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Updated September 14th, 2021 at 17:10 IST

Scientists train cows use 'MooLoo', save environmental damage due to bovine waste

The scientists have trained 11 cows to urinate at a designated place called, "MooLoo" in an attempt to find a solution to the environmental damage.

Reported by: Ajeet Kumar
Environment
(Image: AP) | Image:self
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Scientists in Auckland have trained at least 11 cows to urinate at a designated place called, "MooLoo" in an attempt to find a solution to the environmental damage caused by livestock waste. According to scientists, cow urine contains nitrogen, and when mixed with faeces, it becomes ammonia, which creates an environmental issue with acid rain and other problems. The scientists claim a can urinate 30 litres in a day or 8 gallons, which is enough to produce a sufficient amount of nitrogen that can harm the environment.  

It can also taint the water with nitrates and create the airborne pollutant nitrous oxide, noted the researchers. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, nitrous oxide comprised 7% of all the U.S. greenhouse gases in 2019. During the research, scientists trained 16 cows, of which 11 have shown a positive result. The scientists used a sweet treat to coax the cows to push through a gate and urinate in a special pen.  According to them, it took only 15 days to train the young calves, while some took a long time to behave like the others.

"The cows are at least as good as children, age 2 to 4 years, at least as quick,” said study senior author Lindsay Matthews, an animal behavioural scientist at New Zealand’s University of Auckland who worked with colleagues on the tests at an indoor animal research lab in Germany.

Researchers still need to find ways in which a bovine can be trained to defecate

The scientist said that they got the idea during a radio talk show when a cattle farmer called and shared the problem of livestock waste, following which they got a concept of launching "potty training" for the bovines. For this, the researchers mimicked a toddler’s training, putting the cows in the special pen, waiting until they urinated and then giving them a reward: a sweet liquid of mostly molasses. Cows do have a sweet tooth, Matthews said. "If the cows urinated outside the MooLoo after the initial training, they got a squirt of cold water," added Matthews. “I am not surprised they can train calves to urinate in set locations, but I am surprised no one has demonstrated this before,” said Duke University animal cognition scientist Brian Hare, who wasn’t part of the research. “The critical question is can it and will it scale?” Though the scientists are successful in their research, they still have to find ways in which a bovine can be trained to defecate. 

(With inputs from AP)

(Image: AP)

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Published September 14th, 2021 at 17:10 IST

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