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- Alvåsen, Karin, et al.
(author)
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Farm characteristics and management routines related to cow longevity: a survey among Swedish dairy farmers
- 2018
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In: Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0044-605X .- 1751-0147. ; 60
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: Longevity is an important trait for increasing the profitability of dairy production. Long cow longevity is also essential to reduce the environmental impact of milk production, and to maintain positive consumer attitude. Genetic selection for increased longevity has been effective, but the phenotypic trend of longevity in Swedish dairy cows has not been improved. The objective of this study was to identify herd characteristics and management routines that are associated with the average cow longevity in a herd. To obtain this information, a questionnaire was developed and sent out to 661 Swedish dairy farmers.Results: The response rate was 35%. Seventeen of the 62 characteristics investigated had either a univariable association with the outcome (days from birth to culling) at P < 0.15, or were identified as confounders in the causal diagram and were therefore considered as candidates for the multivariable analysis. Multiple imputation was used to fill in the missing data from the questionnaires, and this increased the number of usable observations in the multivariable modeling from 156 to 228. Only a few of the investigated herd characteristics and management routines were associated with average cow longevity. The results demonstrated that using herd health advisory services shortened the average longevity, while using breeding advisory services prolonged the average longevity in the herd. Furthermore, having a greater interest in animal breeding (i.e. genetic selection) decreased the longevity, and calling the veterinarian when discovering an unhealthy cow increased the average longevity. Higher age of the farmer was also associated with longer average herd longevity.Conclusions: The herd average cow longevity was only associated with some of the farm characteristics and management routines studied. The results demonstrate that the use of advisory services and farmers' attitudes could be targeted for increasing the herd longevity. Further, the results indicate that other e.g. qualitative factors influencing farmers' decisions play an important role.
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| 2. |
- Alvåsen, Karin, et al.
(author)
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Farm characteristics related to on-farm cow mortality in dairy herds: a questionnaire study
- 2014
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In: Animal. - 1751-7311 .- 1751-732X. ; 8, s. 1735-1742
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Dairy cow mortality is an important animal welfare issue that also causes financial losses. The objective of this study was to identify farm characteristics and herd management practices associated with high on-farm cow mortality in Swedish dairy herds. A postal questionnaire was sent to farmers that had either high or low mortality rates for 3 consecutive years. The questionnaire consisted of five sections: 'About the farm', 'Milking and housing', 'Feeding', 'Routines' and 'Lame and sick cows'. A total of 145 questionnaires were returned (response rate = 33%). Ten of the 77 characteristics investigated met the inclusion criteria for multivariable analysis. The final logistic regression model included: herd size, breed, use of natural service bull, bedding improvement frequency and pasture system. Herds with Swedish Holstein as the predominant breed (odds ratio (OR) 22.9, 95% confidence interval (CI) 5.2 to 101.8) or with mixed breeds (OR 5.5, 95% CI 1.7 to 17.5) had a greater risk of being high mortality herds than herds that were predominantly Swedish Red (OR 1). Herds larger than 100 cows (OR 19.6, 95% CI 3.5 to 110.4) and herds with 50 to 99 cows (OR 13.8, 95% CI 3.2 to 60.6) had greater risk of mortality than herds numbering 35 to 50 cows (OR 1). Being a high mortality herd was also associated with having cows on exercise lots during the summer season (OR 3.6, 95% CI 1.3 to 9.9) compared with on pasture. A missing answer on the question of bedding improvement frequency was associated with high mortality herds. Overall, this study suggests that characteristics that are related to intensification of the dairy industry are also associated with high on-farm mortality of dairy cows.
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| 3. |
- Bengtsson, Anki, 1959-
(author)
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Governance of Career Guidance : an enquiry into European policy
- 2016
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The overall aim of this thesis is to enquire into and problematize the governance of career guidance and how individuals’ career management is constructed within EU policy. The empirical material consists of European policy documents produced during 2000-2015. The two central research questions explore (1) how European career guidance is made governable, and (2) how individuals’ career management is constructed and governed. The Foucauldian governmentality perspective and the analytic method of problematization is utilized. The analysis focuses on the compositions of normative forms of reason, discursive practices and techniques by which governing is exercised and knowledge is produced. The thesis is based on four articles, three of which concern career guidance and career management. The fourth article concerns education of citizenship. The analysis shows that the formation of a policy space for comparison of national systems of career guidance is significant for making European career guidance amenable to governance. It is mobilized by governing practices for involvement of institutional actors and the construction of standards of performance. This form of governance becomes effective on the condition that institutional actors use and produce knowledge and practices about what works in career guidance, and this implies self-control and constant monitoring. It is a complex process of producing self-regulation of career guidance adjustable to change and innovation in which both standardization and modulation are inbuilt. Moreover, this is dependent on the interplay of governance and self-government. Knowledge and practices shape career management as an individual competence, which each individual is assumed to achieve. The use of guidance techniques supporting this design and self-regulating practices contributes to responsibilizing individuals to achieve this competence. Knowledge of individuals’ management of their careers includes civic competence. This led me to extend my use of the theoretical framework to investigate how knowledge of civic competence is constructed in European policy documents concerning teacher education from 2000 to 2012. My analysis shows that presumptions of teaching civic competence support the production of the active and learning subject.
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| 4. |
- Bergeå, Hanna, et al.
(author)
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Farmer awareness of cow longevity and implications for decision-making at farm level
- 2016
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In: Acta Agriculturae Scandinavica, Section A - Animal Science. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0906-4702 .- 1651-1972. ; 66, s. 25-34
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim of this study was to investigate if farmer awareness of longevity can explain why the longevity of dairy cows does not increase in Sweden, despite the fact that the genetic trend for longevity in Swedish dairy cattle is positive. In this study, farmers' decisions were put in the forefront through a qualitative study with semi-structured interviews. The results showed that farmers seemed well aware of biological factors related to cow longevity, that they think the demands on dairy cows have increased over time and that they correlate the higher demands to shorter longevity. However, the farmers had not worked explicitly with longevity of their own herd. There are subjective management decisions behind a culling of a dairy cow, and the reporting of culling reasons does not mirror the farmer's reasoning behind the decisions, which is a key factor determining longevity.
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