NOW in its ninth year, the annual Large Herd Seminar provided the opportunity to bring vets, farmers and nutritionists from all over the world together under the theme of Total Dairy to discuss a host of cutting-edge topics.
One recurring issue relevant to all those in attendance was ketosis, with international speakers addressing an array of key concepts integral to maximising productivity.
“The dairy cow is a modern day metabolic athlete but it’s up to us to help her fulfil her true potential and the transition period is where we can have the biggest impact,” said James Husband, technical director at EBVC, in his talk “Pushing yields – where do the cracks start to show first and what can we do to prevent them?”
Potential pitfalls
James highlighted the potential pitfalls of pushing for productivity by referring to a recent case he worked with.
On one farm, a significant decrease in conception rates and increase in calving intervals were the fallout effects of having achieved an impressive production increase.
He maintained, however, that producers don’t have to compromise on fertility at the expense of increased yield: “Increased disease and reduced reproductive performance are not inevitable consequences of increasing milk production, even though it’s an all too common picture we see as vets.
“Actually, it is management that is the most influential determinant and the big challenge is to get cows back to positive energy balance as quickly as possible. We know that energy balance is directly related to energy input, so if we can increase dry matter intake then we can get them off to a good start.”
Elanco Animal Health, a platinum sponsor of the event, supplied its own ruminant technical consultant, veterinary surgeon Mike Christian, to tackle some practical issues that face producers during that tricky transition period.
Immune suppression period
Mike reminded his audience that all cows undergo a period of immune suppression before and after calving, as part of the “energy gap challenge” and he explained how the rise in BHBA (beta-hydroxybutyrate) levels around transition is associated with negative effects on neutrophils, such as impaired chemotactic migration and reduced phagocytosis, contributing to the ability of ketosis to act as a gateway to many other diseases during this time.
“So, what should a successful transition period look like?” he asked, going on to provide a useful benchmark: 100 days after calving, a cow should be back in calf and achieving around 50% of her annual milk production.
Other markers for success include a problem-free calving, avoidance of disease and high quality milk production.
One vet remarked, “We spend so long advising clients on management of the transition period that it’s great to be reminded of the biochemistry that underpins it and what we should be aiming for. It’s easy to forget just how many of the metabolic and infectious diseases that we’re faced with every day might have ketosis at their core.”
Research into feeding
For making a positive impact at a practical level, both speakers and delegates shared some interesting ideas.
James Husband highlighted some contemporary research which suggested that underfeeding pre-calving may be less detrimental than overfeeding, although he still advocates freely available food at controlled energy densities.
For Owen Tunney of Willows Vet Group, using the intra-ruminal bolus, Kexxtone, in high-risk cows has had a significant impact for his practice’s producers.
“When one of our client’s farms compared high risk cows given the bolus with apparently healthy cows that didn’t receive the treatment, subclinical disease within the herd reduced from 38% to less than 5% and the number of culls was also lowered by over 50% in the treated group.”
Mike Christian explained that cows at risk from developing ketosis, which would therefore be suitable candidates for Kexxtone, include cows with BCS 3.5 or higher in the dry period, those carrying twins, older cows with a greater number of lactations, and those going through a longer dry period than they should.
Return on investment
One vet said that his clients estimate they get between a 5:1 and 10:1 return on their investment in using the product.
“At our practice we talk about veterinary care as an investment, not a cost, as we believe that all of our products and services should result in pro table returns.
“Getting involved in the transition period and prescribing the intervention treatment Kexxtone for those cows at risk gives us a really great opportunity to demonstrate the positive impact we can have on the bottom line for our producers.”
The Large Herd Seminar gave delegates plenty to sink their teeth into and opportunities to compare notes with peers from all over the world, leaving them with more than just a few morsels of practical and theoretical information to apply directly to everyday practice.
The resounding message was: “Attention to detail can make all the difference.”
