Dairy Cattle Management

If may be easiest to envision management of a dairy herd by considering that the dairy animal
proceeds through a first then a second life cycle. The first life cycle is the calf cycle. It starts
with the newborn calf and proceeds through weaning, breeding and ends with calving and
lactation. The second life cycle is the cow cycle, which begins with the calving of the first
lactation heifer. The cow cycle proceeds through breeding, the 2nd and 3rd trimesters of
lactation, and closes with the dry period. It will start anew with the next calving, all calves
fall back and enter the calf life cycle. These cycles are pictured in Figure 1.

Calf (f) Weaning age Breeding age Calving

Calf

Breeding
(First trimester of
lactation)

2nd Trimester of
lactation

3rd Trimester of
lactation

Dry period

Upon these life cycles the management techniques that control: feeding; breeding; housing;
record keeping; health care and milking; must be applied. The remainder of this discussion
will center on those management areas, save for health care. Emphasis on how these
management practices apply to the various life cycles of the cow and the calf will be made.

The Calf
The newborn calf is born with low immunoglobulin in titer and must rely on absorption of
immunoglobulins from colostrum for immune defense, until its own immune system is
developed. Thus, feeding colostrum is first management practice applied to the calf. The
amount of colostrum fed, and the timing of its feeding is critical if proper absorption from the
gut is to take place. The parietal cells in the abomasum start to produce HCl at a very early
age; this causes deactivation of the immunoglobulins. The cell receptors for
immunoglobulins in the small intestine disappear rapidly. Coupled with lessened ability to
absorb colostral immunoglobulin, the concentration of these proteins in colostrum decreases

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rapidly over time. Thus, current colostrum feeding recommendation is 10 (1 gallon) lbs
within the first 12 h, with hand feeding preferred to ensure adequate intakes are met.
Colostrum should be fed for the next 3 days as it may have some nonabsorbable protective
effect. In addition, milk cannot be sold for human consumption, and thus disposal via calf
feeding is economical. Colostrum should come from healthy cows. There are some diseases
that can be transferred to calves from colostrum. One such disease, mycobacterium
paratuberculosis (Johnes) can be a significant problem. Thus, colostral milk can be pooled
from several healthy cows and stored frozen. Cows usually produce in excess of their calves
colostral needs. Frozen colostrum can then be used when calves are born from unhealthy
cows.

Starting with day 3-5 of life, and continuing through the weaning period, the calf should
receive milk or milk replacer. The amount of replacer fed daily should equal 8% of their
body weight. It is recommended that two feedings be made per day. Although many
dairymen feed only once per day, the actual feeding process brings dairy workers in close
proximity with the calves and provides an extra observation period in which health problems
can be noted. The choice of feeding milk or replacer is up to the dairyman. Generally the
replacer is less expensive and can be of equal nutrient quality as compared to milk. Many
dairymen feed cull milk, which may contain mastitis pathogens. Heifers’ calves which are
allowed to suckle themselves or cross-suckle can actually spread these pathogen from mouth
to teat and thus infect either their own or the glands of other calves. If replacer is chosen, then
it should be of good quality containing 18-22% crude protein (CP), 10-20% fat (mostly of
animal origin), approximately 5% sugar (either dextrose or lactose—others are less
digestible), and less than .5% crude fiber (CF). The fiber figure may be the most critical
value as it represents the amount of plant material in the replacer. Milk itself is fiber free, and
thus any fiber material in replacer is of plant origin. Plant proteins and fats are less digestible,
so the higher the fiber content, the lower the quality replacer. A starter grain of 18% CP and
75% TDN (a measure of energy content, explained in section on feeding the postweaned
heifer) should be offered free choice at 5 days of age. Also at that time, excellent quality
alfalfa hay, greater than 16% CP, should be offered.

There are two types of health problems associated with the newborn calf. The most prevalent
is scours, diarrhea, which can be of “mechanical” or infectious origin. The term mechanical
refers to over feeding replacer milk, or the feeding of poor quality replacer. Either process
will lead to incomplete curd formation. If the curd is not well formed, then digesta contents
pass more rapidly through the alimentary tract resulting in incomplete digestion. The lower
gut microflora will literally feast on the undigested milk and will produce more toxic
compounds than would occur under proper feeding conditions. The end result is a scouring
condition.

The infectious scours is either of bacterial or viral origin. If of bacterial origin, Escherichia
coli and Salmonella sp are common etiologic agents. If of viral origin, rotavirus and
coronavirus are the two most common agents. Infectious scours can be controlled by good
hygiene at feeding, and by proper housing. Ideally calves should be housed in separate
hutches and well bedded. Calf hutches can be purchased commercially or be of the
homemade variety. In Minnesota, research demonstrated that calves thrive in hutches even in

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the dead of winter. The key feature is keeping the bedding dry. The hutch effectively
separates the calves and thus reduces transmission of infectious diseases. Housing
preferences should be determined by what degree each calf can contact one another.
Whatever the housing unit, calves should be kept draft free. However, adequate ventilation is
important, in temperate conditions a baseline value of 4 air changes/hour is recommended.

The second most common health problem is pneumonia. Similar to scours, calf pneumonia
can be “mechanical” or infectious. Mechanical pneumonia arises from improper ventilation,
leading to the build up of toxic gases, especially ammonia, which causes lung tissue irritation
and pneumonia type symptoms. When lung tissue is irritated, it is more susceptible to
microbial infection. Infectious pneumonia is generally of viral origin, PI3, IBR, and
respiratory syncytial virus are the most common agents.

A great deal of the disease problems associated with the young calf can easily be controlled
through good housing management and good feeding hygiene. Greater than 95% of all heifer
calves should be alive at weaning age.

Bull Calf
Most bull calves are sold shortly after birth. Generally it is still desirable to feed these calves
colostrum to better ensure their viability through the marketing process. Most dairy bull
calves will be sold for bob (young) veal. A few will be raised on milk and sold as milk fed
veal at 3-4 months, 250 lbs body weight, and others will be raised and steered.

Weaning the Heifer Calf

The age of a heifer calf is not an indicator of when to wean. Rather, the degree of the calf’s
dependence on milk or replacer for its nutrition is the key element. Before weaning, the calf
should be consuming more than 1 lb of good quality starter grain per day. This would be
enough to provide nutrients for maintenance and would ensure that the calf will not starve
after milk is removed from the diet. It is also beneficial to have calves nibbling hay at the
time of weaning. This will hasten rumen development and will help seed ruminal microflora.
Weaning age thus can be any time when the calf has the capacity to eat adequate amounts of
solid feed. Some dairymen have successfully weaned calves at 3 weeks of age, others claim
they can’t wean them until 3 month’s of age.

Feeding the recently weaned calf is relatively simple. Grain (16% CP) should be fed up to 4-
4.5 lbs per day, and good quality hay (>12% CP) offered free choice. When the calf develops
good ruminal capacity, she will increase her intake of forage, and at about 4 months of age,
will be consuming about 8 lbs of feed per day. Half of that ration will be hay, the other half
grain. If grain is held constant at 4 lbs per day, the heifer will consume more roughage, and
gradually, the grain’s contribution will decrease to less than 25% of the ration. Generally, the
calf will be one year old at this time. At age 1 year, the heifer should be able to more than
adequately grow on a ration of good forage alone. If such forage is unavailable, grain can be
supplemented such that the total ration is at least 12% CP, 63% TDN. Now TDN refers to the
Total Digestible Nutrients and is a measure of the energy component of the ration. Any
nutrient, whether amino acid, fatty acid, or mono, di, or polysaccharide, can be utilized for
energy. Thus TDN is a sum total of the available energy components in a ration. The higher

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the TDN value, the greater the energy load. The table at the end of this narrative summarizes
the feeding of the postweaned heifer calf. In reviewing the table, note that feed information
presented in the text was given in as fed poundage, in the table it is presented on a dry matter
basis. If good relatively fresh forage (<9 mos old) is fed, vitamin A may not be lacking.
Older more mature forages can be lacking in vitamins. Generally as long as good forage is
fed and cattle are given exposure to sunlight, vitamin D will not be a limiting vitamin. Trace
minerals may have to be supplemented, but knowledge or area deficiencies and excesses of
trace minerals must be known first.

A goal of dairyman should be to feed his heifers adequately, such that between 6 to 1 year of
age, the heifer is gaining at about 2 lbs per day. Thus at 14 months she should be have been
bred.

Housing the Weaned Calf

The weaned heifer is not nearly as susceptible to disease conditions as the neonate.
However, many recommend that for these first few weeks after weaning, the heifer should
remain in its preweaned environment and monitored closely. Following this transition phase,
the heifer can be cared for in a number of different ways. Many dairymen have successfully
reared heifers in pasture year round, even in cold climates. Basically, the only care such
pastured heifers need to receive is provision of water and feed, and the rudiments of shelter.
Others will raise heifers indoors in barns, whether they be free stall, tie stall, or loose housing.
If they are raised indoors, a major concern is ventilation. If an average stocking density is
maintained, then 4 air changes per hour is considered adequate. Ventilation rate should be
increased during the warmer months of the year.

The type of housing may alter a heifer’s nutrient requirements. If the heifers are reared
outdoors year round, then nutrient maintenance requirement will increase. This may be due to
the distance heifers must travel to forage, or perhaps climatic stress. Thus their rations should
be adjusted accordingly. Again, the goal is to raise the heifers to breeding weight of 850 lbs
(for Holsteins, slightly less for the smaller breeds) by no more than 14 months of age.

Health of the Heifer

Dehorning should occur at weaning and there are several options for dehorning that can be
used. Most common is electrical, hot iron, dehorning. Vaccination schedules should be
established and chief among the vaccination agents would be Brucella abortus, Bangs, with a
first vaccination at 4 months.

Breeding the Heifer

It is generally recommended that heifers are ready to be bred when they have reached the
proper weight, rather than using age as a criterion. Work in England indicated that rapid
rearing of heifers, such that they were of breeding weight at 12 months, did shorten the age at
calving. Such intensive rearing did not result in additional problems at calving. Subsequent
research has confirmed the advantages of more intensive rearing. Previous research has
focused on rearing intensively after puberty as some findings indicated excessive feeding
from weaning to puberty could result in fatty accumulation in the mammary gland which
would affect lactation. More recent research has focused on increased feeding of heifers prior

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to weaning. Current recommendation is to adhere to 1 gallon of milk or milk replacer to
weaning, free choice grain and hay, and early weaning. Intensive feeding could be applied
after puberty.

The heifer reaches puberty by approximately 7 months of age. Thus, by 14 months, she will
have passed through several estrous cycles. Certainly you are well aware that the signs of
estrus are: nervousness; bellowing; vulval mucus discharge; with the most reliable being
standing while mounted by other heifers or bulls. A bloody vaginal discharge would indicate
that a heat period has passed. Since heifers are less intensively managed than cows,
dairyworkers infrequently observe their heifers. Thus, tools have been developed to aid in the
heat detection process. Such aids as chalking or marking the tail head and looking for an
indication of its removal, K-mar dye-pads, pedometers, electronic (HeatWatch ), and dogs
trained to detect odors of cows in heat, have been used with some success. Tail head chalking
and K-mars have been most successful, although false positives are common. Yet if a
dairyman keeps accurate records and chalks or K-mars his heifers several months prior to
expected breeding, then he will be able to chart out a heifer’s heat pattern. This will enable
him to better identify which are the false positive reactions and which are the real estrous
positive reactions.

In addition to the physical aids for heat detection, there are a class of compounds which can
induce or synchronize heats and thus can be used to improve breeding performance. The two
most commonly used estrous synchronization drugs are prostaglandin (PG) F2 and
progesterone/estrogen derivatives. Prostaglandin estrous synchronization has been intensively
studied and successfully developed. The Moody two shot sequence is most widely used. This
course of synchronization would include injecting all breeding animals with PGF2 on a day 0
and breeding all heifers, which come in heat within the next 3-4 days. Since PGF2 will cause
luteolysis, and since the luteal phase covers days 6 through 16 of the estrous cycle, a ten-day
period representing about half the cycles length, then theoretically half the heifers should
come in heat within 3 days after PGF2 treatment. The next course of PGF2 injections should
be given to all nonbred heifers 11 days later. Again, the heifers seen in heat should be bred.
Lastly, all heifers not seen in heat should be bred 72-84 h after the second injection. Variants
of this procedure have been used, the most common one being breeding by appointment only
at 72-84 h after the second injection. The latter method will require the least amount of
management expertise and time, but will be more expensive as more animals will receive
PGF2 treatment.

Progesterone/estrogen treatment regimen is done either by vaginal prid or ear implant, the
implant being the most common. The implant contains the progesterone type compound, and
the estrogen is injected at the time of implantation. The implant is removed 9 days later and
heifers should come in heat 2-3 days following implant removal, and/or can be bred by
appointment 48-52 h after removal.

Both prostaglandin and steroid estrous synchronization procedures work well. The
prostaglandin is a bit more consistent and requires less animal handling. Both techniques
allow the dairy worker to focus heat detection on a short period of time. As in any system,

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good management must be applied and the regimen strictly adhered to. In addition to
synchronization, follow up heat detection and/or pregnancy checks are a must.

Of course the entire preoccupation with heat detection and improving its accuracy is based on
the desire to breed using artificial insemination (AI). Use of bulls, natural service (NS), has
the advantage in that you rely on the bull to do the dairyworker’s heat detection and breeding
management. Yet it has been well proven that the use of AI will improve the genetic base of
the herd immensely, since the top progeny tested bulls in the nation can and should be chosen
as sires for a dairyman’s breeding stock. Additional benefits are reduced animal and personal
injuries and reduced housing and feeding costs, since bulls do not have to be kept.
Additionally, a venereal disease problem is much less likely in herds, which rely solely on AI.

The estrous synchronization procedures described for heifers are also effective in cows. Both
PG and the steroid therapy are now approved for lactating animals. Since lactating dairy
cows are intensively managed, estrous synchronization is not widely used. However, in
herds, which have problems in proper allocation of time and labor for heat detection, the
synchronization process might be cost effective. The advantage of using estrous
synchronization in cows is that efforts to detect cows in heat can be concentrated in a short
time frame. Cows whose heats are missed can be bred by appointment. Yet proper detection
methods must still be applied, and reliance on appointment breeding can lead to disappointing
results. Whenever estrous synchronization is practiced, it is best to ensure that animals are
cycling normally and in good reproductive health. Whereas reproductive health is not a major
concern among heifers, it can be among cows. Thus, prior to attempting estrous
synchronization with cows, the dairy manager should have the herd of eligible cows checked
by someone experienced in bovine obstetrics.

Housing and Feeding the Bred Heifer

The bred heifer, of all calves and cows on a dairy, needs the least amount of care. It must be
made certain that these heifers are indeed in calf. Then the bred heifer can be pastured,
housed in a stanchion barn or any housing variant in between. These heifers can grow (ADG
>2 lbs) quite well on a ration of average quality hay (CP > 12%), TDN > 60%). Water must
be offered free choice. Then within 1 month of calving, it would be advisable to bring the
heifers into an area where they can be watched more closely. At this time it is helpful to lead
feed these heifers, feeding them up to 6 lbs of grain/day. Their grain ration should be
increased gradually. The purpose of lead feeding is to allow for the development of a
population of rumen microflora which are responsible for the digestion of grain. Thus, the
heifers will be adjusted to the milking ration at freshening. Dairymen will often house their
“close up” heifers with their milking cows for a period of a few weeks prior to calving,
allowing for a more even transition when the heifers enter the milking string. Within a week
of calving, heifers are moved to a pen with good bedding and draft free, so they can be easily
watched and assisted at calving.

The Freshening Heifer or Cow

Lactation generally starts with the freshening cow, with one exception. Cows with a history
of mastitis, edema (caked bag), or milk fever may be milked prepartum. However at calving,
the colostrum from such premilked cows will be low in immunoglobulin content. If

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preparturient milk-out is practiced, then preserved colostrum (either frozen or fermented),
known to be of good immunoglobulin content should be fed after calving in place of the
dam’s own colostrum.

A standard lactation period is meant to last 305 days and can be thought of as 3 trimesters of
100 days. If a 60-day dry period is given, a cow milking 305 days will have a calving interval
of 12 months. This would necessitate having the cows successfully bred at 80-100 days after
calving. The cow will reach peak milk production at 45-60 days postpartum. The rate of milk
produced, after peak yield is reached, will decline in a linear fashion. The greater the rate of
decline, the less persistent the producer. The key to good dairy management is to maintain a
12 month calving interval and to effect as great a peak production, and as persistent a
production, in all cows in the herd. For every 1 lb of peak milk produced, 220 lbs are
produced over a lactation. Thus, early fresh cow management includes strategies to augment
peak production. Such strategies include adequate energy and protein nutrition. Bovine
Somatotropin (BST) can be administered after peak yield according to manufacturer’s
directions. BST will effect a 5-20% increase in production, concomitant with management
that will support such production increase.

Breeding the Cow

Whereas both heifers and cows can have estrus synchronized with prostaglandins, cows can
be synchronized with other agents in different protocols. The basis of many of those
additional protocols incorporate the use of GnRH. Gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH)
will induce a follicular wave through stimulation of FSH/LH, follicular development and
ovulation. The basic protocol involving GnRH and prostaglandin is the Ovsynch. The
Ovsynch protocol employs an injection of GnRH, a PGF2α injection one week later to regress
the CL, followed by a second GnRH injection 48 h later to ovulate a new follicle, with timed
AI breeding 24 h later. Those animals showing heat can be bred 4-12 h after first heat, and
some will show heat during the interval between first GnRH injection and first PGF2α
injection. This protocol produced better results with timed breeding than the simple PGF2α
protocol. It is not clear why heifers do not respond as well to the GnRH stimulus.

There are several other protocols that have been recently developed that “tweak” the Ovsynch
protocol to create better results. They tend to be more complicated, some use estradiol, and
have proven success. These protocols currently (and monikers of): Pre-Synch, Heat-Synch,
CoSynch, and Modified Targeted Breeding. Choice of program should be developed with a
bovine theriogenologist when considering economic returns, management style and facilities.

Health of the Freshening Cow

Similar to the newborn calf, the freshening heifer or cow is susceptible to a number of health
disorders. These disorders are most commonly metabolic, reproductive, and/or mammary
diseases. A metabolic disease, either milk fever, displaced abomasums, ketosis and/or bloat
will occur in 5-10% of all freshening cows. Udder edema is more common and generally is
experienced to some extent by all freshening animals. Only the severe edema warrants
special attention. Some researchers feel that all cows experience subclinical ketosis.
However, clinical primary ketosis will affect less than 10% of all freshening cows.

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The venereal diseases caused by leptospirosis, vibrio fetus, brucellosis, and trichomoniasis,
are rare in herds using A.I. and having good vaccination programs. Metritis and retained
placentas are more common. Nonspecific anestrus is most often due to poor heat detection.
Luteal cysts and/or a nutritional energy imbalance are also major contributing factors to
anestrus.

Mastitis is most prevalent during the dry period and early postpartum period in cows. It is not
uncommon for heifers to freshen with mastitis. The development of mastitis infections in
prepartum heifers is most probably due to either environmental contamination or cross or self-
suckling in early calfhood. Environmental contamination would be indicated by the mastitis
pathogens Streptococcus uberis and dysgalactiae, and the coliform organisms, all of which
are noncontagious pathogens, which live in the environment. Muddy, swampy, and poorly
cleaned housing areas could be causes of such environmental mastitis problems in heifers and
cows. Bedding can be a major source of these pathogens in cows. The contagious pathogens,
Streptococcus agalatiae and Staphylococcus aureus, most likely infect the gland during the
preweaned stage, when mastitis milk is fed to calves which are allowed to suckle one another.
A third class of mastitis pathogens are the skin Staphylococci also termed opportunists. They
can infect the mammary gland but are not as virulent and rarely cause a clinical case of the
disease. These opportunists cause short-term infections.

Mastitis can be either clinical or subclinical in nature, with a 1:40 ratio. The more common
subclinical mastitis is often measured by the elevation in milk somatic cell count, SCC. The
immunocytes react to pathogens, enter into milk and cause an elevation in milk SCC. A level
in a mammary quarter > 200,000 cells/ml indicates a possible infection. The likelihood of
intramammary infection increases with increasing milk SCC.

Feeding the Lactating Cow

Meeting the nutrient needs of the high producing cow in early lactation can be a difficult if
not an impossible task. The high producing cow will peak in milk production at 45-60 days.
Peak production will range from 90-150 labs/day, of which 10-18 lbs are the solids: protein
(casein); carbohydrate (lactose); and fat (butterfat). These 10-18 lbs of solids are produced de
novo, and thus represent quite a lot of metabolic work by the cow. The most amazing thing
about this effort though, is the fact that the cow is in a negative energy balance at the time of
peak milk production. Her appetite (dry matter intake – DMI) is lowest at this time. Thus
her output is derived from the mobilization of body stores, she literally milks off her back.
Thus, as much emphasis as possible should be placed on feeding that early lactation, high
producing cow. Yet the trick in ration formulation is combining all the feeds to meet all the
needs for CP, TDN, and CF< and ensure that the amount offered does not exceed her intake
capacity.

There are some rules-of-thumb to follow, as well as some tricks, which will help one balance
the ration. Crude fiber is needed to maintain good rumen function. The CF value of the
ration should be at least 17%. This means that the fraction of hay or other forage in the ration
cannot be less than 40%. Whereas, one might reason that a coarse poor quality hay should be
fed to meet fiber needs, it is definitely advisable to feed the best quality hay so that protein
and energy needs might also be met. In addition, recent studies conducted at Wisconsin

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indicate that there is a benefit in feeding the best quality hay. Lack of forage quality cannot
be made up through extra grain feeding to meet the CP and TDN requirements. Vitamins and
minerals can be mixed in with the grain or they can be top-dressed. Feeding vitamins and
minerals free-choice has the advantage in being easier to do, but more difficult to control.

A cow will consume between 3-5% of her body weight in dry matter. So a cow weighing
1400 lbs will eat 42-70 lbs of dry matter per day. If the ration fed were hay and grain, which
is 10% moisture, this would signify that the above cow would eat 47-77 lbs of that hay/grain
ration. More wet grasses (silages) and wet grains (by product concentrations) would have to
be fed to reflect their added moisture content. A rule of thumb is to balance a ration such that
no less than 40% of the ration is made up of forage, no more than 60% made up of grain.
Generally the needs of average production (50-70 lbs) can be easily met through feeding 50%
grain (CP – 18%, TDN – 75%) and 50% forage (CP = 12%, TDN = 60%). Poor producers
require 20% grain, 80% forage. With the high producer the limit of 60:40 grain to forage
ratio must be stretched, to attempt to meet her needs. In addition high quality forage (>16%
CP, >65% TDN) and high quality grains (>20% CP and >80% TDN) must be fed. Excellent
quality legumes (alfalfa, treefoil, and clover), fine stem and heavy with leaf, are most often
fed with success to high producing cows. Grain mixes may contain corn (>88% TDN) and
soy or cottonseed meal (>40% CP). Whole cottonseed has been fed with a great deal of
success since it is high in energy (>95% TDN), protein (>25% CP) and fiber (>18% CF); and
with the higher fiber content can replace a small percentage (<10%) of the forage fraction of
the ration. However, whole cottonseed has the compound gossypol, which has an estrogenic
property, and thus cannot be overfed. Current recommendation is to restrict whole cottonseed
to less than 8 lbs/cow/day. In the case of the high producing cow, magnesium oxide and
sodium bicarbonate can be fed at ¼ and ½ lb/cow/day. Sodium bicarbonate acts as a rumen
buffer and magnesium oxide may act at the mammary level. Both compounds when fed
together to high producing cows on a marginal fiber diet, were found to work synergistically
to help maintain intake and milk fat test.

Before making any recommendation regarding the feeding of cows, it is best to observe first
hand the cow and the feed at feeding time. Accepting the dairyman’s word for the quantity
and quality of the ration fed, and the condition of the cows, may be tantamount to making a
diagnosis on any disease over-the-phone without an examination of the patient. By observing
the animals at feeding time, one can inspect first hand the approximate quantity and quality of
the feed. Moreover, the overall body condition of the cow, fat (no ribs discernible and thurl
thick with flesh) moderate (ribs barely visible with thurl padded but curved) and thin (ribs
very visible and thurl over defined) can be assessed. Fat cows are probably being overfed
grain, thin cows are likely to being underfed grain. Thin cows may be high producers where
intake is the problem. A first hand look is needed to solve ration problems.

The high producing cow will parturition her nutrient supply to milk production first,
reproduction second. Thus, the high producing cow will be difficult to breed back, will have
a greater rate of embryo mortality, silent heats, etc. Thus, a dairyman must spend a greater
proportion of his time with these animals, checking them for heat, and ensuring that
insemination is done properly and at the correct time. Record keeping is essential, the number
of days to first heat, the number of heats a cow has, and the number of services per

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conception, are records that must be kept in order to predict the next heat period and measure
success of heat detection and insemination technique. There are many record keeping and
production systems available. The traditional one used is the Dairy Herd Improvement
Association (DHIA), a cooperative system. It is generally recommended that cows not be
bred before 45 days postpartum. This allows the uterus to fully involute. The goal is to have
the cow conceive by 80 days and thus there are 2-3 heats between the 45-80 period to
successfully breed the cow. With a 280 day gestation, this would mean the cow would have a
calving interval of 1 year. Clearly, the veterinarian has a critical role in ensuring that the cow
is in good reproductive health and can be successfully bred by 80 days.

There are some dairy practitioners/managers/nutritionists who claim that mineral and vitamin
feeding is the key to good milk production and reproductive performance. If the ration is
balanced and adequately provides all minerals and vitamins, then rarely will additional
mineral supplements improve performance. Real magic does not apply to mineral and
vitamin balancing in rations. Anyone advising a dairyman on ration formulation must be
aware of local conditions and what minerals may be deficient and/or in excess in the area
feeds. It is always advisable to have a complete mineral analysis made of all feeds before
advising on supplementation. Supplementation of minerals and vitamins can be made via
addition to the ration. This would be advocated in areas where the ration is actually deficient
in a mineral or a vitamin. Most often the ration is adequate in all minerals and vitamins;
however, levels of these micronutrients are on the low side of an acceptable range. In these
instances, trace mineralized salt blocks may be provided to ensure adequate intakes of these
micronutrients.

Mineral deficiencies could leave both calves and cows more susceptible to enteric and
respiratory disorders. Clearly, care must be taken in diagnosis of such conditions.

Housing the Lactating Cow

It seems when it comes to housing cows, climate determines the arrangement. In colder
climates (northern midwest and northeast), cows are housed in closed barns with stanchion or
tie stalls most prevalent. There are a number of dairies which are utilizing free stall
operations in the colder climates. Problems of maintaining adequate temperatures with good
ventilation, without drafts must be overcome in such areas in the winter. In more temperate
areas, larger dairies predominate and free stall housing is more often employed. In warmer
climates, (south central, east and west), free stalls or loose housing is most often found.
Loose housing generally refers to small dry lot areas where bedding and stalls are absent.
Shade may or may not be found in these areas. The key features to any housing design is to
keep the cows dry, in well, but not overly, ventilated areas, and keep them in a comfort zone
(40-80˚F). In the summer, the comfort zone temperatures may often be exceeded, yet shade
can help reduce the climatic stress. In the arid southern areas, fans and/or water misters have
often been used with success. Owing to poor evaporative conditions in humid climates,
misters are of negative benefit in the tropics; however, fans may be of some benefit.

Possibly the most important segment of the housing system is the milking barn or parlor. In
areas where cows are housed in stalls year-round, the housing barn and the milking barn are
one and the same. Bucket milkers, once the most common milking system, are now rarely

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found. The bucket, under vacuum, collects the milk. But milk must be hand dumped into the
milk collecting tank. More popular in these areas, because of the reduced labor involved, is
the around the barn pipeline which delivers milk from the cow to the bulk tank, under
vacuum.

In larger herds in colder climates, and in most herds in more temperate regions, milking
parlors are used. In parlor systems, the cows are brought to the milking operation. There are
2 more common types of milking systems. One is the herringbone unit, the other is the
parallel unit. In the herringbone unit, the milking stalls are lined at a 45˚ angle to the pit of
the parlor, with the cow’s udder closest to the milker. With this arrangement, the space
between udders is quite small, and more cows can be “crowded” into the parlor for a given
unit of area. Thus the milker can milk more cows per hour since he can milk more cows per
unit space and need not walk great distances between cows. In the parallel parlor, the cows
are lined in stalls in a row, and the milker only sees the rear of the cow.. Generally, both
operations are doubled sided, and thus a double 6 herringbone or a 2-6 herringbone, refers to
12 stalls, 6 per side. The parallel arrangement will have many more cows per side.. In a 2-8
herringbone, 40-60 cows can be milked per man per hour depending on the level of
automation. As parlor sizes increase, to double 12s, 16s, 20s, efficiency increases. Rotary
parlors are gaining in popularity abroad, but are still less common in the US.

Care of Cows in the Second and Third Trimester of Lactation

During the second and third trimesters of lactation, ideally the second and third hundred days
of their lactation, the cows have passed their period of peak milk production. Nutritionally,
the aim of the dairymen is to feed for maximum production, to maintain the cows’ persistency
of lactation, without allowing the cows to gain excess weight. In the early lactation phase,
high producing cows will have lost weight. In latter lactation, it is beneficial to have those
cows regain the lost weight. However, cows are less persistent producers – these cows whose
day-to-day production drops off more rapidly than others, will tend to gain weight in excess,
if they are not properly fed. In short, the nutrient requirements of average and poor producing
cows is less than those in cows in early lactation or top producers. A good herdsperson will
recognize which cows have greater requirements, and feed them accordingly.

Generally, cows which have not been successfully bred by this stage of lactation are going to
have a calving interval of greater than one year. The calving interval being the time between
one calving and the next. The objective of any dairy is to optimize returns over costs. The
cow is most efficient during early lactation. Thus, it is most economic to crowd as many
peak periods of lactation a cow will have in her lifetime, together. Since the uterus is not
fully involuted until 45 days postpartum, as it will generally take 2 services for each
conception, as 50% of all heats are missed, and as the gestation length is 280 days, the large
majority of cows which have calving intervals of 1 year or less will be successfully bred by
day 60-90 postpartum. Cows milking past 100 days and open will thus be less efficient
producers. Depending on the genetic and phenotypic merit of the cow, a dairyman might
decide to cull those late or nonbreeders, those cows not pregnant in the last two thirds of
lactation.

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Use of BST, bovine somatotropin, after peak milk production, is leading some to question the
goal of an annual cow cycle. Cows treated with BST are more persistent producers and
therefore produce at higher rates for longer periods than cows not treated. In some studies at
Cornell, a cow on BST with a 16-18 month calving interval might be most economically
efficient.

Drying Off
It is recommended that 45-60 days prior to calving, the cow be dried-off. The dry period
allows the mammary gland to involute. Proper mammary involution will lead to optimum
regeneration of secretory cells. A dry period length of greater than 60 days is of no
advantage, yet less than a 45-day period will on average lead to incomplete
involution/regeneration of mammary parenchyma.

There have been many suggestions made on how a cow should be dried off. Some
recommend complete cessation of milking. Others suggest to skip every other milking and
then completely stop milking. Still others suggest milking less frequently until a final
cessation of milking, e.g., milk one time/day, then one time/2 days, then. . . one time/4 days
and stop milking. Most of the studies that have examined the method of drying-off have
concerned themselves with dry period mastitis problems. Most suggest that the method of
drying-off does not affect incidence of mastitis. Some data would indicate complete cessation
may be best, and made better if only average quality forage is fed just prior to drying-off.
Reducing the nutrient intake just prior to drying-off will decrease milk secretion which will
hasten involution.

Once dried-off, the well-conditioned dry cow can maintain body weight and support fetal
growth on average quality forage alone. If a cow is over conditioned as she enters the dry
period, then care must be taken not to overfeed during this time. If she is under conditioned
as she enters the dry period, then she must be fed to restore body weight during this time;
however, it is more economically efficient to have her gain weight during late lactation. The
major nutrition problem facing a dairyman during the dry period is to ensure that he does not
over condition his cows. Such over conditioning can lead to Fat Cow Syndrome, a malady
which is associated with a myriad of peripartum metabolic diseases such as milk fever and
ketosis. Apparently an over conditioned cow is less able to deal with the metabolic demands
of lactation and succumbs more readily to these metabolic disorders. Greater rates of
infertility, mastitis and metritis, have been linked to Fat Cow Syndrome. Another dry cow
ration problem is overfeeding calcium, which can result in increasing the cow’s susceptibility
to milk fever problems in early lactation. The recommendation is to withhold legume hays
from cattle during the dry period and reduce daily intake of calcium to less than 100 gms.
Two weeks prior to the expected calving date, it is advisable to lead feed. This is done by
gradually adding 5-10 lbs of grain (16-20% CP, > 75% TDN) to the ration coupled with
anionic salts to prevent milk fever. This type of ration is now termed transition cow feeding.
Since the dry cow will generally be on a ration of forage, there is need to stimulate the
production of ruminal microbes which degrade grain. Thus, when she freshens, she will be
ready to receive larger amounts of grain in her ration, which she will need to meet the nutrient
needs of lactation. Lately, much emphasis has been placed on transition period (period
between pre- and post-calving) care. Such care would include nutrient management to

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minimize metabolic diseases and maximize peak yield by keeping cows metabolically
efficient.

Housing and handling of dry cow is similar to those practices applied to the rearing of bred
heifers. Any treatments, antibiotic, endocrine, antihelmintic, or vaccinate, must be given with
care. The dry cow will be “heavy” with calf; any treatment which may possibly induce
abortion should clearly be avoided. Yet catch-up treatments, such as dry cow intramammary
antibiotic treatments and same antihelmintics, can be given to dry cows in larger doses since
drug residues in milk are no longer of concern. However, milk may have to be withheld from
sale if calving occurs prematurely or before the expected due date. Withholding times will be
specified by the drug manufacturers.

Record Keeping
Dairy herd record keeping begins with the calf. Shortly after the calf is fed colostrum and has
its navel dipped, it should be given a numbered ear tag, photographed, and a record file
started. Records traditionally have been made on “cow”-file cards or notebook sheets, but
more recently home computer storage of information is becoming more prevalent. The best
systems utilize a separate card for each calf/cow with room for health, breeding, production,
nutrition and miscellaneous records. Most computer management software programs are
menu driven and will have separate files for health, breeding, production, nutrition and
miscellaneous records. If such a program is used, the system should be flexible enough so
that the total cow history can be easily obtained.

General information a dairyman would record for a calf would be pedigree, health and
treatment, nutrition (amount of colostrum, grain, and hay consumed and fed), and
vaccinations given. Pedigree information will help a dairyman evaluate his breeding
program. Nutrition/ration information will help him evaluate his feeding program and will be
of value when coupled to the health, treatment, and vaccination records when evaluating his
herd health program. When the heifer calf grows to breeding age (12 – 15 months/850 lbs
body weight), heat and breeding information should be recorded in addition to the
aforementioned information. These records will help a dairyman evaluate his breeding
program which includes: heat detection, insemination technique, and semen selection.

When the heifer calves, the second or cow life cycle begins. New information that a
dairyman must now record are milk production and quality. These records can be obtained
when one is enrolled in a production testing program. The most widely used production
testing program is the Dairy Herd Improvement Association or DHIA. The DHIA is a
coordinated network of local dairymen cooperatives where a rigorous and unbiased
production testing program is organized. These local cooperatives determine charges,
organize the on-farm testing of milk production, organize the shipping records to a central
records processing center, the shipping of milk samples to a certified laboratory for quality
analysis, and the payment of personnel. These local cooperatives must abide by national
DHIA rules. The local cooperatives as unit make up the State DHIA organization, which is
responsible for central administration and maintenance of the state certified milk analysis
laboratory. Laboratory analysis generally includes milk fat, lactose, and somatic cell

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concentration. Both milk quality and quantity records will be used in making culling
decisions. Milk quantity, production, records will be used in ration formulation.

Fittingly, discussion of record keeping ends this synopsis of dairy management. Records
should be organized such that they can measure progress or lack thereof. If you can’t
measure it, you cannot manage it. If you cannot manage it, you cannot improve it. A good
production testing program should incorporate a good record keeping system, one which can
organize the records so they can be readily used to measure management success or failure.
From this step, a dairyman can make improvements.

Dry matter (DM) intake and % of DM from forage and grain necessary to provide
adequate growth rates for dairy heifers
Body wt. DM intake Forage:grain
Age months lbs lb/day ratio CP, % TDN, %
To weaning* 130 0:100 15-18 75
Weaning to 2 160 4-5 25:75 15 70-75
3 220 6-7 50:50
6 400 10-11 67:33 14 66-68
9 550 14-16 75:25
12 720 16-18 75:25 12 65
15 875 18-20 100:00
18 1040 20-22 100:00 12 60-65
21 1200 18-22 100:00
24** 1360 18-20 80:20 12 62-65
*Does not include milk or replacer.
**Expected calving at 24 months of age.

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