Document type: scientific article published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science
Authors: Chayma Chaouch Aoun, Moufida Atigui, Marwa Brahmi, Eya Gherairi, Mohamed Hammadi
Preview: Time budgets can be used to determine the amount of time camels allocate to different behaviors throughout the day and can be a useful tool to evaluate animals' management systems. This work investigated time budgets and temporal dynamics of dairy camels' activities on intensively managed farms. Nine clinically healthy dairy camels (11.7 ± 1.9 years, 437.8 ± 12.0 kg and 72.6 ± 7.1 DIM) housed in a loose stall barn were monitored for 6 consecutive days. An ethogram of 16 behavioral activities was developed. Behavioral observations were continuously recorded. The mean duration for major behavioral activities was calculated to obtain the time-budget. Temporal pattern distribution of each activity was evaluated and their relationships were analyzed using Spearman correlations. Results showed that camels spent most of their time in a standing position feeding. Rumination remained high from late evening until early morning and reached maximum levels around 4:00. During 24 h, camels were standing and lying for 54% and 38% of their time, respectively. Data revealed that main behavioral activities expressed were feeding (35.5%) followed by rumination (24.5%). Walking activity remained low along the day and represented only 2% of the total time budget of stabled camels. Coprophagy was detected in subordinate camels which spent 10.3 ± 1.7 min/day searching fresh feces. These results suggested that time budgets and daily patterns of behavioral activities should be taken in consideration to improve management conditions in stabled dairy camels.
