Armengol Ramon, Fraile Lorenzo, Bach Alex
Department of Animal Science, ETSEA, University of Lleida, Lleida, Spain.
Agrotecnio, University of Lleida, Lleida, Spain.
Front Vet Sci. 2023 Jun 2;10:1165184. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1165184. eCollection 2023.
Dairy farms need thorough and efficient reproduction control. Consultants specialized in reproduction use key performance indicators (KPI) to monitor the reproductive performance of farms and must be able to decipher between the approach in a first visit and routine visits. A total of 49 consultants specialized in dairy reproduction from 21 countries responded to an online survey conducted to determine the most suitable parameters during routine visits every 2 to 4 weeks. The survey was comprised of 190 questions, 178 of them rated from 0 (irrelevant) to 10 (maximum importance) points. The questions were divided into five sections: (1) consultant and farm model, (2) general data of the farm, (3) cow reproduction, (4) postpartum and metabolic disease, and (5) heifer reproduction. The median, interquartile range, minimum and maximum values, and 95% confidence interval were determined for each question. Afterward, a multivariate analysis, using between-group linkage via Ward's hierarchical clustering was conducted to generate clusters of consultants according to their response pattern. Finally, a chi-square test was conducted to assess the association between years of experience of the consultant and farm size within the clusters generated in each section of the questionnaire. The majority of the consultants considered 34 parameters to be highly important (rated 8-10) to analyze during routine visits. The consultants used several KPI (in variable quantitative range) to evaluate any of the presented sections and considered that all the five sections are critical to control. They are aware of using KPI that reflect heat detection, fertility, and farming efficiency as well as KPI that can provide information on reproductive efficiency in the near future for cows, such as postpartum and metabolic diseases. However, parameters that are relatively old and ineffective, in terms of reproductive performance control, are still highly regarded by the majority of consultants in a routine-visit scenario. Farm size and years of experience of the consultant did not influence the type or number of parameters chosen as KPI during routine visits. The parameters rated with the highest importance (rate 10) that could be considered for an easy, fast, and universal use in routine visits to assess the reproductive status were: First service CR (%), Overall pregnancy rate (%) for cows, and age at first calving (d) for heifers.
奶牛场需要全面且高效的繁殖管理。繁殖领域的专业顾问使用关键绩效指标（KPI）来监测奶牛场的繁殖性能，并且必须能够区分首次拜访和常规拜访时的方法。来自21个国家的49位奶牛繁殖领域的专业顾问回复了一项在线调查，该调查旨在确定每2至4周进行常规拜访时最合适的参数。该调查由190个问题组成，其中178个问题的评分从0（无关）到10（最重要）分。这些问题分为五个部分：（1）顾问和农场模式，（2）农场的一般数据，（3）母牛繁殖，（4）产后和代谢疾病，以及（5）小母牛繁殖。确定了每个问题的中位数、四分位间距、最小值和最大值以及95%置信区间。之后，通过Ward层次聚类法进行组间连锁的多变量分析，根据顾问的回答模式生成顾问集群。最后，进行卡方检验，以评估问卷各部分生成的集群中顾问的经验年限与农场规模之间 的关联。大多数顾问认为34个参数在常规拜访期间进行分析非常重要（评分为8 - 10分）。顾问们使用了多个KPI（在可变的定量范围内）来评估所呈现的任何部分，并认为所有五个部分对于管理都至关重要。他们意识到使用反映发情检测、繁殖力和养殖效率的KPI，以及能够在不久的将来为母牛提供繁殖效率信息的KPI，例如产后和代谢疾病。然而，就繁殖性能管理而言，相对陈旧且无效的参数在常规拜访场景中仍受到大多数顾问的高度重视。农场规模和顾问的经验年限在常规拜访期间并未影响选为KPI的参数类型或数量。在常规拜访中可考虑用于轻松、快速且普遍地评估繁殖状况的最重要（评分为10分）的参数为：首次输精受胎率（%）、母牛的总体妊娠率（%）以及小母牛的初产年龄（天）。
