Welfare oriented nutrition and lamb rearing in organic dairy goat husbandry
Dairy goat husbandry represents a production system that both avoids food competition with humans and is
highly efficient at the same time. It also makes an important contribution to the diversification of livestock
production and pasture use. In the field of pasture management, questions such as feed intake on pasture,
N-use on pasture, the assumed energy demand as well as the movement activity of the animals on pasture
are investigated in this project; these variables are compared with goats kept indoors. Scientific bases for
ensuring the energy requirement of lactating goats on pasture are largely lacking. In addition, a survey of
the feeding situation on 20 practical farms is being carried out. Due to the particularly high feed competition
in goats, this depends decisively on the design of the feeding place in the barn. The effects of the feeding
place design and the feeding management on the social and feed intake behaviour as well as the condition
of the animals are therefore investigated on the participating farms. On the same farms, feed and nutrient
intake and herd performance will be recorded. Simple animal-specific indicators for feeding will be
assessed. The data also allow an evaluation of the accuracy of the current nutrient recommendations for
goats in organic farming. For consumer acceptance and the optimisation of animal welfare, lamb rearing
with contact to the dam can become a strong quality feature of a farm. Therefore, in addition to the direct
advantages for the lamb, the project will also investigate the effects of such rearing on the social learning of
the animals and their feeding behaviour. Particular attention will be paid to animal-based indicators that
facilitate or support decisions in animal management.
Participating organisational units of HU Berlin
Financer
Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture
Duration of project
Start date: 03/2024
End date: 02/2027
Research Areas
Animal Breeding, Animal Nutrition, Animal Husbandry, Animal Physiology and Biochemistry, Biological Psychology and Cognitive Neuroscience, Sensory and Behavioural Biology, Veterinary Medical Science
Research Areas
Animal Husbandry, Ökologische Landwirtschaft, Tierwohl
