At first glance, cows might seem to be simple animals, but they’re not! Cows are fascinating animals. For instance did you know that cows can smell something up to 6 miles away, or that cows can produce 125 lbs. of saliva in one day. Here’s a list of interesting facts:
- Cows are social animals, and they naturally form large herds. And like people, they will make friends and bond to some herd members, while avoiding others
- Cows are red-green colorblind. In a bullfight, its the waving of the cape that attracts the bull not the red color
- A cow’s heart beats between 60 and 70 beats per minute
- Cows can hear lower and higher frequencies better than humans.
- An average dairy cow weighs about 1,200 pounds.
- A cows normal body temperature is 101.5°F.
- The average cow chews at least 50 times per minute.
- The typical cow stands up and sits down about 14 times a day.
- An average cow has more than 40,000 jaw movements in a day.
- Cows actually do not bite grass; instead they curl their tongue around it.
- Cows have almost total 360-degree panoramic vision.
- Cows have a single stomach, but four different digestive compartments.
- Cows are pregnant for 9 months just like people
- A dairy cow can produce 125 lbs. of saliva a day
- Cows spend 8 hours per day eating, 8 hours chewing her cud (regurgitated, partially digested food), and 8 hours sleeping
- You can lead a cow upstairs, but not downstairs. Cows knees can’t bend properly to walk downstairs.
- Cows can’t vomit
- The average cow drinks 30 to 50 gallons of water each day
- The average cow produces 70 lbs. of milk. That’s 8 gallons per day!
- Cows only have teeth on the bottom
- Cows have a great sense of smell. They can smell something up to 6 miles away
- Dairy cows are economic job creating machines! 1 dairy cow creates 4 full time jobs in the local community
- A Holstein’s spots are like a fingerprint. No two cows have exactly the same pattern of black and white spots. They are all different
- The average cow will eat about 100 lbs. of feed per day