The Cost of Common Transition Cow Problems

How much does it really cost when a cow develops hypocalcemia or metritis? And how does that health issue affect cow performance, dairy profits and the future value of that cow?

Researchers at the University of Kentucky wanted to find out. They used a farm-level stochastic model with Monte Carlo simulation to estimate the total cost of seven common transition cow diseases. Their analysis included veterinary and treatment cost, farm labor, lost milk production, discarded milk, culling cost, extended days open and death. They also used market values to set the prices for milk, feed, slaughter and replacement cows. In addition, herd-performance factors—rolling herd average, heat detection rate and conception rate, and age at first calving—were also used to develop cost estimates for each disease studied. The model was constructed with the flexibility to input farm-level parameters instead of default values.

Disease cost was calculated separately for primiparous and multiparous cows. In general, disease cost was greater for multiparous cows than for primiparous cows. This was due, in part, to multiparous cows having greater average daily milk production. Only the cost of clinical disease was calculated. Results are listed in the chart below.

You can read the full paper, “Estimating U.S. Dairy Clinical Disease Costs with a Stochastic Simulation Model,” in the February issue of the Journal of Dairy Science.

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