Table 5.
Effect of sprinkler flow rate on behavioral responses of Nili Ravi buffaloes (n = 18) during summer.
| Variables | Sprinkler Flow Rates, L/min | p-Value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.8 | 1.25 | 2.0 | SEM | ||
| Feeding behavior/10 h | |||||
| Total feeding time 1, min | 298.6 | 309.9 | 302.4 | 10.8 | 0.6162 |
| Meal bout length 2, min/bout | |||||
| Overall | 85.1 | 99.3 | 99.6 | 5.28 | 0.0762 |
| Morning 3 | 105.6 a | 138.8 b | 139.5 b | 7.9 | 0.0003 |
| Afternoon | 51.7 | 51.8 | 51.0 | 2.84 | 0.9606 |
| Meal bout frequency, No. | |||||
| Overall | 4.2 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 0.15 | |
| Morning | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 0.06 | |
| Afternoon | 2.9 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 0.14 | |
| Standing behavior/10 h | |||||
| Total standing time 4, min | 440.3 | 426.4 | 411.3 | 10.26 | 0.0612 |
| Standing bout length 5, min/bout | |||||
| Overall | 99.8 | 99.9 | 89.6 | 1.06 | 0.1236 |
| Morning | 90.7 | 92.7 | 81.9 | 1.09 | 0.4691 |
| Afternoon | 109.9 | 108.3 | 98.0 | 1.06 | 0.2236 |
| Standing bouts frequency, No. | |||||
| Overall | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 0.14 | |
| Morning | 2.1 | 2.0 | 2.1 | 0.09 | |
| Afternoon | 2.3 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 0.09 | |
| Lying behavior/10 h | |||||
| Total lying time 6, min | 159.7 | 173.6 | 188.7 | 10.27 | 0.0618 |
| Lying bout length 5, min/bout | |||||
| Overall | 46.3 | 52.9 | 53.0 | 2.29 | 0.0636 |
| Morning | 52.7 | 63.3 | 60.8 | 3.61 | 0.1169 |
| Afternoon | 40.2 | 42.7 | 45.2 | 2.33 | 0.2609 |
| Lying bout frequency, No. | |||||
| Total | 3.3 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 0.15 | |
| Morning | 1.7 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 0.09 | |
| Afternoon | 1.8 | 1.9 | 1.9 | 0.10 | |
| Standing in water tub 7, min | 6.4 a | 3.1 b | 3.6 b | 0.55 | <0.0001 |
a–b Values with different superscripts in a row are significantly different (p ≤ 0.05). 1 A buffalo was considered to be feeding when its head and neck were inside the manger area and ended when this criterion was no longer met. 2 A meal bout is the sum of the feeding and non-feeding intervals based on the meal criterion. 3 Daytime was classified into two categories; morning (800 to 1159 h) and afternoon (1200 to 1800 h). 4 A buffalo not lying was considered as standing either feeding or not. 5 Continuous duration of standing or lying. 6 A buffalo was recorded as lying when either of the flanks were on the floor. 7 When buffaloes put either one or both front legs inside their water tubs.