A system for monitoring individual food intake of a livestock animal, the system comprising: a calibration system (220, 221) installed in association with a portion of at least one feeding lane in a designated food intake calibrating area of an animal shelter and configured to measure weight or volume of food intake of each of a plurality of animals in a herd over a pre-defined period of time; to track animal eating behavior of the respective animal during the pre-defined period of time; and to calibrate a respective mathematical model for each one of the plurality of animals based on the respective measure, wherein the respective mathematical model relates eating behavior of the respective animal and defined physiological parameters of the respective animal with the food intake, wherein the calibration system is configured to be operative during the pre-defined period of time which is less than three weeks; a tracking system installed in association with at least a remainder of the at least one feeding lane in a remaining, main area of the animal shelter other than the designated food intake calibrating area and configured to track animal eating behavior of the respective animal at times other than the pre-defined period of time for each one of the plurality of animals; and a computing system configured to be operative during lactation periods and determine food intake of each one of the plurality of animals in the at least remainder of the at least one feeding lane over the respective lactation period of the respective animal based on the respective mathematical model for the respective animal as calibrated and the eating behavior at the times other than the pre-defined period of time, and without measuring the weight or the volume of the food intake. a calibration system (220, 221) installed in association with a portion of at least one feeding lane in a designated food intake calibrating area of an animal shelter and configured to measure weight or volume of food intake of each of a plurality of animals in a herd over a pre-defined period of time; to track animal eating behavior of the respective animal during the pre-defined period of time; and to calibrate a respective mathematical model for each one of the plurality of animals based on the respective measure, wherein the respective mathematical model relates eating behavior of the respective animal and defined physiological parameters of the respective animal with the food intake, wherein the calibration system is configured to be operative during the pre-defined period of time which is less than three weeks; a tracking system installed in association with at least a remainder of the at least one feeding lane in a remaining, main area of the animal shelter other than the designated food intake calibrating area and configured to track animal eating behavior of the respective animal at times other than the pre-defined period of time for each one of the plurality of animals; and a computing system configured to be operative during lactation periods and determine food intake of each one of the plurality of animals in the at least remainder of the at least one feeding lane over the respective lactation period of the respective animal based on the respective mathematical model for the respective animal as calibrated and the eating behavior at the times other than the pre-defined period of time, and without measuring the weight or the volume of the food intake.