Identification of the best body regions for measuring superficial skin temperature (SST) in dairy goats exposed to thermal stress

Infrared thermography (IRT) is widely used as a non-invasive and stress-free method to measure superficial skin temperature (SST) in livestock, but few studies have been carried out in goats. The current study was conducted on 18 alpine dairy goats to determine which body region was mostly associated with variation in environmental parameters. Data were collected for six days between 19 July and 9 August 2023. Eye temperature and SST of flanks, back, knee and distal legs were measured using IRT at 7 am and 7 pm. The rectal temperature of the goats was measured each morning to ensure they were not experiencing hyperthermia. T and H were measured using a weather station, and THI was calculated using the NRC equation and varied from 61 to 85. THI at the time of measurement and the average THI over the previous 12 hours were fitted as independent variables to test which body regions best explained their variation. Distal legs and back were found to be the body sites mostly associated with THI variation; a 1 unit increase in average distal leg SST was associated with a 0.62 unit increase in THI (adjusted R2=0.88, p < 0.001), and a 1 unit increase in average back SST was associated with a 0.38 unit increase in THI (adjusted R2=0.88, p < 0.001). After validation, these body regions may be helpful in the assessment of thermal stress in goats using IRT as a non-invasive method. © 2024 11th European Conference on Precision Livestock Farming. All rights reserved.