ArticleAnimals : an open access journal from MDPI2023
Evaluation of the Thermal Response of the Horns in Dairy Cattle.
Article in Animals : an open access journal from MDPI, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Body surface temperatures as biomarkers of physiological environmental adaptation in wild birds and mammals.Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society · 2026Pooled it
- An Edge-Deployable Method for Cow-Head Detection and Cross-Camera Association in Visible-Thermal Robotic Dairy Monitoring.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2026Article
- Review
- Impact of Horn Traits on Yanhuang Cattle: Association with Production Performance and Genetic Characterization of Candidate Polled Alleles.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2026Article
- Welfare of beef cattle.EFSA journal. European Food Safety Authority · 2025Article
- Medicated Meloxicam Pellets Reduce Some Indicators of Pain in Disbudded Dairy Calves.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2025Article
- Genetic advancements and future directions in ruminant livestock breeding: from reference genomes to multiomics innovations.Science China. Life sciences · 2025Review
- Hypothalamic Neuromodulation and Control of the Dermal Surface Temperature of Livestock during Hyperthermia.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2024Review
- Utilization of Infrared Thermography in Assessing Thermal Responses of Farm Animals under Heat Stress.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2024Review
- Human animal relationships inFrontiers in veterinary science · 2024Review
- Effects of Climatic Conditions and Supplementation with Palm Cake on the Thermoregulation of Crossbred Buffaloes Raised in a Rotational Grazing System and with Natural Shade in Humid Tropical Regions.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2023Article
- Thermal Balance in Male Water Buffaloes Transported by Long and Short Journeys.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Dairy cattle are typically disbudded or dehorned. Little is known, however, about the biological function and role of horns during thermoregulatory processes in cattle, and thus about the potential physiological consequences of horn removal. Anecdotal evidence suggests that dairy cow horns increase in temperature during rumination, and few studies on other bovid species indicate that horns aid thermoregulation. The objective of this study was, therefore, to elucidate a possible thermoregulatory function of the horns in dairy cattle. Using non-invasive infrared thermography, we measured the superficial temperature of the horns, eyes, and ears of 18 focal cows on three different farms in a temperate climate zone under various environmental circumstances. Observations of social and non-social behaviours were conducted as well. Based on environmental temperature, humidity, and wind speed, the heat load index (HLI) was calculated as a measure of the heat load experienced by a cow. The temperature of the horns increased by 0.18 °C per unit HLI, indicating that horns serve the dissipation of heat. Dehorned cows had higher eye temperatures than horned cows, though this result should be interpreted with caution as the low sample size and experimental setup prevent casual conclusions. We did not, however, find changes in horn temperature during rumination, nor with any other behaviours. Our study thus supports a role of horns in thermoregulation, but not related to rumination. These results should be considered when assessing the potential consequences of horn removal, a painful procedure.
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