Here we propose a low-cost automated system for the unobtrusive and continuous welfare monitoring of dairy cattle on the farm. We argue that effective and regular monitoring of multiple condition traits is not currently practicable and go on to propose 3D imaging technology able to acquire differing forms of related animal condition data (body condition, lameness and weight), concurrently using a single device. Results obtained under farm conditions in continuous operation are shown to be comparable or better than manual scoring of the herd. We also consider inherent limitations of using scoring and argue that sensitivity to relative change over successive observations offers greater benefit than the use of what may be considered abstract and arbitrary scoring systems.

在这里，我们提出了一种低成本的自动化系统，用于对农场奶牛进行不干扰和持续的福利监控。我们认为，目前尚无法对多个条件特征进行有效且定期的监视，并继续提出能够使用单个设备同时获取不同形式的相关动物条件数据（身体状况，la行和体重）的3D成像技术。结果表明，在农场条件下连续运行所获得的结果可比或优于人工评分。我们还考虑了使用评分的内在局限性，并指出，相对于连续观察的相对变化的敏感性比使用抽象评分系统和任意评分系统更具优势。