Abstract #280
Section: Animal Health
Session: Animal Health III
Format: Oral
Day/Time: Tuesday 10:15 AM–10:30 AM
Location: 324
Session: Animal Health III
Format: Oral
Day/Time: Tuesday 10:15 AM–10:30 AM
Location: 324
# 280
Associations of management practices and calf health on dairy farms using automated milk feeders in southern Ontario.
C. Medrano-Galarza*1,5, S. J. LeBlanc1,5, A. Jones-Bitton1, T. J. DeVries2,5, A. M. de Passillé3, J. Rushen3, M. I. Endres4, D. B. Haley1,5, 1Department of Population Medicine, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 2Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 3Faculty of Land and Food Systems, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, 4Department of Animal Science, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, 5Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada.
Key Words: calf, health, automated milk feeder
Associations of management practices and calf health on dairy farms using automated milk feeders in southern Ontario.
C. Medrano-Galarza*1,5, S. J. LeBlanc1,5, A. Jones-Bitton1, T. J. DeVries2,5, A. M. de Passillé3, J. Rushen3, M. I. Endres4, D. B. Haley1,5, 1Department of Population Medicine, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 2Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada, 3Faculty of Land and Food Systems, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada, 4Department of Animal Science, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, 5Campbell Centre for the Study of Animal Welfare, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada.
Data on management practices with automated milk feeders (AMF) are needed to identify determinants of calf health and welfare. Seventeen dairy farms with AMF in Ontario (Canada) were visited 4 times, seasonally, over 1 year. All calves (n = 1488) in pens (n = 35) with AMF were health scored to identify number of calves with diarrhea (CD) and bovine respiratory disease (BRD). Data on calf, feeder, and pen management practices were analyzed using mixed-effects negative binomial regression models. Overall calf-level prevalence of CD and BRD were 23% and 17%, respectively. Median (IQR) within-pen prevalence of CD and BRD was 17% (7–37) and 11% (0–28), respectively. Median age (IQR) for diarrheic calves was 25 d old (12–42), while for calves with BRD was 43 d old (21–60). Predictors associated with reduced within-pen prevalence of CD were the feeding of probiotics (risk ratio [RR] = 0.5, P < 0.01), cleaning feeder hoses daily compared with weekly (RR = 0.53, P < 0.03), and individual-housing (vs. group-housing) before introduction to the AMF pen (RR = 0.6, P = 0.07). In contrast, use of maternity pens other than for calving tended to be a risk factor (RR = 1.6, P = 0.07). Predictors associated with increased within-pen prevalence of BRD were sharing air with cattle 5–8 mo old (RR = 3.4, P = 0.01) or 1+ year (RR = 2.0, P = 0.07), and introduction to the AMF pen after 9 d old compared with < 3 d (RR = 2.1, P = 0.04) or 3 to 6 d (RR 2.0, P = 0.02). Increased total solids in milk replacer (RR = 0.93, P = 0.04) and dry top bedding over a wet bedding pack no deeper than 5 cm (RR = 0.6, P = 0.04) were protective. To conclude, isolation from older animals, and frequent cleaning of the feeder and pen may help reduce disease in group-housed calves fed with an AMF.
Key Words: calf, health, automated milk feeder
