Investigating the Feasibility of Using infrared Thermography as a Research Tool for the Relationship between the temperature-humidity Index and the surface Temperature of the Skin in the Flank and Udder area of dairy Cows

The aim of the study was to test the feasibility of using infrared thermography (IRT) as a research tool for the relationship between temperature-humidity index (THI) and skin surface temperature in the flank and udder area of dairy cows farmed in the Southeastern Bulgaria. The correlation between measured THI and udder surface temperatures was close to 0.75. The correlation between the reported THI and surface temperatures in the flank area was close to 0.96. These results indicate that IRT can be used as a tool for studying the relationship between THI and skin surface temperature in the studied body areas in dairy cows.