Feeding behaviour and activity as early indicators of disease in pre-weaned dairy calves
| Autor: | Marie J. Haskell, DJ Bell, CS Mason, J M Bowen, G A Miller, C-A Duthie |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
Male
Scoring system Milk intake 040301 veterinary sciences Early detection Weaning Disease SF1-1100 0403 veterinary science Wisconsin Animal science Animals Medicine Health score Antibiotic use Dairy calves Respiratory disease business.industry 0402 animal and dairy science Feeding Behavior 04 agricultural and veterinary sciences Animal Feed 040201 dairy & animal science Activity Animal culture Diet Activity monitor Milk Feeding behaviour Cattle Animal Science and Zoology business |
| Zdroj: | Animal, Vol 15, Iss 3, Pp 100150-(2021) |
| ISSN: | 1751-7311 |
| Popis: | Across the industry, there is large variation in health status of dairy calves and as a result, disease incidence and antibiotic use is high. This has significant implications for animal welfare, productivity and profitability of dairy and dairy-beef production systems. Technology-based early detection systems could alleviate these issues; however, methods of early detection of disease in dairy calves have not been widely explored. This study aimed to determine whether changes in activity and feeding behaviour can be used as early warning indicators of respiratory disease in calves. In total, 100 pre-weaned male Holstein calves (age: ~8−42 days) were used. Calves were group-housed and provided with starter diet, straw bedding and ad libitum water. Calves were fed milk replacer ad libitum through an automatic calf feeder, and each calf was fitted with a leg-mounted activity monitor. Daily activity and feeding behaviour variables were calculated for each calf. Each calf was assessed daily using a modified version of the Wisconsin Scoring System to assess respiratory disease status. Calves were classed as ‘Diseased’, ‘Intermediate’ or ‘Healthy’ based on their cumulative health score. The peak day of the most extreme illness event was identified for each calf. Data from Diseased and Healthy calves were paired for analysis based on age and BW. Data were compared for the day of peak illness, and for the 3 days previous and post. Compared to healthy calves, diseased calves lay for longer and tended to have longer lying bouts (daily lying: 17.6 ± 0.3 vs 16.7 ± 0.2 h, P |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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