New Cow Testing Programmes

  1. Giving the cow a “GOOD START”
  • The transition period is the most important period in the lactating cow’s year, with 80% of disease costs associated with this period1. For this reason it is essential that every dairy cow gets a good start to their lactation.
  • Subclinical hypocalcemia and subclinical ketosis/ negative energy balance (NEB) are the main reasons why dairy cows do not get off to a “GOOD START”.
  • Up to 50% of freshly calved dairy cows suffer from one or both conditions during the transition period, this in turn leads to
  • Reduced fertility,
    • Reduced milk yield,
    • Metritis,
    • Mastitis
    • Displaced abomasum 2
  • Monitoring the metabolic profile of the herd in the transition period allows for effective decision making around prevention and treatment of these transition period problems
    • Low Calcium levels associated with subclinical hypocalcemia
    • Elevated BHB and NEFA levels associated with NEB
    • Low blood urea nitrogen levels are associated with poor availability of rumen degradable protein.
    • Albumin levels are associated with liver function and long-term protein status.
    • Elevated globulin levels can be indicative of chronic inflammation 3

2. The FarmLab Cow-Life programme monitors key health parameters in the herd on a continuous basis throughout lactation, thereby ensuring problems relating to health, parasites, and mastitis can be proactively detected.

Bulk tank milk is monitored throughout the lactation for:

Infectious disease – Leptospirosis. IBR, Salmonella, Mycoplasma, Neospora

Parasites – Gutworm and Liver Fluke

Mastitis – Individual culture of clinical mastitis / high SCC cases and Bulk tank milk PCR to detect the main mastitis causing organisms.

For more detailed information click on the download section of this website, items 13 and 14 or contact:
via email, [email protected]

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