Population Medicine, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada.
Elanco Animal Health, Greenfield, IN 46140.
J Dairy Sci. 2022 Feb;105(2):1797-1814. doi: 10.3168/jds.2021-20919. Epub 2021 Nov 17.
The complex and interrelated management components of dairy farming are associated with health, production, and profitability of the herd, yet there is limited objective data on current management practices of the far-off, close-up, and fresh periods across Canadian dairy farms. We aimed to describe management practices of Canadian dairy farms by using a pre-existing risk assessment tool and outline potential management opportunities. Upon veterinarians' or producers' request, a transition management risk assessment (The Vital 90, Elanco) was performed by trained observers (n = 10) during farm visits (n = 78) between August 2014 and March 2018. Most farms were in Ontario (n = 64), whereas the remaining were in Alberta (n = 5), British Columbia (n = 4), Manitoba (n = 1), Prince Edward Island (n = 2), Newfoundland (n = 1), and Saskatchewan (n = 1). The study included 79 questions about nutrition, pen management, and cow comfort of the dry (approximate ranges: far-off, -60 to -20 d in milk; close-up, -20 to 0 d in milk) and fresh (0-30 d in milk) periods. The herds averaged 125 milking cows, and most had 2 defined dry groups (81%). Freestall (FS; 54%) and straw-bedded loose pack (BP; 81%) were the most common housing systems observed in the far-off and close-up periods, respectively. Heifers and cows were housed together in 56, 80, and 59% of the far-off, close-up, and fresh pens, respectively. A large proportion of the far-off (FS: >100% stocking density; BP: <9.3 m/cow; 41%), close-up, and fresh pens (FS: >80% stocking density; BP: <13.9 m/cow; 52 and 49%, respectively) were overstocked. Poor water access was observed across all periods (65, 58, and 24% of the far-off, close-up, and fresh, respectively). Only a few farms had proper heat abatement systems in place (absence of properly functioning soakers or fans; <10% in the dry and 15% in the fresh periods). Cows were able to sort their ration in 60% of the dry period pens and 31% of the fresh pens. In 73% of the farms, fresh cow health monitoring protocols were not in place. Colostrum cows and sick cows were housed together in 40% of the farms; 59% separated the newborn from the dam within 2 to 12 h of birth with colostrum harvested immediately thereafter. This work describes prevalent management practices in the dry and fresh periods and highlights areas for potential improvement. Future research should focus on the associations between management choices and health performance of dairy farms.
奶牛养殖的复杂且相互关联的管理环节与牛群的健康、生产和盈利能力息息相关，但加拿大奶牛场在远、近、新产三个阶段的现行管理实践方面，仅有有限的客观数据。我们旨在利用现有的风险评估工具来描述加拿大奶牛场的管理实践，并概述潜在的管理机会。在兽医或生产者的要求下，经过培训的观察员（n=10）在 2014 年 8 月至 2018 年 3 月期间对 78 个农场进行了过渡管理风险评估（Elanco 的 Vital 90）。大多数农场位于安大略省（n=64），其余的位于艾伯塔省（n=5）、不列颠哥伦比亚省（n=4）、马尼托巴省（n=1）、爱德华王子岛（n=2）、纽芬兰（n=1）和萨斯喀彻温省（n=1）。该研究包括 79 个关于干奶期（远、近）和新产牛（0-30d）的营养、围栏管理和奶牛舒适度的问题。牛群平均有 125 头泌乳牛，大多数有 2 个定义明确的干奶期牛群（81%）。在远、近产奶期，观察到最常见的牛舍系统分别为自由卧床（FS；54%）和稻草卧床松散垫料（BP；81%）。在远、近产奶期，56%、80%和 59%的远、近产奶期牛舍中，后备牛和泌乳牛被混养，而在新产牛舍中，后备牛和泌乳牛被混养的比例为 49%。大量远、近产奶期（FS：>100%的饲养密度；BP：<9.3 平方米/头；分别为 41%、41%和 41%）和新产奶期（FS：>80%的饲养密度；BP：<13.9 平方米/头；分别为 52%、52%和 52%）的牛舍存在过度饲养的情况。所有阶段（远、近、新产）的牛都存在饮水不良的情况（分别为 65%、58%和 24%）。只有少数农场有适当的降温系统（无正常工作的喷淋或风扇；干奶期和新产奶期分别为<10%和 15%）。在 60%的干奶期牛舍和 31%的新产牛舍中，奶牛可以自由选择饲料。在 73%的农场中，没有制定新产牛健康监测方案。有 40%的农场将产奶牛和病牛放在一起，59%的农场在产犊后 2-12 小时内将新生牛犊与母牛分开，并立即采集初乳。这项工作描述了干奶期和新产牛期的普遍管理实践，并强调了潜在的改进领域。未来的研究应集中在管理选择与奶牛场健康性能之间的关联上。
