Happy Cows Give More Milk

A study by Newcastle (UK) University's School of Agriculture published yesterday by the British journal Anthrozoos (which reports on human/animal interaction) found that cows who are treated as individuals -- given names, and called by those names -- give up to 500 pints (about 65 gallons) more milk each year than cows who are herded as a group.

Small dairy farmers may have known this already -- both herdshares I've been a member of have named all their cows, and the farmers know each cow by name.