Vibration levels and frequencies on vehicle and animals during transport

During transport, animals are subjected to various stressors, including vibration, noise and poor handling, and these compromise animal welfare. This study determined vibration levels and resonance frequencies for vehicles and dairy cows. A Volvo FM12 with air suspension, driven at 30, 50, 70 or 90 km h−1 on three road types, was used for transportation. To study the effect of standing orientation on vibration, animals were positioned parallel or perpendicular to the direction of travel. Vehicle speed was measured with MAGELLAN 315 type GPS. Two vibration sensors were placed on the chassis and floor and. additional sensors were firmly attached to adjustable straps mounted on animals. For each run, measurements were made over a 20 s period on five animals. The highest vibration level observed on animals was 2.27 ± 0.33 m s−2 when driving on gravel roads at 70 km h−1. Vibrations in the horizontal and lateral directions were lower on animals positioned perpendicular to the direction of travel than on those facing forward. Both road conditions (p < 0.0002) and standing orientation (p < 0.002) have a significant effect on vibration levels. Three main resonance frequencies were identified for the vertical direction, at 1.3, 5.1, 12.6 Hz, and at about 23 Hz. The vibration exposure values (8 h transport period) for the vertical, horizontal and lateral directions were 0.61 ± 0.12, 0.92 ± 0.35, and 1 ± 0.21 m s−2, respectively. These exceed the EU daily exposure action of 0.5 m s−2, but are lower than the daily exposure limit of 1.15 m s−2.