Dairy Husbandry Flashcards
First Dairy settlement was in:
1788, with first fleet of settlers
Most important rural industries in Australia:
1) Beef
2) Wheat
3) Dairy
Dairy Industry Key Points (4)
1) 3rd largest diary exporter
2) export 45% of production
3) produce: Milk, milk powder, yoghurt, butter, cheese
4) AU and NZ only produce 4% of worlds milk but account for 45% of worlds milk trade
In AUSTRALIA:
Average Herd Size
Average Hectares
Family or Commercial
273 cows per herd
200 hectares
Family owned
Highest Milk Production in AUS
South Eastern Australia (Melbourne, Tasmania, Adelaide area)
(%) of dairy cattle are (Breed)
75% of dairy cattle are Holstein Friesian
Which state has the highest milk production in Australia?
Victoria
Over 4000 dairy farms
2 types of Dairy Products
1) Market Milk
2) Manufacture Milk
Market Milk
Short shelf-life
processed immediately for drinking
QLD is 100% market milk
Not sustaining own milk production
Brings up milk from NSW
Manufacture Milk
Longer lasting milk
Cheese, butter, powder
Utilization of Australian milk
highest: 34% Cheese
Lowest: 11% Powder
Deregulated Australian Milk Market
1) no legislative control of price paid to farmers
2) Prices based on milk fat and protein solids
3) Incentive/penalties payment scheme
4) Price received varies between states
Trends of australian dairy farms since deregulated market
number of farms has decreases
number of cows has increases
production of milk per farm has increased
Temperate Australian Breeds
BAG-HIJ
Brown Swiss Ayrshire Guernsey Holstein Illawarra Jersey
Tropical Australian Breeds
Af-SZ
Australian Friesian
Sahiwall
Australian Milking Zebu
Holstein Friesian
75% of dairy cows
Most numerous and popular breed
High milk volume
Low solid components (fat/protein)
Jersey
Second most important breed
Used in cross-breed herds
Low milk volume High components (fat/protein)
Brown Swiss
Adapt to different conditions
Average milk production High components (fat/proteins)
Illawarra
Developed in Australia
Average milk production Average components (fat/protein)
Ayrshire
Average milk production Average components (fat/protein)
Guernsey
Average milk production Average components (fat/protein)
Calf
young male or female
Bobby calfs
young male calf usually destined for veal
Heifer
young female that has not yet had calf
First Calf Heifer
female after giving birth to first calf
Cow
female after second calving
Bull
Sexually mature uncastrated male
Fresh Cow
cow that has recently calved
Colostrum
First milk following calving
Lactation
Period of milk production
Gestation
Length of pregnancy (283 days)
Dry Cow
Non-lactating cow (dried off, dry cow therapy)
Dam
female parent in a pedigree
Sire
male parent in a pedigree
Cull Cow
cow to be removed from herd
Downer Cow
Cow unable to rise
Bulk milk tank
on farm refrigerated, stainless steel storage vessel in which milk is cooled quickly to 2-4 degrees
Milking parlour
Specialized are of the farm where milking is performed
Mastitis
Inflammatory (infection) of mammary gland
Somatic Cell Count
(SCC)
Number of white blood cells per ml of milk
optimal milking period (days)
305
optimal gestation period (days)
283
Optimal dry off period (days)
60
Lactation protocol
Remove calf 12-24 hours after birth
Withhold milk for first 8 milkings
Milked 2-3 times per day
Dry period
Stop milking cow prior to calving
Dry period 50-60 days
Given intramammary antibiotics
Regeneration of milk secretory tissue in udder
- leads to increased production next lactation
<30 days = less milk next lactation
>70 days = contribute to obesity
Ideal Cow (timing)
60 day dry period 40-60 day voluntary waiting period 20 day mating period 283 day Gestation 60 day dry period
3 types of calving patters
1) Seasonal
2) Split/Batch
3) Year Round
Seasonal Calving Pattern
Aim to match pear milk production with peak pasture growth
Most common production system
All periods (dry off, mating, etc) occur at the same time for all cows
Split/Batch Calving Pattern
Aim is to maximize production through spring and summer
Done to meet demands of consumers
Generally 2 batches per year
*can have problems with pasture maturity
Year Round Calving Pattern
Aim to supply even amounts of milk all year round
Aimed more at market/white milk
Dominant in QLD, WA, and NSW
Typical Feeding structures for Dairy Cattle
Primarily grazing
Some are feedlot
Grass (pro’s and cons)
Pro:
Cheapest, cows designed to eat grass, less disease
Cons:
Hard to control intake, limited water resource, dependent of weather, still require supplements
DONT MAKE A LOT OF MILK WITH GRASS
Types of Supplements (3)
1) Grain
2) Hay/Silage
3) By-products
Examples of by-products (4)
1) Cotton seed
2) Brewers grain
3) Cannery Waste
4) Bread
Pro’s of Supplements (4)
1) Less reliance on rainfall
2) Control over intake
3) By-products usually relatively cheap
4) Allow increased production over grass alone
Con’s of Supplements (3)
1) Fluctuating supplies
2) Variable feed price
3) Increased Acidosis
Feedlot Pro’s (3)
1) Better nutritional control
2) More milk per cow
3) Not reliant on local weather
Feedlot Cons
1) Increased costs
2) Feed costs will fluctuate
3) Increased risk of diseases (4)
4 diseases associated with feedlots
1) Mastitis
2) LDA/RDA
3) Acidosis
4) Lameness
Colostrum
Antibodies provided in mothers milk
Absorpion decreases exponentially for the calf
Colostrum management (2)
1) remove calf 2-3 hours after birth
2) Feed 4 litres of colostrum within 6 hours
Umbilicus/naval spraying
Umbilicus should be sprayed with 7% iodine solution right after birth to prevent infection of the joints
- bacteria can infect umbilicus and affect joints
Feeding for ruminant development
- 1st month calf needs 4 litres per day with 500g solids
- water needs to always be available
- dry forage is critical for rumen development
- calf starters from day 3 in the form of pellets
Calf Housing
Calves are poor regulators of temp.
- protect against rain, shine, cold
- shelter with grass available is best
- no contact with other animals
- clear regularly
Calf health diseases and infections (6)
1) Scours (diarrhoea)
2) Pneumonia
3) Umbilical infection/naval infection
4) Joint infection/joint ill
5) Internal parasites
6) External parasites
Calf Diarrhoea
Calves less than 6 weeks Combination - environment - challenge - poor immunity Bacterial or viral
Diarrhoea management in calves (3)
1) Hydration (gastric tube, intravenous)
2) Metabolit imbalances (Electrolytes)
3) Antibiotics
Diarrhoea prevention in calves (3)
1) Colostrum
2) Reduce pathogen exposure
3) Reduce stress
Pneumonia in calves; causes (6)
Calves after weaning Combination 1) - Stress 2) - Pathogen 3) - Poor ventilation 4) - Poor hygiene 5) Virus 6) Bacteria
Calf husbandry procedures (4)
1) Identification
2) Disbudding/Dehorning
3) Castration
4) Vaccination
Types of identification (6)
1) ear marking/notching
2) ear tattooing
3) Freeze branding
4) Photography
5) Ear-tagging
6) Radio frequency identification device (RFID)
Ear tattooing
Stud procedure
Difficult to read
Freeze Branding
Leaves white marks on black coats
Liquid nitrogen expense
Easier to read than fire brand
RFID
National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) Traceability for 1) biosecurity 2) Meat Safety 3) Product Integrity 4) Market Acces
Uses for NLIS (5)
1) Backup if other tag is lost
2) Herd recording
3) Automatic drafting
4) Computer controlled feeding
5) Recording milk production in automated systems
Disbudding
Removal of horn producing cells
Calves less than 2 months
Buds are not attached to bone yet
Dehorning
Removal of horn and horn producing cells
Horn attached to skull
Creates sinus exposure to environment
Most painful procedure for cattle
Types of castration (2)
1) Surgical castration
2) Non-surgical castration
Surgical Castration (2)
1) Knife
2) Scalpel + Emasculator
Non-surgical castration (2)
1) Burdizzo
2) Elastrator
Types of Diseases that can be vaccinated against: (5)
1) Clostridial diseases
2) Leptospirosis
3) Botulism
4) Bovine ephemeral fever (BEF)
5) Tick Fever
Types of Clostridial Diseases (5)
Caused by anaerobic bacteria in the environment
1) Tetanus
2) Malignant oedema
3) Blackleg
4) Enterotoxaemia
5) Black Disease
Vaccination procedure (4)
(DSSE)
1) Dose
2) Site
3) Storage
4) Expiry date
Cow Body Score
Most common: 1-5
Dairy Australia: 1-8
Why use the body score?
Body condition affects
1) Milk production
2) Reproductive performance
Thin cows
Repro effects: Lower conception rates
Milking effects:
- use more energy for weight gain than milk production
- lower lactation persistency
Fat cows at calving
More problems
Lower dry matter
Metabolic disease
Not as bad compared to too skinny
Body score at calving and at mating
At calving: 4.5-5.5
At mating: 4.0-5.0
Signs of mastitis
Pain
Swelling
Redness
Milk Changes
Lameness
Multifactorial Aetiology - environmental - management - animal High grain diets can cause lameness Can affect reproduction
Downer Cow Differential (4)
1) Traumatic
2) Metabolic
3) Neurological
4) Toxic Infections
How to dry-off a cow? (4)
- needs to be below 12 litres per day
- reduce concentrate feeding
1) Completely milk out
2) Insert dry cow antibiotic
3) Apply teat drip
4) Don’t milk again
