Working towards a reduction in cattle lameness: 1. Understanding barriers to lameness control on dairy farms

On 222 dairy farms, the farmer’s perception of the scale of the herd lameness problem was compared with the prevalence detected by observation of the milking herd, and a questionnaire explored the barriers to lameness reduction. Ninety percent of farmers did not perceive lameness to be a major problem on their farm, although the average prevalence of lameness was 36%. For 62% of the sample, lameness was not the top priority for efforts made to improve herd health. Time and labour were important limiting factors for lameness control activities and financial constraints prevented farmers taking action on advice in 30% of cases. Farmers’ understanding the implications of lameness for the farm business was limited. Lameness reduction is restricted by farmers’ perception of lameness, but also by time, labour and finance; these issues need to be addressed at the industry level to support animal welfare improvement.     

The economic margins of activities of a bovine practitioner on dairy farms

Because of lower margins and market liberalisation veterinarians and farmers are increasingly negotiating rates. Therefore, the margins of veterinarians are under pressure. In addition, the sales if drugs, performance of operations or giving of advice are more and more separated. These developments give veterinarians uncertainty about the profitability of their activities for dairy farmers. Not much is known about margins on veterinary activities on dairy farms. Moreover, it is interesting to see how much margins of the bovine practitioner differ between veterinary practises and dairy farms. In this study, invoices for bovine activities of 14 veterinary practises were combined with milk production registration data of the dairy farms of these practices. This way, the gross margin per bovine practitioner could be studied for the different veterinary practise. Moreover the relation between gross margin and specification of the veterinary practise could be studied. Finally, the gross margin per dairy farm and the factors that influenced this gross margin were studied. The most important result was the observation that the gross margin per bovine practitioner was dependent on the number of dairy farms per practitioner, the margin on drugs and the region of the veterinary practise. The size of the veterinary practise, the share of the dairy farming within the practise and the source of the gross margin (drugs, time or operations) did not influence the gross margin. Variables that explained the gross margin per dairy farm were, amongst others, the number of dairy cows, the milk production level of the farms and participation in PIR-DAP (a system to support the veterinarians herd health and management program). There is no relation of gross margin per dairy farm and the veterinary practise or region.     

Evaluation of veterinary advice given to dairy farmers

In this pilot study, the manner and effectiveness of advice given by four cattle practitioners was investigated during health management visits to 34 dairy farms. Farmers were asked about their satisfaction with the advice given, and an independent observer evaluated the manner in which practitioners carried out the farm visit. There were no major differences between the cattle practitioners, but there were minor differences in the way practitioners gave advice, in the duration of the herd visit, and in the subjects talked about. The farmers were positive about the manner in which advice was given and its effect. The method used in this pilot study could be used to gain insight into the manner in which veterinary advice is given by veterinary practitioners and veterinary practices, and may contribute to improving the quality of veterinary services provided.     

Veterinary advice for entrepreneurial Dutch dairy farmers: from curative practice to coach-consultant: what needs to be changed?

Dairy farms are tending to become larger, with a milk quota of more than 8 tons a year, and are managed by entrepreneurial dairy farmers with their own specific characteristics and farming style. Some Dutch veterinary practices appear unable to respond to this different style and often do not serve such farms or lose them as client. Moreover, the veterinary curriculum often focuses on traditional, family-run, smaller dairy operations and not on larger farms, which raises the question whether newly qualified veterinary practitioners are adequately trained to provide these entrepreneurial farmers with the services they require. This article addresses the characteristics of entrepreneurial dairy farmers and those of cattle practitioners, to determine whether cattle practitioners need to acquire other skills to better prepare them for their coaching-consultant tasks on larger dairy farms.     

Herd health planning: farmers' perceptions in relation to lameness and mastitis

Between December 2002 and December 2003, the herd health planning activities on 61 dairy farms in the uk were compared with several measures of lameness and mastitis. Lameness had been reported as a problem in 53 of the herds directly by the farm and in the other eight by the nominating local veterinary practice; 54 of the farms also reported having a mastitis problem. Fifty-three (87 per cent) of the farms had some form of written herd health plan, of which 21 (40 per cent) had been in place for 12 months or less. All the farms were recording mastitis in some way, although 38 (62 per cent) of the farmers did not review these records and only four retained the results of a comprehensive record review. Farms defined as having a high incidence of mastitis were more likely to be reviewing their health records, but farms defined as having a high prevalence of lameness in a sentinel group of early lactation heifers were less likely to be reviewing their health records.     

VAMPP: a veterinary automated management and production control programme for dairy farms (the application of MUMPS for data processing)

The application of MUMPS in a computerised recording system for herd health and production control on dairy farms is reviewed. MUMPS is an interactive multi-user database management system, which is both an operating system and a high level computer language. In this system, coding of veterinary and management events prior to data entry is not needed. Programmes and data structure can easily be adapted and extended due to the features of MUMPS. The system for dairy farms allows epidemiological analyses, due to the flexibility of the programme. The programme is used by farmers and veterinary surgeons by means of terminals linked to a central computer. The system provides action lists for farmers and veterinary surgeons; the information on these lists is presented in a multidisciplinary way. Several herd reports and analyses, including frequency distributions and graphs, are given. These reports enable the investigation of cross-relations between farm aspects, and aid in the detection of problem areas.     

Investigating the value dairy farmers place on a reduction of lameness in their herds using a willingness to pay approach

A survey was conducted to elicit dairy farmers’ willingness to pay (WTP) to reduce the prevalence of lameness in their herds. A choice experiment questionnaire was administered using face-to-face interviews of 163 farmers in England and Wales. Whole herd lameness assessments by trained researchers recorded a mean lameness prevalence of nearly 24% which was substantially higher than that estimated by farmers. Farmers’ responses to a series of attitudinal questions showed that they strongly agreed that cows can suffer a lot of pain from lameness and believed that they could reduce lameness in their herds.Farmers’ mean WTP to avoid lameness amounted to UK£411 per lame cow but with considerable variation across the sample. Median WTP of UK£249 per lame cow was considered a better measure of central tendency for the sample. In addition, the survey found that farmers had a substantial WTP to avoid the inconvenience associated with lameness control (a median value of UK£97 per lame cow) but that they were generally prepared to incur greater inconvenience if it reduced lameness. The study findings suggest that farmers need a better understanding of the scale and costs of lameness in their herds and the benefits of control. To encourage action, farmers need to be convinced that lameness control measures perceived as inconvenient will be cost effective.     

Incidence of lameness in dairy cows

A survey of the number of treatments for lameness in 21,000 dairy cows from 185 herds in the University of Edinburgh/Dalgety Spillers dairy herd health and productivity service in England and Wales showed an average incidence of cases of 25 per cent. Veterinary surgeons treated 6.3 per cent and farmers 18.7 per cent and 1.4 per cent of cows were culled because of lameness. Monthly and regional variations were recorded. An assessment of the economic effects suggested that the average annual cost in a 100 cow herd was 1175 pounds with an overall cost to British farmers of more than 35 million pounds. The economic importance is such that research into specific factors affecting foot health should be carried out. Meanwhile, a broad approach to prevention and control of lameness on farms is recommended under the general headings of management/environment, nutrition and breeding.     

规模养殖场兽用抗菌药物使用减量化养殖模式初探

兽用抗菌药物减量化三年试点工作落下帷幕,上海市6家养殖场顺利通过评价,先后被列入兽用抗菌药使用减量化行动试点达标养殖场名单。本文以试点养殖场为调研对象,从制度建设、环境控制、疫病防控、饲养管理、替抗方案等五个方面总结了各养殖场在抗菌药物减量化试点工作中取得的经验及减抗成效,以期为养殖场在开展兽用抗菌药物使用减量化行动过程中提供可复制、可操作的经验,推动建立兽用抗菌药使用减量化管理长效机制。     

猪链球菌和鼻支原体的临床鉴别诊断及防治

猪链球菌病是猪感染链球菌后表现出的一种急性细菌性败血症,在养殖场中比较常见,对猪场危害极大。猪鼻支原体是猪呼吸道分泌物中的常在菌,目前,养殖从业人员尚未对猪鼻支原体引起重视,但是猪鼻支原体感染会对猪场造成较大损失。文章从流行病学特点、临床鉴别诊断和病理鉴别诊断等方面对两种疫病总结出鉴别诊断要点,并对两种病原体的防控提出建议,期望能对猪场的疫病诊治防控工作有一定的指导和建议作用。     

Dieldrin poisoning of dogs

Extract

One of the obvious points of life today is the rapid pace of technological change. The veterinary profession worldwide, and in New Zealand, is not immune from such change. Most of the changes that professionals are now learning to live with are changes that they themselves helped to bring about. Over the last twenty years, and especially over the last ten years in New Zealand, the demand for veterinary skills and advice has increased dramatically. Prior to 1937, veterinary science in New Zealand was an infant profession. Since then the first stage was “selling” farmers an awareness of what veterinary science could do for them. The second stage saw the formation of the Veterinary Services Council, in which efforts were made to ensure equitable distribution of veterinarians, especially in rural areas. The third stage was trying to cope with demand. Today, numbers are reaching the stage at which we can afford the luxury of more detailed planning. The aim is to ensure that all facets of the potential of veterinary science for increasing live-stock production, furthering animal welfare, and in quality control of human food-stuffs, are adequately and efficiently exploited. This is the stage at which multi- disciplinary co-operation will have to be seriously considered.     

Disease conditions diagnosed in culled adult cattle sent to an abattoir either with or without a veterinary certificate

Lesions were detected in 208 culled cattle examined at a slaughterhouse. Eighty-two of them had a veterinary certificate, and 30 of these had been slaughtered on the farm. The principal diagnoses included lameness (88 cases), mastitis (35), chronic infections (32), complications of parturition (20) and fractures and dislocation (14). Most of the 126 animals sent for slaughter by farmers without a veterinary certificate were suffering from lameness (71), mastitis (29) or chronic infections (18). Over 90 per cent of the animals with complications of parturition or traumatic injury had a veterinary certificate. The carcases of 33 (26 per cent) of the animals sent for slaughter without a veterinary certificate were rejected by the meat inspector, and 29 (35 per cent) of those with a veterinary certificate were rejected; the difference was not statistically significant.     

The effective life of ivermectin on Western Australian sheep farms--a survival analysis

A mail survey of 235 Western Australian sheep farmers who had performed faecal egg count reduction tests for anthelmintic resistance in 1999 or 2000 was conducted, with some telephone follow-up. A response of 56% was achieved. Resistance to ivermectin, a member of the macrocyclic lactone class of anthelmintics, had developed on 44% of the farms surveyed. We used time to occurrence of resistance to ascertain factors that contributed to extending the time ivermectin remained an effective drench on these farms (median time = 10.5 years). This time was significantly longer when farmers implemented more worm control practices on their farms (P = 0.003). We developed a multivariable survival model that contained the following main effects: reduced winter drenching frequency, 0–2 flock treatments in 5 years (hazard ratio (HR) 0.52); availability of alternative effective anthelmintic classes on the farm (HR 0.30); always using safe pastures (HR 0.23); and veterinarians as the primary source of worm control advice (HR 0.58). The relationship of these findings to the understanding of anthelmintic resistance is discussed.     

Veterinary herd health and production control on dairy farms I. Introduction to a coupled basic system and flexible system

The veterinary herd health and production control program for year-round calving herds, presented in this paper, comprises a basic system and a flexible system. The basic system is a uniform system of data recording, standard veterinary activities and problem detection for all farms. Record keeping by the farmer includes the updating of a farm diary and a fertility—health chart and the preparation of an examination list before each veterinary farm visit. Record keeping by the veterinarian comprises the updating of a general inventory and four index lists at each monthly visit. The index lists contain all relevant parameters or index figures needed to monitor the various aspects of the farm. These lists serve to detect unwanted situations or problems and to initiate problem analysis. The farm checklist, with time-related veterinary and agricultural attention points, is consulted at each farm visit. In this way, no aspect is omitted in the control program. Problem analysis is performed in the flexible system. This comprises subsystems adaptable to the specific demands on the farm at a given moment and with a given problem. It indicates to what extent action is needed to solve the problem. Agricultural activities must be coupled to veterinary activities in order to provide the farmer with optimal advice. The farm checklist can be considered as a link between the two disciplines: the veterinarian can enlist the agricultural officer at the right moment.The frame-work of the basic system is introduced with emphasis on record keeping by the farmer, veterinary farm visits and the farm checklist.     

The development, implementation and testing of a lameness control programme based on HACCP principles and designed for heifers on dairy farms

This paper describes the development and testing of a lameness control programme (LCP) for heifers on dairy farms. The LCP, which is based on the analysis of hazards and critical control points (HACCP), was tested via a randomised intervention study on 60 farms. Tangible hazards for each farm were identified, allotted to 11 categories of proximate hazard and scored on each farm to quantify the risks presented by each hazard. Feet were inspected for signs of claw horn disease and infection, such as digital dermatitis. Intervention was generally ineffective, primarily through failure to implement the LCP. However, retrospective analysis was able to demonstrate highly significant associations between risks attached to proximate hazards and probabilities of lameness and foot lesions, allowing the severity of these hazards to be ranked. The most significant proximate hazards of environmental origin were prolonged standing on concrete, standing in wet slurry and factors that cause claw trauma. The most severe proximate hazards however were those associated with failures of management, especially poor claw condition and inadequate foot care. Overall farm risks (OFR) were estimated by summing the products of the generic severity for proximate hazards with on-farm risks. Changes in OFR were significantly related to changes in outcome (lameness and lesions).     

江苏省推进兽用抗菌药使用减量化行动中的实践与思考

2018年8月以来，江苏省认真贯彻落实农业农村部工作部署，深入推进兽用抗菌药使用减量化行动工作，初步形成政府引导、企业实施、部门推动、社会共治的良好局面。截至目前，全省已有4775家规模养殖场参加兽药减抗行动。本文对江苏省推进兽用抗菌药使用减量化行动工作中的实践进行总结，明确下一步工作方向，助力全国兽用抗菌药使用减量化行动工作迈上新台阶。     

High field magnetic resonance imaging contributes to diagnosis of equine distal tarsus and proximal metatarsus lesions: 103 horses

Injury of the distal tarsus and proximal metatarsus commonly causes lameness. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allows concurrent assessment of both the distal tarsal joints and suspensory ligament origin, and aids identification of lesions that may otherwise go undetected by other modalities. In this retrospective observational study, the medical records of a veterinary imaging center were searched for MRI exams of the distal tarsus and proximal metatarsus for the years 2012 through 2014. Studies for 125 limbs of 103 horses were identified and retrospectively evaluated by two board‐certified veterinary radiologists. Soft tissue and osseous changes were characterized and graded by degree of severity. The patients’ signalment, lameness severity, and results of diagnostic analgesia were recorded. Osteoarthritic changes of the distal intertarsal and tarsometatarsal joints were the most common findings. Other findings included bone marrow lesions, degenerative changes of the small cuboidal bones, subchondral cystic lesions, and intertarsal desmopathy. Suspensory ligament desmopathy was found in 53% of limbs. Fourty‐seven percent of limbs that responded to analgesia of the proximal suspensory ligament had more severe lesions in the distal tarsus. Bone marrow lesions of the third tarsal bone were the only MRI finding that correlated with grade of lameness in patients for which lameness grade was reported. The grade of lameness has a poor correlation with the severity of lesions found on MRI. The findings support the use of MRI for simultaneous evaluation of the proximal metatarsus and distal tarsus, particularly given the difficulty of lesion localization with diagnostic analgesia.     

Mastitis control measures used on some Minnesota dairy farms

Proven mastitis control procedures are available, but few studies have documented their rates of use on commercial dairy farms. This paper presents the results of a mail questionnaire on the use of mastitis control procedures and sources of information on mastitis control, which were administered in December 1981 and again in February 1984 to 213 Minnesota dairy farmers. Sources of information about mastitis control were also determined for the surveyed farms. Response rates to the questionnaire were 56.8% in 1981 and 51.2% in 1984. Herd average milk and butterfat production were higher and somatic cell counts lower on responder's farms than non-responders'. Teat dipping was practiced by approximately 75% of farmers responding to the questionnaire in both years. However, only about one third of respondents used teat dips containing effective disinfectants. Approximately 93% of respondents used dry period therapy (DPT) but less than one half of them treated all quarters of all cows at drying off and approximately one third of them complied with the recommended infusion practices. A combination of effective DPT and teat disinfection practices was used by approximately 15% of respondents in both years of the survey. Segregation of mastitic cows occurred on approximately 40% of respondent farms and milking machine function was checked at least annually on 50%. Participation in routine veterinary reproductive health programs was 51.2% in 1981 and 61.5% in 1984. In contrast, regular veterinary input for mastitis control was received by <5% of respondents in both years of the survey. Veterinarians were, however, identified by respondents as the most useful source of information on mastitis control.     

Basic epidemiologic concepts related to assessment of animal health and performance.

Modern animal production systems are increasingly complex,which is why farmers depend on veterinarians to help them make sound decisions based on valid interpretation of data. While serving as advisors to farmers, veterinarians face the challenge of properly identifying key indicators of animal performance and differentiating between values that reflect normal biologic variation and those that require intervention. The veterinary consultant must understand the strengths and weaknesses of data, assess production trends accurately, and evaluate the results of management changes. This article describes some basic epidemiologic concepts about animal performance data. These concepts equip veterinary practitioners with the tools they need to give the best advice.     

我国兽用抗菌药使用减量化行动试点达标养殖场调研分析

为深入了解兽用抗菌药使用减量化行动的实施现状,笔者对我国12省20余家兽用抗菌药物使用减量化行动试点达标养殖场开展了现场调研。结合调研数据,对达标养殖场兽用抗菌药使用减量化行动的实施效果、存在问题与积累经验进行了总结、分析与建议,旨在为兽用抗菌药物使用减量化行动的进一步推进提供参考