Do cows with stereotypic tongue-rolling behaviour cope better with their environment?

Introduction: Stereotypic behaviours, especially oral stereotypic behaviours, are frequently expressed in farm animals. Tongue-rolling is the most common oral stereotypic behaviour in dairy cows (Bos taurus). If animals frequently display stereotypic behaviours, this is an indication of poor welfare. It has been suggested that animals express stereotypic behaviours as a way of coping with stress. As a result, animals with stereotypic behaviours may have lower levels of stress hormones than animals without stereotypic behaviours. Methods: In this study, 916 Holstein cows in the first lactation were subjected to scan sampling behavioural observations 200 times for 10 days. All cows were assigned to either a stereotypic behaviours group (SB) or a control group (CON). The SB group was further subdivided into a tongue-rolling group (TR) and an other-stereotypic behaviours group (OS). The TR group was also split into an only tongue-rolling group (OTR) and a mixed tongue-rolling and other stereotypic behaviours group (TROS). Some cows in the TR group belonged to an extreme tongue-rolling group (ETR). Hair and saliva samples were collected from 601 cows to test cortisol concentrations and dairy herd improvement (DHI) data were collected from a total of 762 cows. Results: There were no differences in hair or saliva cortisol concentrations between the groups (p>0.05), and the frequencies of tongue-rolling were not associated with cortisol concentrations (p>0.05). For DHI in cows, the milk protein percentage (p = 0.028), milk true protein percentage (p = 0.021) and milk crude protein percentage (p = 0.023) of cows in the ETR group were significantly lower than those in the CON group. For cows in ETR group, as the frequencies of tongue-rolling increased, the milk protein percentage (p = 0.034, r = 0.365), milk true protein percentage (p = 0.022, r = 0.393) and milk crude protein percentage (p = 0.035, r = 0.363) increased. Discussion: We investigated the relationship between stereotypic behaviours and stress by using a non-invasive sampling method to minimise harm to the cows. We suggest that tongue-rolling may not be a way for cows to cope with stress, at least in terms of cortisol concentrations.

Investigations on some indicators in the blood of cattle with orosthenic activity tongue rolling.

Objective: Hematological studies were carried out in cattle with tongue-rolling hyperactivity in order to establish the etiopathogenetic mechanisms of this behavioral disorder. Materials and Methods: Cattle were divided into two groups: Group 1 (n = 12), control animals that did not demonstrate the tongue-rolling orosthenic activity, and Group 2 (n = 12), cattle that manifested this stereotyped behavior. Blood samples were collected from all cattle twice at 10-day intervals from Vena jugularis for analysis of red blood cell counts, hemoglobin (HGB) content, mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular HGB (MCH), mean corpuscular HGB concentration (MCHC), hematocrit (HCT), white blood cell counts (WBC), and differential white cell counts [lymphocytes (LYM), monocytes (MON), and granulocytes (GRAs)]. Some blood biochemical constituents were assayed: calcium, inorganic phosphorus, magnesium, plasma total protein, blood glucose, total bilirubin, urea, creatinine, chlorides, cholesterol, triglycerides, and albumin, as well as the enzyme activities of aspartate amino-transferase (AST), alanine amino-transferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), gamma-glutamyltransferase (γ-GT), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and creatine kinase (CK). Blood concentrations of the hormones adrenaline, noradrenaline, cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), dopamine, serotonin, free thyroxine, thyroid-stimulating hormone, and trace elements manganese, copper, and iron were determined. Results: It was found out that the cattle with tongue-rolling hyperactivity did not demonstrate changes in red blood picture (HGB, HCT, MCV, MCH, MCHC), white blood picture (WBC, LYM, MON, GRA), blood biochemistry (Ca, P, Mg, TP, Glu, TB, urea, creatine, Cl, Chole, TG, and Alb), AST, ALT, ALP, γ-GT, LDH, and CK activities, Cu, and Fe levels. In the study, increased concentrations of adrenaline, noradrenaline, cortisol, ACTH, and serotonin were established. Conclusion: The data demonstrating increased levels of adrenaline, noradrenaline, cortisol, and ACTH confirmed the etiological role of environmental stressors in the emergence of oral hyperactivity. Increased serotonin concentrations in the blood suggest that cattle with the stereotype are probably "happy" with tongue rolling. The lack of changes in blood trace elements manganese, copper, and iron allowed excluding their deficiency as a probable cause in the etiology of the disorder.

Evaluation of Holstein cows with different tongue-rolling frequencies: stress immunity, rumen environment and general behavioural activity.

BACKGROUND: The tongue-rolling behaviour of cows is regarded as an outward sign of stressed animals in a low welfare status. The primary aim of this observational study was to evaluate the association between the frequency of tongue-rolling behaviour and its physiological function. The secondary aim was to explore the relationship between general activities and the frequency of tongue-rolling behaviour of cows. A total of 126 scan sampling behavioural observations were collected over 7 d on 348 Holstein cows with the same lactation stage in the same barn. The tongue-rolling frequency was defined as the number of tongue-rolling observations as a percentage to the total observations per individual cow. According to their tongue-rolling frequency, the cows were grouped into the CON (no tongue-rolling), LT (frequency 1%), MT (frequency 5%), and HT (frequency 10%) groups. Six cows from each group were randomly selected for sampling. Serum samples, rumen fluid, milk yield, and background information were collected. The general behaviour data during 72 continuous hours of dairy cows, including eating time, rumination time, food time (eating time + rumination time), and lying time, were recorded by the collar sensor. RESULTS: Cortisol (P = 0.012), γ-hydroxybutyric acid (P = 0.008), epinephrine (P = 0.030), and dopamine (P = 0.047) levels were significantly higher in tongue-rolling groups than in the CON group. Cortisol levels and tongue-rolling frequency had a moderate positive correlation (linearly r = 0.363). With the increase in tongue-rolling frequency, the rumen pH decreased first and then increased (P = 0.013), comparing to the CON group. HT cows had significantly less food time than CON cows (P = 0.035). The frequency of tongue-rolling had a moderate negative relationship with rumination time (r = -0.384) and food time (r = -0.492). CONCLUSIONS: The tongue-rolling behaviour is considered as a passive coping mechanism, as the stress response in cows with high tongue-rolling frequency increased. Food intake and rumination activities were all closely related to the occurrence of tongue-rolling behaviour.

Five Specific Tongue Movements in a Healthy Population.

The importance of tongue mobility on speech, oral food transport, and swallowing is well recognized. However, whether the individual tongue mobility influences postoperative function in oral cancer treatment remains to be elucidated. This study assesses the ability to perform five tongue movements as rolling, twisting (two sides), folding, and the 'cloverleaf' in a healthy population. Because a tumor in oral cancer patients often restricts the mobility of the tongue, it might be helpful to know if it is possible to recall any of those movements without demonstrating it. Two observers asked 387 Dutch healthy adults if they could perform one of the five specific tongue movements and were subsequently asked to demonstrate the five movements. The distribution in the Dutch population is: rolling: 83.7%, cloverleaf: 14.7%, folding: 27.5%, twisting left: 36.1% and twisting right: 35.6%. The percentage of people that can fold their tongue is almost ten times higher (3% versus 27.5%) than in previous research, and it was found that the ability to roll the tongue is not a prerequisite for folding of the tongue. A relationship between gender or right-handedness and the ability to perform certain tongue movements could not be found. Of the participants, 9.9% and 13.1% incorrectly assumed that they could demonstrate tongue rolling and cloverleaf. Tongue folding and twisting (left or right) were incorrectly assumed in 36.9%, 24.1%, and 25.4% of the cases. Rolling and cloverleaf are preferred for future prediction models because these movements are easy to recall without demonstrating.