Background: Mastitis-metritis-agalactia (MMA) syndrome occurs in the first days post-partum and causes piglet losses mainly due to malnutrition. One possibility for prophylaxis of MMA is via homeopathy. In this veterinary study, the effectiveness of a prophylactic administration of homeopathic remedies for the prevention of the occurrence of MMA in swine was evaluated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study analyses tail and ear postures of growing pigs in two different housing systems throughout the growing period. On one farm, 168 undocked pigs (84: barren housing, 84: enriched housing) were observed individually at three time periods: beginning, middle and end of the growing period. By scan sampling, the tail (curled-up, raised, hanging, tucked under, wagging) and ear posture (forwards, sidewards, backwards, mixed) was noted.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe aim of the present study was to automatically predict the onset of farrowing in crate-confined sows. (1) Background: Automatic tools are appropriate to support animal surveillance under practical farming conditions. (2) Methods: In three batches, sows in one farrowing compartment of the Futterkamp research farm were equipped with an ear sensor to sample acceleration.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWhile laboratory tests for measuring the concentration of NEFA in serum are well established, a point of care test to determine NEFA on farm is not available. Several hand-held measuring devices, however, have been validated for measuring β-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA) in cattle or cholesterol, triglycerides (TAG), and high-density lipoproteins (HDL) in human medicine, respectively. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between NEFA and different parameters related to lipid metabolism.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of ketoprofen compared with ceftiofur hydrochloride for the treatment of acute puerperal metritis (APM). Specifically, we set out to compare the incidence of extended treatment (extT) between treatment groups, to determine the prevalence of purulent vaginal discharge (PVD) and milk yield on the first 3 milk tests postpartum, and to analyze reproductive performance of cows treated with ketoprofen or ceftiofur. Cows with rectal temperature ≥39.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVarious attempts were made to improve the diagnosis of the periparturient hypogalactia syndrome in sows. A new approach was the detection of elevated concentrations of acute phase proteins. The objective of our study was to investigate the serum concentrations of haptoglobin (Hp) and C-reactive protein (CRP) in sows on Day 7 postpartum and relationship to body temperature.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThroughout cryopreservation, sperm are exposed to major osmotic challenges. Only intact membranes of sperm cells are able to regulate these volumetric changes, which can be determined by the hypo-osmotic swelling test (HOS test). Correlations between the HOS test and conventional semen variables are inconsistent.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objectives of this retrospective study were to examine the effect of heat stress on natural service and artificial insemination (AI) breeding methods. We investigated the influence of short- and long-term heat stress on the conception risk (CR) of dairy cows bred by natural service or by AI with frozen-thawed or fresh semen. In addition, the relationship between breeding method and parity was determined.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDystocias are common in dairy cows and often adversely affect production, reproduction, animal welfare, labor, and economics within the dairy industry. An automated device that accurately predicts the onset of calving could potentially minimize the effect of dystocias by enabling producers to intervene early. Although many well-documented indicators can detect the imminence of calving, research is limited on their effectiveness to predict calving when measured by automated devices.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMeasurement of serum haptoglobin (Hapto) concentrations results in only moderate reported specificity and sensitivity for the detection of metritic cows. The objective of this study was to evaluate associations between different variables and haptoglobin concentrations after calving. Parity, periparturient metabolic stress indicated by β-hydroxybutyric acid (BHBA) and nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA), calving difficulties, retained fetal membranes (RFM), and acute puerperal metritis (APM) were evaluated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objectives of this study were to describe the onset of hyperketonemia, the number of positive hyperketonemia test results, and the duration of the longest hyperketonemic period during the first 42 d in milk (DIM) in dairy cows. Furthermore, we set out to evaluate test characteristics of single and repeated measurements of β-hydroxybutyric acid (BHBA) during this period to diagnose hyperketonemia. Using an electronic handheld meter, 252 cows from 3 farms were tested twice weekly for hyperketonemia (blood BHBA ≥1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAcute puerperal metritis (APM) in dairy cows is characterized by fever and fetid vaginal discharge within 21 days in milk (DIM). Increased serum haptoglobin concentration (Hp) can support the diagnosis of APM. However, there is a dearth of information of the test performance of Hp as a measure for APM with a consistent definition and considering parity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objective of the study was to evaluate an automated activity monitoring (AAM) system for oestrous detection in dairy cows. Specifically, we set out to determine the oestrous detection efficiency and accuracy of the AAM system and to compare reproductive performance of cows detected either by AAM, by visual observation (VO) or by at least 1 of the 2 methods (EOM). A total of 1004 potential cow-periods from 348 cows were analysed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objective of this study was to evaluate whether milk temperature (MT) measured by automatic milking system (AMS) is a reliable indicator of body temperature of dairy cows and whether cows with fever could be detected. Data loggers (Minilog 8, Vemco Ltd., Halifax, NS, Canada) measuring body temperature were inserted for 7 ± 1 d into the vaginal cavity of 31 dairy cows and programmed to take 1 reading/min.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objective of this study was to estimate the diagnostic accuracy of an electronic nose device using vaginal discharge samples to diagnose acute puerperal metritis (APM) in dairy cows. Uterine fluid was sampled manually with a gloved hand and under sterile conditions for electronic nose device analysis (day in milk (DIM) 2, 5, and 10) and bacteriologic examination (DIM 5), respectively, and on additional days, if APM was diagnosed during the daily clinical examinations. A dataset containing samples from 70 cows was used to create a model and to validate the APM status predicted by this model, respectively.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA strategy widely adopted in the modern dairy industry is the introduction of postpartum health monitoring programs by trained farm personnel. Within these fresh cow protocols, various parameters (e.g.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objectives of this retrospective study were to investigate the relationship between temperature-humidity index (THI) and conception rate (CR) of lactating dairy cows, to estimate a threshold for this relationship, and to identify periods of exposure to heat stress relative to breeding in an area of moderate climate. In addition, we compared three different heat load indices related to CR: mean THI, maximum THI, and number of hours above the mean THI threshold. The THI threshold for the influence of heat stress on CR was 73.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTierarztl Prax Ausg G Grosstiere Nutztiere
September 2015
Objective: Subclinical ketosis (SCK), an important disease in lactating dairy cows, is defined as the presence of elevated concentrations of circulating ketone bodies without the development of clinical signs. Therefore, diagnostic methods are limited to the detection of the concentrations of ketone bodies in different body fluids. The objective of this study was to evaluate a recently developed electronic hand- held meter (NovaVet) for the determination of β-hydroxybutyric acid (BHB) in the blood of dairy cows.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTwo trials were conducted to examine factors potentially influencing the measurement of blood β-hydroxybutyric acid (BHBA) in dairy cows. The objective of the first trial was to study effects of sampling time on BHBA concentration in continuously fed dairy cows. Furthermore, we determined test characteristics of a single BHBA measurement at a random time of the day to diagnose subclinical ketosis considering commonly used cut-points (1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objectives of the study were to compare the climate conditions of 7 dairy farms with the climate recorded at the closest official meteorological station. Specifically, we set out to compare the ambient temperature, relative humidity, and the resulting temperature-humidity index (THI) from 7 different barns with those data obtained from the closest official meteorological stations and to compare the climate conditions between 4 different locations within 1 barn. Measures of correlation and agreement demonstrated that climate conditions differ significantly between the barn and the corresponding official meteorological stations as well as between 4 different locations inside 1 barn.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFReprod Domest Anim
February 2014
The objective of this study was to determine sensitivity and specificity of a body temperature decline in bitches to predict parturition. Temperature loggers were placed into the vaginal cavity of 16 pregnant bitches on day 56-61 after estimated ovulation or first mating. This measurement technique has been validated previously and enabled continuous sampling of body temperature.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTierarztl Prax Ausg G Grosstiere Nutztiere
September 2015
Objective: Postpartum diseases of sows are economically important in the pig industry. They affect animal health and welfare of sows and piglets. Measuring rectal temperature in sows post partum is a commonly used diagnostic method to early detection of infectious diseases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objective of this study was to determine test characteristics (i.e., intra- and interobserver variability, intraassay variability, sensitivity, and specificity) of an evaluation of odor from vaginal discharge (VD) of cows in the first 10 d postpartum conducted by olfactory cognition and an electronic device, respectively.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe use of oral rehydration solutions (ORS) is well established as an effective treatment to correct water-, electrolyte-, and acid-base balance in diarrheic calves. The main ingredients of a commercial ORS are Na, glucose, and alkalinizing agents, such as NaHCO3. Particular importance is attributed to the combination of glucose and Na at a specific ratio to optimize intestinal sodium, and thereby water uptake, through the sodium-glucose co-transport.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe overall objective of this study was to evaluate agreement between rectal (RT) and vaginal temperature (VT) measured with the same temperature loggers in dairy cows. Three experiments were conducted. The study began with a validation in vitro of 24 temperature loggers comparing them to a calibrated liquid-in-glass thermometer as a reference method.
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