Dairy cattle are metabolic athletes. Energy requirements for the average dairy cow double from a week before calving to just after calving. It is important to emphasise just how great the energy...
The studies summarised here reported variable and even contradictory associations between postpartum blood calcium concentrations and milk production. These associations, as well as some of the...
Cost alone is often not sufficient to create a meaningful change in attitude, so consideration of behavioural insight models, such as EAST (Easy, Attractive, Social, Timely), can be useful in...
All measures should be taken to ensure that the sample seen down the microscope is a representative biopsy of what would be ejaculated during natural service. Cold shock is the most common and...
BVD virus is in the Flaviviridae family. There are two genotypes, BVD 1 and 2. BVD 1 occurs in the UK, and there are two biotypes: cytopathic and non-cytopathic. Most persistently infected calves have...
The principal benefit of carrying out selective treatment of clinical mastitis is in supporting the One Health approach to the responsible use of antibiotics through the reduction of antibiotic use...
The mucosa is the largest component of the immune system, providing a first line of defence against encountered pathogens. The gastrointestinal mucosa is highly specialised and, uniquely, needs to...
Mature herpes virions vary from 120–260 nm in size. The core of the virion comprises double-stranded DNA held inside a 115–130 nm icosahedral capsid. The nucleocapsid is surrounded by a dense...
There is considerable evidence that improving productivity reduces environmental impacts from livestock production. However, despite the negative impacts of animal diseases on reproduction, growth and...
Acute or transient infection with the non-cytopathic biotype of BVDV results in viraemia within a few days that is cleared after 2 weeks as immunity develops (Howard, 1990), although more chronic...
Before exploring bedding materials, it is important to understand how bedding is used. Dairy cow lying areas can be designed in two ways: Loose housing: a large bedded area where cows can choose...
Preventive medicine and health planning are the cornerstones of farm animal veterinary practice. Genetic selection is preventive medicine in its purest form – by choosing to breed animals with a low...