Dairy Buffalo Behavior: Calving, Imprinting and Allosuckling
Daniel Mota-Rojas,
Andrea Bragaglio,
Ada Braghieri,
Fabio Napolitano,
Adriana Domínguez-Oliva,
Patricia Mora-Medina,
Adolfo Álvarez-Macías,
Giuseppe De Rosa,
Corrado Pacelli,
Nancy José,
Vittoria Lucia Barile
Affiliations
Daniel Mota-Rojas
Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico
Andrea Bragaglio
Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi Dell’Economia Agraria (CREA), Research Centre for Engineering and Food Processing, Via Milano 43, 24047 Treviglio, Italy
Ada Braghieri
Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Fabio Napolitano
Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Adriana Domínguez-Oliva
Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico
Patricia Mora-Medina
Department of Livestock Sciences, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), FESC, Mexico City 04510, Mexico
Adolfo Álvarez-Macías
Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico
Giuseppe De Rosa
Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Italy
Corrado Pacelli
Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Nancy José
Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico
Vittoria Lucia Barile
Research Centre for Animal Production and Aquaculture, Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi dell’Economia Agraria (CREA) (CREA), Via Salaria 31, 00015 Monterotondo, Italy
Maternal behavior, in water buffalo and other ruminants, is a set of patterns of a determined species, including calving, imprinting, and suckling. This behavior is mainly triggered by hormone concentration changes and their interactions with their respective receptors in the brain, particularly oxytocin. These chemical signals also influence mother–young bonding, a critical process for neonatal survival that develops during the first postpartum hours. Currently, dairy buffalo behavior during parturition has rarely been studied. For this reason, this review aims to analyze the existing scientific evidence regarding maternal behavior in water buffalo during calving. It will address the mechanisms of imprinting, maternal care, and allosuckling strategies that may influence the survival and health of calves.
