Assessing behavior as a means to evaluate
welfare can reveal how cows cope with their
environment and physiological state. Lameness
modifies normal dairy cattle behavior,
presumably due to the pain caused by
weightbearing. For example, Hassall et al.
(1993) showed that lame cows entered the
milking parlor later, lifted and kicked their feet
more frequently, and shifted weight from one
foot to another more often during milking
compared to non-lame cows.