Animal health
Is the blanket approach of giving calcium boluses to every fresh cow really the best route to prevent milk fever?
The House of Representatives passed the Support for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act on Tuesday. It will help fight illicit use of the product in humans while preserving access to the drug for animals.
The problem occurs in nearly 50% of cows in the first 24 hours after calving, says Jesse Goff, DVM and ISU professor emeritus. He details four nutrition strategies to prevent or treat the problem so cows aren’t culled.
Have we hit the low point for the average productive lifespan of dairy cows?
The company, based in Columbia, Mo., manufactures vaccines for livestock to aid in the protection of numerous diseases caused by gram-negative bacteria.
The best and most effective technologies in dairy production today are not necessarily the ones with the most bells and whistles. Rather, they’re the ones that simply “let cows be cows.”
Somatic cell count averages for 2022 were highest in the year’s late fall and winter months. Below are some considerations for managing mastitis as the weather changes.
Calves and heifers aren’t as susceptible to heat stress as cows, but they do suffer from it to some degree, and their production is diminished as a result.
While dairy cattle can’t verbally tell us when they’re not feeling their best, they can give us physical cues.
Dairy cow mortality rates have come down marginally, but are higher when compared to beef production.
After incurring the investment to raise a heifer to freshening age, a difficult calving is the last thing you want as she attempts to enter the milking string.
Beginning June 11, 2023, most livestock antibiotics will no longer be available over-the-counter. Ohio State University dairy veterinarian Kevin Jacque shares his thoughts on adapting to the new rules.
Household units and mini fridges are often unsuitable for maintaining veterinary products, according to a recent study by Emmanuel Rollin, DVM, College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Georgia.
Scoring teat ends tells a story of how happy a cow is with how she is milked and treated. It also provides insights into whether the milking process is harmful to the animal and needs to be changed.
On June 11, 2023, the following antibiotics will no longer be available for purchase over-the-counter.
The new indication is for control of pyrexia in dairy cows due to acute mastitis. There is a short milk withhold of 48 hours.
Detecting respiratory disease in calves early – when treatment is most effective – should start by examining the head and facial features, according to veterinarian Tiago Tomazi with Merck Animal Health.
If cows come into the dry period overconditioned, which is likely if they took longer to get pregnant, they’re already preconditioned to breeding delays in their next lactation.
Inflammation creates additional stress at calving.
Focused management, proper nutrition and diligent monitoring can help reduce metabolic disorders.
Castration is an essential management procedure for the cow-calf producer that is often performed for both handling and economic reasons.
“Similar to Staph aureus and mycoplasma, Prototheca [mastitis] is hard to detect, has no known cure, and is contagious by intermittently shedding from cow to cow.”
USDA reporting increasing numbers of crossbred dairy cattle.
Neil Michael, director of technical services for ABS Global, says many herds consistently achieve pregnancy rates of 20% to 25%, with many commercial dairies already exceeding 35% to 40%. He lists eight influencers of reproductive success that every dairy should monitor.
“Genomics is a big step forward, but we still need daughter information,” says says Kent Weigel, University of Wisconsin dairy geneticist. “We’re not yet at the stage where we can identify the next sires of sons without using conventional genetics tools.”
It’s almost accepted as gospel that a high somatic cell count (SCC) cow in a small herd can throw off the entire bulk tank even if the rest of the herd is doing well. When it comes to large herds, the conventional wisdom is that a few high-count cows can get diluted by their herdmates.
A comfortable cow is a happy, productive cow.
The challenge is to utilize wet corn correctly in your dairy rations