particular, failure to detect oestrus in a timely and accurate way can become a limiting factor in achieving efficient reproductive performance. Although a rich variety of methods has been introduced for the detection of oestrus, a more accurate and practical method is still required. In this paper, we propose an efficient data mining solution for the detection of oestrus, using the sound data of Korean native cows (Bos taurus coreanea). In this method, we extracted the mel frequency cepstrum coefficients from sound data with a feature dimension reduction, and use the support vector data description as an early anomaly detector. Our experimental results show that this method can be used to detect oestrus both economically (even a cheap microphone) and accurately (over 94% accuracy), either as a standalone solution or to complement known methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Y Chung
- Department of Computer and Information Science, College of Science and Technology, Korea University, Sejong 339-700, Korea
| | - J Lee
- Department of Computer and Information Science, College of Science and Technology, Korea University, Sejong 339-700, Korea
| | - S Oh
- Department of Computer and Information Science, College of Science and Technology, Korea University, Sejong 339-700, Korea
| | - D Park
- Department of Computer and Information Science, College of Science and Technology, Korea University, Sejong 339-700, Korea
| | - H H Chang
- Department of Computer and Information Science, College of Science and Technology, Korea University, Sejong 339-700, Korea
| | - S Kim
- Department of Computer and Information Science, College of Science and Technology, Korea University, Sejong 339-700, Korea
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