The effect of naturally acquired rumen fluke infection on animal health and production in dairy and beef cattle in the UK.

The incidence of paramphistomosis, caused by the rumen fluke, Calicophoron daubneyi, has greatly increased within Europe in the last 15-20 years. However, the production impacts of this disease are poorly understood. This study firstly aimed to investigate the prevalence of rumen fluke in England and Northern Ireland (NI) by conducting an abattoir survey of dairy and beef cattle which also allowed the impact of rumen fluke on carcass weight, conformation and fat classification to be assessed. Secondly, an experiment aimed to assess the impact of C. daubneyi infection on diarrhea score, production loss and welfare in dairy heifers, while also evaluating the impacts of treating infected heifers with oxyclozanide. Rumen fluke prevalence was greater in NI than in England, with 53.8% (95% CI 51.9 - 55.9%) of the NI cattle carcases sampled being infected compared to 16.3% (95% CI 15.8 - 16.8%) and 17.9% (95% CI 17.4 - 18.4%) detected at the two abattoirs in England. However, there was no significant difference (P > 0.05) in the cold carcass weight between infected and non-infected cattle. Similarly, carcass conformation and fat classification were unaffected (P > 0.05) by the presence of rumen fluke. In the second experiment, daily live weight gain (DLWG), diarrhea score and welfare score were also unaffected (P > 0.05) by rumen fluke infection and by oxyclozanide treatment against rumen fluke. The farms in this experiment were managed to a high standard and animals had no intercurrent disease. Therefore, these findings suggest that on well-managed farms, production losses (growth rates) should not be compromised as a result of sub-clinical rumen fluke infection.

A Review of Beef Production Systems for the Sustainable Use of Surplus Male Dairy-Origin Calves Within the UK.

The UK dairy herd is predominantly of the Holstein-Friesian (HF) breed, with a major emphasis placed on milk yield. Subsequently, following years of continued single-trait selection, the beef production potential of dairy bred calves has declined. Thus, male HF calves are commonly seen as a by-product of the dairy industry. Limited markets, perceived low economic value and high rearing costs mean that these surplus calves are often euthanised shortly after birth or exported to the EU for further production. Welfare concerns have been raised regarding both euthanasia and long distance transportation of these calves. Furthermore, total UK beef consumption increased by 8.5% from 2009 to 2019. Thus, in light of this growing demand, beef from the dairy herd could be better utilized within the UK. Therefore, the potential for these calves to be used in a sustainable, cost-effective beef production system with high welfare standards within the UK requires investigation. Thus, the aim of this review was to evaluate both steer and bull beef production systems, examining the impact on performance, health, welfare, and economic potential to enable a sustainable farming practice, while meeting UK market requirements. The principal conclusions from this review indicate that there is the potential for these calves to be used in UK based production systems and meet market requirements. Of the steer production systems, a 24 month system appears to achieve a balance between input costs, growth from pasture and carcass output, albeit the literature is undecided on the optimum system. The situation is similar for bull beef production systems, high input systems do achieve the greatest gain in the shortest period of time, however, these systems are not sustainable in volatile markets with fluctuating concentrate prices. Thus, again the inclusion of a grazing period, may increase the resilience of these systems. Furthermore, production systems incorporating a period at pasture are seen to have animal welfare benefits. The main welfare concern for surplus dairy bred calves is often poor colostrum management at birth. While in steer systems, consideration needs to be given to welfare regarding castration, with the negative impacts being minimized by completing this procedure soon after birth.

The Effect of Beef Production System on the Health, Performance, Carcass Characteristics, and Meat Quality of Holstein Bulls.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of production system on the health, performance, carcass characteristics, and meat quality of autumn born (AB) and spring born (SB) Holstein bulls. The study involved a total of 224 Holstein bulls and was conducted over two years (2017/18, 2018/19). The four production system treatments differed during the grower period and consisted of: (i) grazed with no concentrate supplementation (G), (ii) grazed with 2 kg concentrate supplementation per day (G2), (iii) grazed with ad libitum access to concentrates (GA) and (iv) housed with ad libitum access to concentrates and grass silage (HA). All bulls were finished on ad libitum concentrates and grass silage and were slaughtered at a mean age of 15.5 months. Total grower dry matter intake (DMI) (p < 0.001) and total finishing DMI (p < 0.001) differed between production systems for both AB and SB bulls, with that of GA bulls being the greatest in both cases. Average daily gain (ADG) during the grower period was greatest (p < 0.001) for the HA production system in the AB bulls and the GA and HA production systems for the SB bulls. However, during the finishing period, G bulls had the greatest (p < 0.001) ADG of the AB bulls, while that of the SB bulls was from the G2 production system (p < 0.001). For both AB and SB, bulls on the GA and HA production systems produced heavier cold carcass weights than the G and G2 bulls (p < 0.001). There was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in health, carcass conformation, fat classification, or meat quality between production systems.

The effect of calf jackets on the health, performance, and skin temperature of dairy origin beef calves.

Variations and extremities in climatic conditions can result in cold stress for dairy calves during the preweaning period. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of calf jackets on the health, performance, and skin temperature of dairy-origin beef calves. This study took place in a designated calf rearing unit, spanned for a duration of 1 yr, and consisted of five batches of calves. Calves (30.9 ± 1.68 d of age; 55.9 ± 0.20 kg live weight) were assigned to one of four treatment groups on arrival at the rearing unit. Treatments consisted of control (no jacket), arrival (jacket for 2 wk postarrival), weight (jacket for a minimum of 2 wk and until 65 kg live weight), and wean (jacket until 5 d postweaning). Ambient conditions differed significantly (P < 0.001) during each of the five batches; batch 4 was the coldest with a mean ambient temperature of 6.16 °C. Significant differences were observed between the five batches for day 50 weight (P < 0.01) and disease incidence (P < 0.05). However, treatment had no significant effect on calf health or performance (P > 0.05) during any of the five batches. Skin temperature was significantly greater (P < 0.001) for calves wearing a jacket. Furthermore, there was a significant (P < 0.001) relationship between ambient temperature-humidity index and skin temperature for calves with and without a calf jacket. Therefore, although calf jackets had no benefit in terms of health or performance, they did act as a barrier to environmental conditions.

The Effect of Behaviour and Diet on the Rumen Temperature of Holstein Bulls.

Rumen temperature boluses are becoming increasingly used as a means of monitoring core body temperature for the detection of ill health. However, the effect of behavior on rumen temperature is largely unknown. This research investigates the impact of behaviour and diet on the rumen temperature of Holstein bulls, both at grass, and in a housed environment. Rumen temperature was recorded at five-minute intervals using a bolus. Direct observations were conducted on young bulls in two studies (i) at grass (n = 30) and (ii) while housed (n = 32). In addition, activity monitors were attached to bulls at grass (n = 24). Within each study, diet differed by the level of concentrate supplementation. There was no effect of diet on rumen temperature. Significant differences in rumen temperature were observed between behaviour groups for bulls at grass (p < 0.001) and housed (p < 0.001). Furthermore, drinking resulted in the lowest rumen temperature (grass 35.97 °C; housed 36.70 °C). Therefore, rumen temperature is affected by behavior; however, the temperatures recorded were not outside the normal temperature range for healthy cattle.