Considering the significant influence of high ambient temperature and heat waves on the well-being and productivity of dairy cows, it is to be expected that, in the course of the next few decades, climate conditions for raising cattle will deteriorate. Research has shown that heat stress causes many negative consequences in terms of physiological and behavioural disturbances and significant losses in milk production. The effort to reduce the risk of the occurrence of heat stress among dairy cows also involves the search for new environmental methods of predicting heat stress. The aim of this paper is to review and systematise the current state of knowledge on the topic of the most widely used environmental methods of determining and predicting heat stress in dairy cows and also to show the directions of studies for the future. Based on an analysis of the most popular indexes, the study evaluated their suitability for forecasting heat stress related to maintenance systems and climate conditions for cows. However, the negative results of heat stress often appear with a delay, and a carry-over effect may be experienced (summer heat stress may affect the cows until autumn). The time of the year and breed of cows could have a big impact on when animals become sensitive to increasing heat loads. This likely can be a big contributor to the discrepancies within the different heat stress equations. It is essential to prevent the occurrence of heat stress, predicting it by observing local microclimate conditions and using meteorological forecasts. Thanks to these measures, a breeder may prepare and implement suitable solutions for protecting the animals.

Good husbandry conditions on farms is of key importance for assuring animal welfare. One of the most important legal documents regulating the rules of maintaining pigs is the Directive 2008/120/EC, which states that group-housed pigs should have access to litter or other materials that provide exploration and occupation. Released in 2016, the Commission Recommendation (EU) 2016/336 on the application of the Council Directive 2008/120/EC characterizes the various categories of materials that may be used to improve animal welfare. According to the document, straw is considered as an optimal material for pig housing, however, materials categorized as suboptimal (e.g., wood bark) and materials of marginal interest (e.g., plastic toys) are often used in practice and scientific research. As such, the aim of this paper is to review and systematize the current state of knowledge on the topic of the impact of environmental enrichment on pig welfare. This article raises mainly issues, such as the effectiveness of the use of various enrichment on the reduction of undesirable behavior—tail biting; aggression; and stereotypies at the pre-weaning, post-weaning, and fattening stage of pig production.

An increase in the frequency of hot periods, which has been observed over the past decades, determines the novel approach to livestock facilities improvement. The effects of heat stress are revealed in disorders in physiological processes, impaired immunity, changes in behaviour and decreases in animal production, thus implementation of cooling technologies is a key factor for alleviating these negative consequences. In pig facilities, various cooling methods have been implemented. Air temperature may be decreased by using adiabatic cooling technology such as a high-pressure fogging system or evaporative pads. In modern-type buildings large-surface evaporative pads may support a tunnel ventilation system. Currently a lot of attention has also been paid to developing energy- and water-saving cooling methods, using for example an earth-air or earth-to-water heat exchanger. The pigs’ skin surface may be cooled by using sprinkling nozzles, high-velocity air stream or conductive cooling pads. The effectiveness of these technologies is discussed in this article, taking into consideration the indicators of animal welfare such as respiratory rate, skin surface and body core temperature, performance parameters and behavioural changes.

The presented study determining the relationship between the Temperature Humidity Index (THI) value during the summer months (June–August) and daily behaviour of 40 Holstein–Friesian dairy cows, including the length of standing, laying bouts and locomotor activity. Behaviour observations were conducted on a preferences test concerning their choice to time and place of rest with respect to time duration of THI: neutral (maximum 3 h with THI = 68), warm (time of THI > 68 occurrence lasted less than 12 h) and hot (time of THI > 68 occurrence lasted longer than 12 h). Obtained results was processed using analysis of the Spearman’s correlation coefficient with significant at p < .05. The results showed a decrease in daily total lying time between the neutral and hot periods from 9.9 to 7.8 h/d. Along with the increase in THI by 1 unit between the warm and hot periods, there was observed a decrease in total lying time by 38 min/d in the cubicles. With an increase in the THI was also observed an increase by 15 min/d in the lying cows in the manure alleys during the night-time. During the warm and hot periods, the cows’ activity showed a negative correlation with the increasing THI. Cows changed their behaviour during the summer depending on the prevailing environmental conditions. The behavioural studies on cows, without taking into account the variability of microclimate conditions, can lead to their inaccuracy and the misrepresentation of their results.