Calf Barn Design to Optimize Health and Ease of Management.

This article offers general calf barn design recommendations to optimize calf health gleaned from clinical and research experience in a Midwestern US climate. Barn components that are discussed include sizing the barn, ventilating the facility, and providing a clean, deeply bedded, dry area for the calf. In addition, considerations for maximizing labor efficiency and reducing the spread of disease by caregivers are discussed.

The influence of the environment on dairy cow behavior, claw health and herd lameness dynamics.

Free stall housing increases the exposure of dairy cows' claws to concrete walk-ways and to manure between periods of rest, and generally shows the highest rate of lameness compared with other dairy management systems. However, there is great variation within a system, and the rate of new cases of lameness can be reduced to very low levels provided time spent resting per day is maximized through good stall design, access to stalls through stocking density control and comfortable transition cow facilities, limiting the time spent milking, provision of adequate heat abatement, and good leg hygiene. Sand bedded stalls are useful as they also permit lame cows to maintain adequate daily rest. Rubberized alley flooring surfaces benefit the cow by reducing claw wear and trauma compared to concrete, making them ideal for parlor holding areas and long transfer lanes and walk ways. However, caution is required when using rubber floors in pens with uncomfortable stalls due to apparent adverse effects on cow time budgets, which may in turn have a detrimental effect on lameness.

Practical considerations for ventilating calf barns in winter.

The use of air sampling devices to measure the concentrations of airborne bacteria in clinical investigations and research trials in calf barns has indicated that traditional systems of ventilation are problematic in cold weather. Individual pen designs should have two solid sides, but the front and rear should be as open as possible. Thermal stress should be managed by providing deep bedding and not by enclosing the pen. Air hygiene can be improved by reducing stocking density and using supplemental positive-pressure ventilation systems to deliver small amounts of air to each pen. Implementation of these recommendations can produce calf barns that seem to equal calf hutches in minimizing disease and provide better working conditions for the caregivers.

A coordinated teaching program for future dairy practitioners at the university of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Veterinary Medicine.

The University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine (UW-SVM) has implemented a variety of strategies to optimize teaching in dairy herd medicine. These include the provision of opportunities for dairy cow handling and management using a dairy teaching herd for veterinary students throughout the four-year curriculum, exposure for all students in their final year to a substantial first-opinion dairy case load using a private practice-based ambulatory clinic rotation, and, finally, the teaching of dairy herd health management and problem solving in a group of four final-year elective production medicine clinical rotations. On average, since 1986, 32.6% of each graduating class attended at least one elective production medicine rotation, with a range from 19.0% to 43.4%. For those University of Wisconsin students who could be traced, 65% were still actively involved in some aspect of dairy practice, representing a range of between seven and 17 students per year since the start of the program. The advantages and disadvantages of operating a "regional center of excellence" for training students from out-of-state institutions are discussed.

Behavioral needs of the transition cow and considerations for special needs facility design.

Improved building designs come from a better understanding of the behavioral needs of the dairy cow. The costs to provide for these needs in the facility must be offset by improved milk production, health, and longevity. Research is still required to more fully understand the health implications of many building design considerations and their impact on disease. Perhaps the most important end result of an improved environment for the transition cow, however, is an improvement in animal well-being. Better buildings that accommodate the behavioral needs of cows present "win-win" situations where dairy cattle thrive and work is more enjoyable. This results in an improved image for the industry, greater consumer confidence in the quality and safety of the final food product, and a prosperous dairy industry.

Using herd records to monitor transition cow survival, productivity, and health.

There is no single monitor that can fully characterize the success of a transition cow management program in a herd. Rather we must rely on a group of key monitors. Table 5 outlines the key indices and targets that we use in herd investigations. By using these monitors, effective transition cow programs can be differentiated from problematic ones, and many of the problems can be resolved for the good of the herd owners, dairy laborers, and most of all, the cows. Development of more sophisticated monitors and software with stronger epidemiologic structure will allow for better analysis of programs in the future.

Isolation of Salmonella spp from the environment of dairies without any history of clinical salmonellosis.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether Salmonella spp could be isolated from the environment of free stall dairies in Wisconsin without any history of clinical salmonellosis and determine the serotype and antimicrobial susceptibility of any Salmonella isolates recovered from the environment. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. STUDY POPULATION: 20 free stall dairies with no history of clinical salmonellosis. PROCEDURES: Dairy owners completed a questionnaire regarding management and production practices. Multiple swab samples were obtained from throughout the free stall facilities and submitted for bacterial culture for Salmonella spp. Odds ratios were calculated to compare herd-level risk factors between dairies from which Salmonella organisms were isolated and herds from which Salmonella organisms were not isolated. RESULTS: Salmonella organisms were isolated from 9 of the 20 (45%) dairies. Salmonella serotype Meleagridis was isolated from 4 dairies, S. Meleagridis and S. Kentucky were isolated from 2 dairies, S. Meleagridis and S. Cyprus were isolated from 1 dairy, S. Cerro was isolated from 1 dairy, and S. Corvallis was isolated from 1 dairy. All isolates were susceptible to all antimicrobial agents tested. None of the potential risk factors analyzed demonstrated a significant association with an increased likelihood of isolating Salmonella spp. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Environmental Salmonella contamination was demonstrated on free stall dairies with no history of clinical salmonellosis.