EARLY-LACTATION BODY CONDITION LOSS LINKED TO SEVERAL negative health and reproductive outcomes. As noted in a recent article in the Journal of Dairy Science, researchers monitored 851 dry cows and heifers 25 days before projected due date. A body condition score was assigned to each animal weekly until calving and once more at 27 to 33 days in milk. Other data was also recorded, including previous calving interval, gestation length, calving-related health events and more. The study showed longer previous calving intervals were related to greater body condition at calving and body condition loss during the first 30 DIM. Multiparous cows that maintained or gained body condition had more pregnancies per AI following first service; this group also had a higher percentage of cows pregnant by 130 DIM compared with cows that lost body condition during the first 30 DIM. Based on data in this study, maintaining a cycle of pregnancy before 130 DIM may reduce the amount of body condition lost after the next calving, enhance subsequent pregnancies per AI and reduce the possibility of early pregnancy loss. For more details, click here .

CAN INCREASED MILKING FREQUENCY OVERCOME EFFECTS of incomplete milking? The Journal of Animal Science published a study by researchers seeking to answer this question. Comparing two groups of 11 cows and starting at 5 days in milk, one group was milked twice a day and the other three times a day, with one half-udder on each cow left 30% unmilked. After 47 days in milk, results indicated increased milking frequency in incompletely milked half-udders was not able to compensate for milk yield lost compared to incompletely milked half-udders milked twice a day. Click here to learn more.