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Grass Puppies: Cows and Stress

From Animal Rights Coalition
June 2024

Cows are very social and develop bonds with each other. They even have preferences for who they choose to spend their time with. Did you know that cows can detect the scent of stress hormones in the urine of other cows? Cows are so tuned in to one another’s feelings that they experience “emotional contagion.” For example, if they encounter a very stressed herd mate, they can become stressed too.

Cow

Studies have shown that cows exhibit excitement and behaviors indicative of pleasure when they accomplish intellectually challenging tasks! Like other grazing animals, cows have excellent spatial memories and can navigate and remember mazes quite well. Once they complete the maze or other task, they can appear rather pleased with themselves.

What colors do cows see? Cows can see blues and greens but see reds, oranges, and yellows best. Cows can tell the difference between different shapes (such as a square and a circle) and various colors and sizes of the same shape. Not only can they differentiate between shapes, sizes, and colors, but they can also discriminate between pictures of familiar and unfamiliar cows. When cows were let into a space with pictures, they immediately went to the pictures of cows they knew.

Cows have around 20,000 taste buds. While cows can distinguish between sweet, salty, bitter, and sour tastes, they prefer sweet and salty foods. An aversion to bitter foods helps them avoid toxic plants, while their preference for sweet foods helps them ensure they consume foods with a high caloric value. Salty foods help them achieve a good electrolyte balance.

Cows are very social and develop bonds with each other. They even have preferences for who they choose to spend their time with. Did you know that cows can detect the scent of stress hormones in the urine of other cows? Cows are so tuned in to one another’s feelings that they experience “emotional contagion.” For example, if they encounter a very stressed herd mate, they can become stressed too.

Posted on All-Creatures.org: June 4, 2024
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