Dairy farm management factors associated with auction sale price of young dairy calves sold at auction markets in Québec, Canada-A cross-sectional study.

Each year ∼150,000 surplus calves are sold at auction markets in Québec, Canada. Surplus calves (male or female not kept in the herd of origin) are sold at a young age, but these animals are at risk of receiving lower quality neonatal care than replacement heifers. Knowledge of factors associated with a higher selling price could help convince farmers to spend more resources in the care surplus calves.

Corrigendum: Barriers and facilitators to implementing a new regulation restricting antimicrobial use in dairy production in Québec, Canada: a qualitative study.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2023.

Conventional and unsupervised artificial intelligence analyses identified risk factors for antimicrobial resistance on dairy farms in the province of Québec, Canada.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the greatest threats to global health worldwide and is threatening not only humans, but also animal production systems, including dairy farms. The objective of this paper was to describe risks factors associated with AMR on dairy farms in Québec, Canada. This observational cross-sectional study included 101 commercial dairy farms and took place over a one-year period between the spring of 2017 and the spring of 2018.

Redefining on-farm practices: The perceived effect of a responsible antimicrobial use regulation on dairy farmers.

The global food animal industry faces a growing concern regarding antimicrobial resistance (AMR), primarily driven by the use of antimicrobials (AM) for the treatment, control, and prevention of diseases. Addressing this challenge requires promoting responsible antimicrobial use (AMU) practices. In 2019, the province of Québec, Canada, took a significant step by implementing a regulation that limits the use of AM of very high importance for human medicine (category I AM as defined by Health Canada) in the food animal industry.

Clonal and plasmidic dissemination of critical antimicrobial resistance genes through clinically relevant ExPEC and APEC-like lineages (ST) in the dairy cattle population of Québec, Canada.

Antimicrobial resistance can be effectively limited by improving the judicious use of antimicrobials in food production. However, its effect on the spread of AMR genes in animal populations is not well described. In the province of Québec, Canada, a new legislation implemented in 2019 has led to an unprecedented reduction in the use of critical antimicrobials in dairy production.

Veal calves management in Québec, Canada: Part I. Association between passive immunity transfer at arrival and health disorders.

Morbidity and mortality remain important concerns for veal production which traditionally involves very young calves being transported directly from dairy farms to calf-raising facilities or sold through auction markets from dairy farms. There are few studies that examine the relationship between transfer of passive immunity and health outcomes in veal production in Québec. The objective of this study was to investigate the risk factors associated with morbidity and mortality in milk and grain-fed veal facilities in Québec.

Accuracy of testing strategies using antibody-ELISA tests on repeated bulk tank milk samples and/or sera of individual animals for predicting herd status for Salmonella dublin in dairy cattle.

There is currently no perfect test for determining herd-level status for Salmonella Dublin in dairy cattle herds. Our objectives were to evaluate the accuracy, predictive ability, and misclassification cost term of different testing scenarios using repeated measurements for establishing the S. Dublin herd status.

Prevalence of cutaneous and mucosal lesions in dairy cattle admitted to a Canadian Veterinary Teaching Hospital from 2018 to 2019.

Background: The prevalence, anatomical distribution, or nature of cutaneous, hair and oral mucosal abnormalities (CHMAs) in cattle is uncertain.

Objectives: To determine how often dairy cattle admitted to a veterinary teaching hospital (VTH) had CHMAs (except for foot and ear canal) on physical examination and if there was an age-related difference.

Animals: Four hundred and thirty-three cattle: cattle <3 months (n = 85), cattle 3 to 24 months (n = 73), and cattle >24 months (n = 275).

Health indicators in surplus calves at the time of arrival at auction markets: Associations with distance from farms of origin in Québec, Canada.

This study evaluated the associations between estimated distance from farms' locations to auction markets, and health indicators of surplus dairy calves sold during summer 2019 and winter 2020 in Québec, Canada. A total of 3,610 animals from 1,331 different farms were used in this cross-sectional cohort study. Geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude) were obtained for each farm and the 2 participating livestock auction markets.

Description of Antimicrobial-Resistant and Their Dissemination Mechanisms on Dairy Farms.

Despite its importance in veterinary medicine, there is little information about antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and its transmission in dairy cattle. The aim of this work is to compare AMR phenotypes and genotypes in resistant and to determine how the resistance genes spread among the population on dairy farms in Québec, Canada. From an existing culture collection of isolated from dairy manure, a convenient selection of the most resistant isolates (a high level of multidrug resistance or resistance to broad-spectrum β-lactams or fluoroquinolones) was analyzed ( = 118).

Barriers and facilitators to implementing a new regulation restricting antimicrobial use in dairy production in Québec, Canada: A qualitative study.

With the emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), many countries are implementing restrictive regulations to reduce antimicrobial use (AMU) in animal production. Although these measures are effective at the national level, their implementation may generate challenges for producers and veterinarians. The objective of this study was to explore the barriers and facilitators of implementing a new regulation restricting the use of antimicrobials of very high importance for human health in the dairy production sector in the province of Québec, Canada.

Presence or severity of hypophosphatemia is not associated with survival outcome in postpartum downer dairy cows.

Objective: To evaluate the association between serum phosphorus concentration and the outcome of postpartum downer cows.

Animals: Postpartum downer dairy cows presented over a 22-year period.

Procedures: In this cross-sectional study (1994 to 2016), medical records of all postpartum downer cows presented to a referral large animal hospital were reviewed.

Development and validation of a clinical respiratory disease scoring system for guiding treatment decisions in veal calves using a Bayesian framework.

Active infectious bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is an infection of the airways that needs to be diagnosed correctly so that appropriate treatment can be initiated. The simplest and most practical test to detect active BRD in dairy calves raised for veal is the detection and interpretation of clinical signs by producers or technicians. However, the clinical scoring system currently available for veal calves lacks sensitivity and specificity, contributing to economic losses and high use of antimicrobials.

Association between transfer of passive immunity and health disorders in multisource commingled dairy calves raised for veal or other purposes: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Inadequate transfer of passive immunity (ITPI) in newborn dairy calves remains an important risk factor for mortality and morbidity. Most available studies are focused on calves delivered and raised on the same farms. This setting is far different from calves transported and commingled from different farms to be raised as veal or for other purposes.

Interpretation of cerebrospinal fluid analysis from recumbent cows using different thresholds of red blood cell count.

Background: Hemodilution of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) could confound interpretation of results. Accurately predicting total nucleated cells count (TNCC) and total protein concentration (TPC) attributable to hemodilution is difficult.

Objective: To determine the effects of hemodilution on TPC and TNCC in bovine CSF.

Estimation of the accuracy of an ELISA test applied to bulk tank milk for predicting herd-level status for Salmonella Dublin in dairy herds using Bayesian Latent Class Models.

Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) test is commonly used for detection of antibodies to Salmonella Dublin in individual bovine milk samples. However, little is known about its accuracy when used on bulk tank milk for determining herd-level S. Dublin status and when evaluated without assuming a perfect reference test.

Development of a multivariable prediction model to identify dairy calves too young to be transported to auction markets in Canada using simple physical examination and body weight.

Calves born on Eastern Canadian dairy farms that are not kept in the herds are traditionally sold through auction markets and are raised for meat purposes such as veal calves. Since February 2020, a new Canadian federal regulation has forbidden calves <9 d old to be sold through auction markets. However, in the absence of a real-time birth registry consultation system, it would be of interest to look for predictors that could be associated with age to allow identification of calves too young to be transported.

Impact of a Regulation Restricting Critical Antimicrobial Usage on Prevalence of Antimicrobial Resistance in Isolates From Fecal and Manure Pit Samples on Dairy Farms in Québec, Canada.

To tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR), one of the major health threats of this century, the World Health Organization (WHO) endorsed a global action plan in 2015. This plan calls countries to develop national actions to address AMR. The province of Québec, Canada, adopted a new regulation on the 25 of February 2019, to limit the use in food animals of antimicrobials of very high importance in human medicine.

Evidence of a decrease in sales of antimicrobials of very high importance for humans in dairy herds after a new regulation restricting their use in Quebec, Canada.

In the province of Quebec, Canada, a new regulation restricting usage of antimicrobials of very high importance for human health (Health Canada: category 1 antimicrobials) in production animals is effective since February 2019. The objective of this study was to estimate changes in AM sales in dairy herds after the implementation of the regulation. Therefore, invoice data were extracted from veterinary software, Vet-Expert, used by most dairy veterinarians in the province of Quebec, and antimicrobial quantities were transformed in Canadian defined course doses for cattle (DCDbovCA).

Comparison of Quantification Methods to Estimate Farm-Level Usage of Antimicrobials in Medicated Feed in Dairy Farms from Québec, Canada.

Monitoring antimicrobial usage (AMU) in dairy cattle is becoming common in a growing number of countries, with the ultimate goal to improve practices, reduce the development of antimicrobial resistance, and protect human health. However, antimicrobials delivered as feed additives can be missed by some of the quantification methods usually implemented. Our objective was to compare three methods of quantification of in-feed AMU in Québec dairy herds.

Evaluation of inter-rater agreement of the clinical signs used to diagnose bovine respiratory disease in individually housed veal calves.

In dairy calves raised for veal, typical clinical signs of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) are ocular discharge, nasal discharge, ear droop or head tilt, abnormal respiration, cough, and increased rectal temperature. Despite the existence of several clinical scoring systems, there are few studies on the variability of human recognition of individual BRD clinical signs. The objective of this study was therefore to assess the inter-rater agreement of BRD clinical signs in veal calves.

Survival and prognostic indicators in downer dairy cows presented to a referring hospital: A retrospective study (1318 cases).

Background: Downer cow syndrome, a common problem in dairy cattle, represents a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge for the attending veterinarian. Identifying prognostic indicators and assessing the odds of survival may improve the accuracy of the clinician's prognosis at the time of diagnosis.

Objective: To describe a population of downer dairy cows referred to a hospital and investigate predictors of outcome.