Dairy herd health

Contents......Page 6
Preface......Page 14
Context of Dairy Herd Health: Why Improve the Health of Farmed Livestock?......Page 16
What is Herd Health?......Page 17
Appreciating client aspirations......Page 18
Establishing farm-specific goals......Page 19
Structure of the herd health visit......Page 20
Training of farm staff......Page 21
The cow’s environment......Page 22
Relevance of genetics in herd health......Page 23
References and Further Reading......Page 24
Encouraging farmers to take action: context and challenges......Page 26
To Change Human Behaviour, We Need First to Understand It......Page 27
Selfish human behaviour research applied to herd health......Page 28
How to Assist Farmers in Implementing Changes on the Farm......Page 30
First identify which stage the farmer has reached......Page 31
Stage I: moving from no intentions … to wanting to change......Page 32
Stage II: the giant leap from wanting … to doing......Page 40
Stage III: keeping up the good work......Page 43
Facilitating Change: Evidence-based Veterinary Medicine......Page 44
What is evidence-based medicine?......Page 45
References and Further Reading......Page 47
Dynamics of the dairy herd structure: culling and replacements......Page 50
Mortality and disease in youngstock......Page 51
Culling of adult cows......Page 53
Welfare considerations of youngstock rearing......Page 55
Monitoring the pre-weaning period......Page 57
Monitoring the post-weaning period......Page 59
Monitoring first calving and lactation......Page 61
Monitoring culling in the adult herd......Page 62
Targets for the neonatal period (including calving)......Page 63
Targets for monitoring culled cows......Page 64
Disease Control in the Rearing Period......Page 65
Disease control in the neonatal period (including calving)......Page 67
Disease control in the pre-weaning period......Page 71
Disease control and fertility management in the post-weaning period......Page 75
Summary......Page 81
References and Further Reading......Page 82
The economics of fertility......Page 88
Current levels of reproductive performance......Page 89
Welfare and ethics of reproductive herd health......Page 91
Public health and reproduction......Page 92
The practicalities of data recording......Page 93
Monitoring reproductive data on the farm......Page 95
Routine performance monitoring......Page 97
Summary of key targets......Page 105
Control of Herd Fertility: Enhancing Reproductive Performance......Page 107
Improving accuracy and rate of oestrus detection......Page 108
Improving pregnancy rates......Page 115
Controlling reproductive disease......Page 121
Conclusion......Page 125
References and Further Reading......Page 126
An international perspective on mastitis and milk production......Page 132
The economics of bovine mastitis......Page 136
The public health implications and perception of bovine milk......Page 138
Host immune defence......Page 140
Pathogens and their behaviour......Page 144
Major versus minor pathogens......Page 146
Mastitis detection......Page 148
Somatic cell counting......Page 149
Mastitis diagnosis......Page 150
Selecting a diagnostic technique......Page 151
Monitoring and Analysis of Mastitis Data......Page 154
Monitoring and interpreting somatic cell count data......Page 155
Monitoring and interpreting clinical mastitis data......Page 160
Principles of control......Page 162
Action and reaction......Page 165
Contagious mastitis control......Page 166
Environmental mastitis control......Page 171
Managing the milk-harvesting process......Page 175
Biosecurity......Page 177
The role of the heifer in mastitis control......Page 178
References and Further Reading......Page 179
Healthy feet and normal locomotion......Page 184
The impact of lameness......Page 185
Heritability of lameness......Page 186
Farmer attitudes to lameness......Page 187
The importance of good farm records......Page 189
Setting up a locomotion scoring system on the farm......Page 190
Methods of recording locomotion and lesions......Page 192
Practical use of lameness data......Page 193
Lameness targets......Page 196
The future of monitoring lameness in dairy herds......Page 197
Control of Lameness......Page 198
Treatment of clinical cases......Page 200
Routine foot trimming......Page 202
Foot bathing and disinfection......Page 203
Management of cow groups and movements......Page 205
Lying time and cubicle comfort......Page 207
Standing times and concrete surfaces......Page 208
Cleanliness and slurry management......Page 211
Tracks and walkways......Page 212
Nutrition......Page 213
Conclusions......Page 214
References and Further Reading......Page 215
Introduction of a new pathogen......Page 220
Persistence of a pathogen within a herd......Page 221
Elimination of a disease from a herd......Page 222
Control of a disease in a herd......Page 223
Test sensitivity and specificity......Page 224
Estimating the presence and prevalence of disease......Page 226
Monitoring Infectious Disease......Page 227
Biosecurity in dairy herds......Page 229
Control or eradication?......Page 230
Evaluating herd infection status......Page 235
Preventing spread and persistence of a pathogen within a herd......Page 237
Conclusions......Page 238
References and Further Reading......Page 239
Introduction: The Role of Nutrition in Dairy Herd Health and Production......Page 242
The role of glucose in cow metabolism......Page 243
Inappropriate metabolic responses of cows in NEB......Page 244
Protein metabolism......Page 245
Assessment of the records......Page 246
Monitoring nutrition: assessment of the cow......Page 255
Monitoring metabolic markers......Page 261
Monitoring of nutrition: assessments of feeding......Page 264
Monitoring feeding: forages......Page 272
Control of Major Nutrition-related Disease......Page 280
Nutritional control of hypocalcaemia......Page 283
Nutritional control of fatty liver and ketosis......Page 285
Nutritional control of displaced abomasum......Page 286
Nutritional control of subacute ruminal acidosis......Page 287
References and Further Reading......Page 289
Background: Food Security, Energy Security and Climate Change......Page 294
Food security......Page 295
Energy security......Page 297
Environmental Issues: Significance for the Dairy Industry......Page 298
Impacts of dairy farming on the atmosphere and climate change......Page 299
Impacts of dairy farming on water......Page 301
Impacts of dairy farming on biodiversity and local ecology......Page 302
The influence of increased efficiency and improved health and reproduction......Page 304
References and Further Reading......Page 308
Sample Size Estimates......Page 312
Estimating Disease Prevalence from Test Results......Page 313
Genetic Indices......Page 316
Production traits......Page 317
Genetic defects......Page 318
Reference......Page 319
B......Page 320
D......Page 321
F......Page 322
I......Page 323
M......Page 324
N......Page 325
R......Page 326
Z......Page 327