Managing Pain at All Life Stages is Key to Cow Welfare, Productivity
Understanding and managing pain for dairy animals is as high a priority for dairy producers as it’s ever been. Research continues to shed more light on the impact acute and chronic pain can have on dairy cow health, welfare and productivity.
In a recent episode of The Dairy Signal presented by Professional Dairy Producers (PDPW), Dr. Kate Creutzinger, assistant professor of dairy cattle behavior and welfare at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, shared insights to better understand and recognize pain through a cow’s entire life cycle.
She noted that a focus on pain and pain management is key for three reasons: animal welfare, impacts on production and a producer’s social license to operate. Pain that prevents animals from engaging in natural behaviors such as eating, drinking, ruminating, standing and lying, can have significant and long-lasting effects.
A research study of more than 15,000 cows in 120 herds over 15 years tracked the stages of lactation when lameness first appeared and compared cumulative milk yield among cows who experienced lameness and those who didn’t. Researchers saw reduced milk production – ranging from 811 to 1290 kilograms, or 1788 to 2844 pounds – per lactation in cows that experienced lameness. Another study of more than 800 Holstein herds and 108,000 hoof trims showed the impact of pain on reproduction. Cows with claw disorders had a longer number of days from calving to first service and more days open.
In terms of pain in a cow’s life, “We really need to be thinking about all the time from birth all the way to culling,” she said. “It is important to remember that pain that’s out of sight for us is not out of mind for the cow.”
“Social license” can be defined as the trust the public puts in dairy producers to make decisions within society’s social values.
“If we fail to uphold those values, there is the potential of outside regulation by the public in the form of legislation or mandated management practices,” said Dr. Creutizinger. “The best way we can prevent this is by proactively addressing things that are (negative) issues.”
As a specific example, tail twisting is a surprisingly common practice to guide cull cows onto the hauling truck. Using too much force can have long-lasting consequences and cause damage similar to joint dislocation. Tail twisting is also sometimes used in situations when cattle are expected to still have a long productive life ahead of them.
She reviewed results of a study on one dairy where a visual assessment showed that more than 55% of mature cows showed evidence of a broken or dislocated tail and 30% of first-lactation cows had a broken tail, well above the 5% threshold recommended by the National Dairy FARM program.
The study also showed a relationship between mastitis and broken tails. Of the cows that experienced more than two cases of mastitis, 70% had broken tails.
“Cows might be presenting signs of sickness such as withdrawal and avoidance that result in increased handling,” said Dr. Creutzinger. She said that very little research has been done in this area, with more information and data needed.
Additionally, producers shouldn’t overlook potential causes of pain in the final stage in a dairy cow’s life.
“When a cow gets on a truck, she stops milking, has no access to feed and water and is standing on the trailer,” said Dr. Creutzinger. Only 5% of cows get to slaughter facility within one day of leaving the farm, which means 95% are going more than 24 hours without access to feed, water, milking or ability to lie down. Management practices such as moderating diets and reducing the number of milkings can slow milk production to lessen discomfort of cows during transport.
To learn more, watch the full episode of The Dairy Signal that originally aired May 23, 2023.
