This study evaluated the impact of silvopasture on mitigating heat stress in grazing beef cattle by comparing physiological and behavioral responses between shaded and non-shaded pastures. Twenty-two multiparous cows were monitored over a 20-day summer trial in East Texas. Data were collected on respiration rate, heart rate, heat stress scores, and behaviors including eating, ruminating, walking, and resting. Average respiration rates and behavior proportions did not differ significantly between treatments. Afternoon periods showed peak physiological stress across all cattle, but silvopasture appeared to buffer extreme responses. Although limitations such as data gaps and a shortened trial impacted interpretation, findings suggest that silvopasture may enhance thermal comfort and support cattle welfare under heat stress conditions.
","abstract_html":"<p>This study evaluated the impact of silvopasture on mitigating heat stress in grazing beef cattle by comparing physiological and behavioral responses between shaded and non-shaded pastures. Twenty-two multiparous cows were monitored over a 20-day summer trial in East Texas. Data were collected on respiration rate, heart rate, heat stress scores, and behaviors including eating, ruminating, walking, and resting. Average respiration rates and behavior proportions did not differ significantly between treatments. Afternoon periods showed peak physiological stress across all cattle, but silvopasture appeared to buffer extreme responses. Although limitations such as data gaps and a shortened trial impacted interpretation, findings suggest that silvopasture may enhance thermal comfort and support cattle welfare under heat stress conditions.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Lofland, Sydney L"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science - Agriculture","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Agriculture","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Erin Brown","Dr. Joe Mask","Dr. Gregory Miller"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-08-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2025-08-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:30:49Z","subjects":["Silvopasture","Beef Cattle","Heat Stress","Animal Studies"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/635","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Erin Brown","Dr. Joe Mask","Dr. Gregory Miller"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Lofland, Sydney L"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2025-07-31T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Agriculture"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science - Agriculture"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Silvopasture","Beef Cattle","Heat Stress","Animal Studies"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/635"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This study evaluated the impact of silvopasture on mitigating heat stress in grazing beef cattle by comparing physiological and behavioral responses between shaded and non-shaded pastures. Twenty-two multiparous cows were monitored over a 20-day summer trial in East Texas. Data were collected on respiration rate, heart rate, heat stress scores, and behaviors including eating, ruminating, walking, and resting. Average respiration rates and behavior proportions did not differ significantly between treatments. Afternoon periods showed peak physiological stress across all cattle, but silvopasture appeared to buffer extreme responses. Although limitations such as data gaps and a shortened trial impacted interpretation, findings suggest that silvopasture may enhance thermal comfort and support cattle welfare under heat stress conditions.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Using Silvopasture to Mitigate Heat Stress in Grazing Beef Cattle"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Erin Brown","Dr. Joe Mask","Dr. Gregory Miller"],"dc:creator":["Lofland, Sydney L"],"dc:date.available":["2025-07-31T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This study evaluated the impact of silvopasture on mitigating heat stress in grazing beef cattle by comparing physiological and behavioral responses between shaded and non-shaded pastures. Twenty-two multiparous cows were monitored over a 20-day summer trial in East Texas. Data were collected on respiration rate, heart rate, heat stress scores, and behaviors including eating, ruminating, walking, and resting. Average respiration rates and behavior proportions did not differ significantly between treatments. Afternoon periods showed peak physiological stress across all cattle, but silvopasture appeared to buffer extreme responses. Although limitations such as data gaps and a shortened trial impacted interpretation, findings suggest that silvopasture may enhance thermal comfort and support cattle welfare under heat stress conditions.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/635"],"dc:subject":["Silvopasture","Beef Cattle","Heat Stress","Animal Studies"],"dc:title":["Using Silvopasture to Mitigate Heat Stress in Grazing Beef Cattle"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Agriculture"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science - Agriculture"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:30:49Z"}