Preconditioning and weaning beef cattle: impacts on health and behaviour of beef calves and cows and the stakeholders’ perspectives
| dc.contributor.advisor | Orsel, Karin | |
| dc.contributor.author | Mijar, Sanjaya | |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Pajor, Ed | |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | van der Meer, Frank | |
| dc.contributor.committeemember | Pearson, Jennifer | |
| dc.date | 2025-02 | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-01-15T20:28:32Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2025-01-15T20:28:32Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2025-01-09 | |
| dc.description.abstract | While preconditioning benefits calf health and performance, its adoption remains challenging due to uncertainties surrounding commingling preconditioned (PC) and auction-derived (AD) calves, as well as various social, financial, and market barriers in the beef industry. Furthermore, limited understanding of weaning stress on beef cows complicates preconditioning efforts aimed at minimizing stress and promoting animal welfare. Chapter 2 determined the impacts of commingling PC and AD calves in the feedlot in varying proportions, revealing that PC calves, regardless of commingling, showed reduced bovine respiratory disease (BRD)-related morbidity and lower treatment rates than AD calves. Chapter 3 investigated calves’ behavioural and physiological responses to stress related to feedlot transitioning, finding that PC calves showed better adaptation to the feedlot environment with increased eating and rumination, though hair cortisol levels did not differentiate stress responses. Chapter 4 explored beef industry stakeholders’ perspectives on preconditioning, identifying key motivators and barriers to its implementation. Five overarching themes were identified: Ranchers’ satisfaction and accountability and Thriving calves as motivations; and Lack of incentives, The quest for preconditioning proof, and Supply shortfall as barriers. Chapter 5 assessed weaning stress in three different weaning methods by measuring physiological and behavioural responses in beef cows, finding that nose-flap (NF) weaned cows exhibited fewer vocalizations, and less walking and pacing compared to abruptly or fenceline (FL) weaned cows. Fenceline weaned cows also had increased fecal glucocorticoid metabolites concentrations post-weaning compared to NF and abruptly weaned cows. Overall, this thesis highlights the health and feeding performance advantages of preconditioning calves outperforming AD calves, irrespective of commingling. This thesis also identifies underlying motivations and barriers to preconditioning adoption, and offers recommendations for strengthening preconditioning verification, fostering trust, and providing financial incentives to encourage broader adoption of preconditioning practices. Additionally, this thesis suggests the need for cow-calf operators to recognize that cows experience weaning stress differently than calves and to select less stressful weaning method aligning with specific ranch goals and production targets. Future research should emphasize extensive commingling protocols, weaning stress impacts on calves in utero and after birth, and a broader survey on preconditioning adoption in Canada. | |
| dc.identifier.citation | Mijar, S. (2025). Preconditioning and weaning beef cattle: impacts on health and behaviour of beef calves and cows and the stakeholders’ perspectives (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/1880/120428 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.publisher.faculty | Veterinary Medicine | |
| dc.publisher.institution | University of Calgary | |
| dc.rights | University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. | |
| dc.subject | Preconditioning | |
| dc.subject | Mixing | |
| dc.subject | Cortisol | |
| dc.subject | Behaviour | |
| dc.subject | Qualitative study | |
| dc.subject | Weaning | |
| dc.subject.classification | Veterinary Science | |
| dc.subject.classification | Epidemiology | |
| dc.subject.classification | Animal Physiology | |
| dc.subject.classification | Psychology--Behavioral | |
| dc.subject.classification | Education--Health | |
| dc.title | Preconditioning and weaning beef cattle: impacts on health and behaviour of beef calves and cows and the stakeholders’ perspectives | |
| dc.type | doctoral thesis | |
| thesis.degree.discipline | Veterinary Medical Sciences | |
| thesis.degree.grantor | University of Calgary | |
| thesis.degree.name | Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) | |
| ucalgary.thesis.accesssetbystudent | I require a thesis withhold – I need to delay the release of my thesis due to a patent application, and other reasons outlined in the link above. I have/will need to submit a thesis withhold application. |