The daily routine of cattle

The daily routine of cattle kept under near-natural conditions

Cattle are diurnal animals. The nocturnal sleep is completed with a short rumination phase, the adult animals are beginning to graze until the calves wake up and seek out their mothers for suckling. The herd is moving on to the pasture ground in a strict order, led by the lead cow - not necessarily the highest ranking cow. The bull walks with the low-ranking cows in the last third of the herd, while the highest -ranking cow walks most often in the middle, and the calves stay close to their mothers. The lead cow determines the pasture ground, the youngest calves gather in the "kindergarden".

With great regularity the grazing period is followed by a time of social grooming, subsequently followed by an extensive resting period with rumination. during long nights, a nocturnal grazing period is taking place.