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- Gidekull, Maria, et al.
(författare)
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alpha-Tocopherol and beta-carotene concentrations in feed, colostrum, cow and calf serum in Swedish dairy herds with high or low calf mortality
- 2018
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Ingår i: Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0044-605X .- 1751-0147. ; 60
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: A study of herd-level risk factors for calf mortality in large Swedish dairy herds showed low serum concentrations of alpha-tocopherol and beta-carotene in 1-7 day old calves to be more common in high mortality herds. Therefore, we aimed to investigate if calf mortality risk at herd level is associated with concentrations of alpha-tocopherol and/or beta-carotene at individual level in feed, colostrum, cow and calf serum, while controlling for herd level covariates. Inclusion criteria were affiliation to the Swedish official milk recording scheme, herd size of >= 120 milking cows/year, calf mortality risk (day 1-90) of at least 6% (high mortality; HM) or less than 1% (low mortality; LM) and located within one of two regions in southern Sweden. This cross-sectional study was performed in 2010 in 19 -(n(HM) = 9; -n(LM) = 10) dairy herds. Questionnaires were used to collect information about feed and routines for colostrum feeding. Feed (n = 57), colostrum (n = 162), cow serum (n = 189) and calf serum samples (n = 187) were collected and analysed for alpha-tocopherol and beta-carotene. Other analyses e.g. total serum protein, fat content, and total solids in colostrum were also performed. Linear regression models with vitamin concentrations in feed, colostrum, cow and calf serum as outcome were performed.Results: Calves in HM herds had lower concentrations of alpha-tocopherol in serum than calves in LM herds, but the effect depended on total protein status in serum of the calf (P = 0.036). Calves from herds that fed transition milk for 3 days or more had higher alpha-tocopherol concentrations in serum than calves from herds feeding transition milk up to 2 days (P = 0.013). Fat percentage in colostrum was positively associated with alpha-tocopherol (P < 0.001) and beta-carotene concentrations in colostrum (P < 0.001). A diet containing >= 20% (in kg dry matter) maize silage of the total ration was negatively associated with beta-carotene concentration in cow serum (P = 0.001).Conclusions: High calf mortality risks were associated with lower concentrations of alpha-tocopherol in calf serum for calves with failure of passive transfer. Feeding transition milk longer was associated with higher concentrations of alpha-tocopherol in calf serum. In HM herds, evaluation of the calves' alpha-tocopherol status is recommended.
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| 2. |
- Gidekull, Maria, et al.
(författare)
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Associations between calf mortality during days 1 to 90 and herd-level cow and production variables in large Swedish dairy herds
- 2014
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Ingår i: Journal of Dairy Science. - : American Dairy Science Association. - 0022-0302 .- 1525-3198. ; 97, s. 6613-6621
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of the study was to describe large Swedish dairy herds with high and low mortality risk in calves during the first 90 d of life, using herd-level data, and to evaluate if high calf mortality risk is associated with other herd-level management variables that influence cow health. A total of 57 Swedish dairy herds met the inclusion criteria of affiliation to the Swedish official milk recording scheme, herd size of >= 140 and >= 160 cows in 2008/2009 and 2009/2010, and calf mortality risks, classified as high (HM; calf mortality risk at least 3.5% in 2008/2009 and 5.5% in 2009/2010; n = 28) or low (LM; calf mortality risk less than <1.5% in 2008/2009 and 2009/2010; n = 29), and were thus included in the study. The data used in this study were collected from the Swedish Dairy association during the milking year 2009/2010. For LM herds, the calf mortality risk ranged from 0 to 1.46 (median = 0.66) in 2008/2009 and from 0 to 1.48 (median = 0.67) in 2009/2010. For HM herds, the calf mortality risk ranged from 3.57 to 11.52 (median = 6.15) in 2008/2009 and from 5.88 to 18.23 (median = 8.39) in 2009/2010. Median age at death was 28 d for HM and 37 d for LM herds. Associations between type of herd (HM or LM) and the production variables were evaluated using multi-correspondence analysis and logistic regression models covering the areas "mortality and culling," "health," "herd/production variables," and "fertility." Herds with HM risks during d 1 to 90 were associated with higher on-farm mortality rate in cows, lower average milk yield, higher incidence of antibiotic treatment, and a higher proportion of purchased animals. These results indicate that herds with HM risk during d 1 to 90 have coexisting issues concerning cow management and health. Future research is needed to evaluate if identifying HM herds and working with advisory and preventive manners at these herds also can be positive for a reduction of on-farm mortality and antibiotic usage, which are important issues from a global perspective.
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| 3. |
- Gidekull, Maria, et al.
(författare)
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Risk factors for calf mortality in large Swedish dairy herds
- 2011
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Ingår i: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 99, s. 136-147
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this study was to identify possible risk factors for 1-90 day calf mortality in large Swedish dairy herds. Sixty herds with a herd size of >= 160 cows were visited once between December 2005 and March 2006. Thirty herds were known to have low mortality (LM) and 30 were known high mortality herds (HM). Upon the visit, data about housing and management was collected from interviews with personnel responsible for the calves. The herd status regarding the calves' passive transfer (total protein), levels of alpha-tocopherol, beta-carotene and retinol, and excretion of faecal pathogens (Cryptosporidium spp., Escherichia coli F5, rota and corona virus) was evaluated based on targeted sampling of high risk calf groups; in each herd, blood and faecal samples were collected from calves 1-7 and 1-14 days old, respectively. Similarly, the herd status regarding clinical respiratory disease in calves and history of respiratory virus exposure was evaluated based on lung auscultations and blood samplings of calves 60-90 days old. The median calf mortality risk (in calves 1-90 days of age) among HM herds was 9% (Range: 6-24%) and among LM herds 1% (Range: 0-2%). LM and HM herds were compared using five logistic regression models, covering potential risk factors within different areas: "Disease susceptibility", "Factors affecting the gastrointestinal tract", "Factors related to transmission of infectious disease", "Hygiene" and "Labour management". The percentage of calves, 1-7 days old, with inadequate serum concentrations of alpha-tocopherol and beta-carotene were significantly higher in HM herds compared to LM herds and also associated with higher odds of being a HM herd (OR = 1.02; p = 0.023 and OR = 1.05; p = 0.0028, respectively). The variable "Average number of faecal pathogens in the sampled target group" was significantly associated with higher odds of being a HM herd (OR = 4.65: p = 0.015), with a higher average in HM herds. The percentage of calves with diarrhoea treated with antibiotics was significantly higher in HM herds and was associated with higher odds of being a HM herd (OR = 1.08; p = 0.021). The median age at death of calves in the age interval 1-90 days that died during a one-year period was significantly lower among HM herds (13 days) than in LM herds (24 days) (p = 0.0013) The results indicate that gastrointestinal disorders may be an important cause of calf mortality in large Swedish dairy herds. Furthermore, our study provides additional indications that fat soluble vitamins might play an important role for calf health. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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| 7. |
- Tamminen, Lena-Mari, et al.
(författare)
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Risk factors and dynamics of verotoxigenic Escherichia coli O157:H7 on cattle farms: An observational study combining information from questionnaires, spatial data and molecular analyses
- 2019
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Ingår i: Preventive Veterinary Medicine. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-5877 .- 1873-1716. ; 170
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The increasing number of human cases infected with a highly virulent type of verotoxigenic Escherichia toll (VTEC) O157:H7 in Sweden is the result of domestic transmission originating in regional clusters of infected cattle farms. To control the spread of the bacteria a comprehensive picture of infection dynamics, routes of transmission between farms and risk factors for persistence is urgently needed. The aim of the study was to investigate different aspects of the epidemiology of VTEC O157:H7 on the Swedish island of Oland by combining information from environmental sampling of VTEC O157:H7 from 80 farms with information from fanner questionnaires, spatial and molecular analyses. The farms were sampled in the spring and fall of 2014 and on four of them additional samples were collected during summer and winter. The results show a high prevalence of VTEC O157:H7 and a high proportion of strains belonging to the virulent Glade 8. Farms that became infected between samplings were all located in an area with high cattle density. The most important risk factors identified are generally associated with biosecurity and indicate that visitors travelling between farms may be important for transmission. In addition, whole genome sequencing of a subset of isolates from the four farms where additional sampling was performed revealed ongoing local transmission that cannot be observed with a lower resolution typing method. Our observations also show that VTEC O157:H7 may persist in the farm environment for extended periods of time, suggesting that specific on-farm measures to reduce environmental prevalence and spread between groups of animals may be required in these cases.
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