- Published:
Welfare in Danish Dairy Herds 1. Disease Management Routines in 1983 and 1994
Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica volume 37, pages 49–63 (1996)
Abstract
This paper presents the first part of a questionnaire survey carried out in 2148 Danish dairy herds during 1994, as well as results from a similar survey carried out in 1983. The welfare status in Danish dairy herds with respect to disease management routines currently applied is discussed. In detail this was: recording of mastitis incidents, use of veterinarian for milk fever cases, farmer’s effort in reducing incidence of mastitis, milk fever, ketosis, calving problems, and lameness, as well as frequency of claw trimming, reasons for culling, and way of replacing cullings. Furthermore, trends during the 11 year period are discussed. The results show that the Danish dairy farmers in 1994 in general have a substantial knowledge of prevention and treatment of disease. However, adjustments in the following areas would be appropriate: 1) farmers should avoid making intravenous infusions, 2) they should be encouraged to use calving boxes for parturitions, 3) there should be more attention on claw health, and 4) to comply with the new Danish legislation, antibiotic dry cow treatment should only be carried out on the individual cow if pathogenic microorganisms have been isolated within 35 days prior to drying off.
References
Agger JF: Pattelæsion og klovlidelser hos malkekoer. (Teat lesion and claw diseases in dairy cows). Ph.D.-thesis, The Royal Veterinary & Agricultural University, Frederiksberg, Denmark, 1981, 292 pp.
Agger JF, Alban L: Welfare in Danish Dairy Herds 3. Health Management and General Routines in 1983 and 1994. Acta vet. scand. 1996, 37, xxx–xxx.
Agger JF, Priou C, Huda A, Aagaard K: Risk factors for transmission of Streptococcus agalactiae infection between Danish dairy herds: a case control study. Vet. Res. 1994, 25, 227–234.
Alban L, Agger JF: Welfare in Danish Dairy Herds 2. Housing Systems and Grazing Procedures in 1983 and 1994. Acta vet. scand. 1996, 37, xxx–xxx.
Anon.: Ârsberetning 1981. Landsudvalget for Kvæg. (Annual Report 1981. The National Committee on Danish Cattle Husbandry). Ârhus, Denmark, 1982, p.49.
Anon.: Produktionssystemer og produktions- metoder i Kvægbruget. Landskontoret for Kvæg. (Production systems and production methods in the cattle husbandry. The Danish National Department of Cattle Husbandry). Ârhus, Denmark, 1988, 17 pp.
Anon: Bekendtgorelse om sundhedsrâdgiv- ningsaftaler for kvæg- og svinebesætninger. Landbrugsministeriet. (Regulation on health agreements for cattle and swine herds. The Danish Ministry of Agriculture). Regulation No. 304, May 11th, 1995a, 8 pp.
Anon.: Bekendtgorelse om lægemidler til veteri- nært brug. Landbrugsministeriet. (Regulation on drugs for veterinary use. The Danish Ministry of Agriculture). Regulation No. 303, May 11th, 1995b, 7 pp.
Baird GD: Primary ketosis in the high-producing dairy cow: clinical and subclinical disorders, treatment, prevention, and outlook. J. Dairy Sci. 1982., 65, 1–10.
Baird GD, Heitzman RJ, Hibbitt KG, Hunter GD: Bovine ketosis: a review with recommendations for treatment and control. Br. vet. J. 1974. Part I, 730, 214–220, and Part II, 130, 318–326.
Bendixen PH, Vilson B, Ekesbo I, Âstrand DB: Disease Frequencies in Dairy Cows in Sweden. IV Ketosis. Prev. vet. Med. 1987, 5, 99–109.
Blowey R: Cattle lameness and hoof care. Farming Press. London, Great Britain, 1993, 85 pp.
Christensen R: Loglinear models. Springer-Verlag. Berlin, Germany, 1990, 408 pp.
Christensen LG, Barlow R, Neimann-Sorensen A: Crossbreeding Red Danish, Holstein-Friesian, and Finnish Ayrshire cattle. Acta acric. scand. 1984, 34, 463–479.
Dohoo IR, Martin SW: Disease, production, and culling in Holstein-Friesian cows, V Survivorship. Prev. vet. Med. 1984, 2, 771–784.
Eddy RG: Major Metabolic Disorders. In: Andrews AH, Blowey RW, Boyd H, Eddy RG (eds): Bovine Medicine. Blackwell Scientific Publications. Oxford, Great Britain, 1992, 577–600.
Edwards SA: Factors affecting the time to first suckling in dairy calves. Anim. Prod. 1982, 34, 339–346.
Ekesbo I: Disease Incidence in Tied and Loose Housed Dairy Cattle. Acta agric. scand. 1966, Suppl. 75, 79 pp.
Frankena K, van Keulen KAS, Noordhuizen JR Noordhuizen-Stassen EN, Gundelach J, de Jong D-J, Saedt I: A cross-sectional study into prevalence and risk indicators of digital haemorrhages in female dairy calves. Prev. vet. Med. 1992, 14, 1–12.
Frankena K, van Keulen KAS, Noordhuizen JP, Noordhuizen-Stassen EN, Gundelach J, de Jong D-J, Saedt I: A cross-sectional study into prevalence and risk indicators of dermatitis interdigitalis in female dairy calves in the Netherlands. Prev. vet. Med. 1993, 77, 137–144.
Gustafson GM: Effects of daily exercise on the health of tied dairy cows. Prev. vet. Med. 1993, 77, 209–223.
Horst RL, Goff JP, Reinhardt TA: Calcium and Vitamin D Metabolism in the Dairy Cow. J. Dairy Sei. 1994, 77, 1936–1951.
Jonasen B, Krohn CC: Kokalv-relationer. 4. Adfærd, Produktion og sundhed hos pattekalve (SDM). (Cowcalf relations. 4. Behaviour, production, and health in sucklercalves (Danish Holstein- Friesian)). Report No. 689 Natl. Inst. Anim. Sei., Denmark, 1991, 43 pp.
Jönsson G: Milk fever prevention. Vet. Rec. 1978, 102, 165–169.
Klejs Hansen O (ed): Malkekvægets Resultater 1992. Landsudvalget for Kvæg. (Results of the dairy cattle production 1992. The National Committee on Danish Cattle Husbandry). Report No. 22. Ârhus, Denmark. 1993, 81 pp.
Krogh Hansen B: Udsætning af malkekoer. (Culling of dairy cows). Masters Thesis, The Royal Veterinary & Agricultural University, Frederiksberg, Denmark, 1986, p.69.
Krohn CC, Jonasen B, Munksgaard L: Kokalv-rela- tioner. 2. Indflydelse af 0 contra 5 dages patte- periode pâ koens adfærd, mælkeydelse og yver- sundhed ved forskellig opstaldning. (Cowcalf relations. 2. The effect of 0 versus 5 days suckling on behaviour, milk production, and udder health of cows in different stabling). Report No. 678 Natl. Inst. Anim. Sei., Denmark, 1990, 20 pp.
Manson FJ, Leaver JD: The effect of concentrate: silage ratio and of hoof trimming on lameness in dairy cattle. Anim. Prod. 1989, 49, 15–22.
Milian-Suazo F, Erb HN, Smith RD: Descriptive epidemiology of culling in dairy cows from 34 herds in New York State. Prev. vet. Med. 1988, 6, 243–251.
Paulsen J: Dyrebeskyttelse. Den Danske Dyrlæge- forening og Foreningen til Dyrenes Beskyttelse i Danmark. (Animal Protection. The Danish Veterinary Association and The Danish Animal Welfare Society). Copenhagen, Denmark. 1994, 388 pp.
Phillips RW: Calcium and phosphorus. In: Booth NH, McDonald LE (eds): Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics. Iowa State University Press. Ames, Iowa, USA, 1982, 639–643.
Rowlands GJ, Russell AM, Williams LA: Effects of season, herd size, management system, and veterinary practice on the lameness incidence in dairy cattle. Vet. Rec. 1983, 113, 441–445.
SAS Institute Inc: SAS/STAT Guide for personal Computers. Version 6 Edition. SAS Institute Inc. Cary, North Carolina. USA. 1987, 1028 pp.
Schukken YH, van de Geer D, Grommers FJ, Brand A: Assessing the repeatability of questionnaire data from dairy farms. Prev. vet. Med. 1989, 7, 31–38.
Simonsen HB: Vurdering af dyrs velfærd. I: Etik, velfærd og adfærd i husdyrbruget. Landbrugets Informationskontor. (Assessment of animals’ welfare. In: Ethics, welfare, and behaviour in the animal husbandry. The Danish Institute for Agricultural Information). Ârhus, Denmark, 1993, 17–28.
Simonsen HB: Assessment of animal welfare by a holistic approach: Behaviour, health and measured opinion. In: Sandoe P, Hurnik F (eds.): Welfare of domestic animals: concepts, theories and methods of measurement. Acta Agric. Scand. Sect. A, Animal Sci. 1996. Suppl 27, 91–96.
Thogersen R: Integreret kvægproduktion med speciel fokus pâ sundhed og velfærd. (Integrated cattle keeping with emphasis on health and welfare). Proc, from Dansk Boologisk Selskab. Denmark, September 1995. II.3.1-II.3.6.
Toussaint Raven E: Cattle footcare and claw trimming. Farming Press Limited. Suffolk, Great Britain, 1985, 103–104.
Acknowledgments
The authors want to thank Annelise Ito, Christina Ejlersen and Lartey Lawson for excellent technical assistance. Carsten Enevoldsen and Thomas Færgeman are acknowledged for instructive comments to the manuscript, and the Danish Agricultural Advisory Center for their cooperation in the project. The study was supported by the Danish Ministry of Agriculture, grant no. VEL92-KVL-8.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Alban, L., Agger, J.F. Welfare in Danish Dairy Herds 1. Disease Management Routines in 1983 and 1994. Acta Vet Scand 37, 49–63 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548119
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548119