TECHNIQUES OF MEASURING HEART RATE IN CATTLE

The intensive animal breeding systems can cause severe environment degradation. However, the highly productive animals are extremely sensitive to the environmental changes. The animal welfare can be in direct contradiction with the need for highly intensive and economically successful milk production. The research is aimed at complementing the method of establishing the stress in calves, race heifers, fattened cattle and milk-cows with different body masses. Measuring of heart rate is one of painless measurements of physiological parameters of stress and, from the point of view of animals it has many advantages over the measurements including taking of blood samples. For measuring the heart rate of different categories of cattle without interference into their body we have tested the usefulness of special apparatuses used worldwide by top sportsmen during training for following up, measuring and monitoring the heart rate. These are Polar monitors of the heart rate, made by Finnish company Polar Electro Oy and working wirelessly with ECG precision. The receiver counts the heart rate on the basis of pulse-to-pulse time average algorithms in 5, 15 or 60-second intervals. The computer interface ensures magnetic transfer of measured and saved data on animals into a PC where the analysis of each collected data file follows. The used type of transmitter "Polar sport tester profi" having two electrodes in an airtight sealed frame has enabled us to obtain a good signal on calves of up to 180 kg body mass. Periodic response in case of young cattle of up to 280 kg body mass has been registered only if electrolyte was added between the animal skin and the feeler. By further modifications and tests of the mentioned apparatuses the expected response has been reached also on adult animals. We found that use of these apparatuses on animals did not have any influence on special animal acting behaviour. The production of milk and meat in herds did not change during the test