Subclinical Mastitis Detected during the Last Gestation Period Can Increase the Risk of Stillbirth in Dairy Calves

We hypothesized that subclinical mastitis detected during the last gestation period can increase the risk of stillbirth in dairy calves. The aim was to investigate the relation of subclinical mastitis detected during the last gestation period and its pathogens with the stillbirth of calves. Cows from the 210th day of pregnancy were selected for the study. They were divided into two groups: the first group-subclinical mastitis was confirmed on the farm by the California mastitis test (CMT); the second group of cows-mastitis was not confirmed by the CMT test. Groups of cows were compared according to the results of their calving-the number of stillborn calves. A stillborn calf was defined as a calf that dies at birth or within the first 24 h after calving, following a gestation period of 260 days. Our results suggest that decreasing the incidence of subclinical mastitis during the last gestation period (from the 210th day of pregnancy) can decrease the risk of stillbirth in dairy calves. Further, it is important to identify the pathogen because the highest risk of stillbirth was found in cows with mastitis caused by Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus agalactiae, pathogenic Staphylococci and other Streptococci. Cows at the first calving had a 1.38-1.65-times higher risk of having stillborn calves than cows of parity ≥ 2. From a practical point, veterinarians and farmers can consider the effect of subclinical mastitis during late gestation on the risk of stillbirth and it could help for strategies of optimizing reproductive performance in dairy cows

FARMERS’ MARKETS’ CUSTOMER LOYALTY STRUCTURE IN LITHUANIA

Abstract: Being disappointed with food quality in supermarkets, people are searching for healthier products in other places. Farmers’ markets are often considered as an alternative. Nowadays, farmers’ markets are gaining their popularity in Lithuania, as well as in many other countries. However, the competition among farmers is increasing as well. As customer loyalty is becoming one of the fundamental goals for the main part of organizations, the same rules can be adapted if considering farmer as a company. Knowing the customer loyalty structure in farmers’ market can help a farmer in taking optimal measures for keeping loyal customers and excelling in the market

Impact of Calving Difficulty on Lameness in Dairy Cows

The aims of our study were to evaluate the associations between calving difficulty and lameness and their effects on milk yield and quality traits. A total of 4723 calving cases were evaluated for calving difficulty using a 4-point scoring system. Lameness was diagnosed with a visual locomotion score system from 1 to 30 days after calving in 333 fresh dairy cows. Cows were divided into non-lame cows and lame cows. Milk quality traits were registered using Lely Astronaut (R) A3 milking robots. The normal distribution of all indicators was assessed using the Shapiro-Wilk normality test. Normally distributed milk indicators were expressed as mean +/- standard error of the mean. Differences between the mean values of their groups were determined using the Fisher\u27s least significant difference test. We categorized cows by health status, i.e., lame (LA) and non-lame (HL) cows, and according to calving difficulty (CD) (on a 4-point scale: 1-no problem, 2-slight problem, 3-problems requiring assistance, 4-considerable force and extreme difficulty). In the present study, calving difficulty increased the risk of lameness in cows by 2.09-fold (95% CI = 1.644-2.650, p < 0.001). It was found that the mean standard milk yield in fresh dairy cows with calving difficulty was lower (-6.14 kg, p < 0.001) than in the group where no assistance was required at calving. Similarly, herd affected milk fat (%) and the calving process-herd and the interaction between calving difficulty and herd-and lameness impacted the quantity of milk protein and lactose in cows. We found that severe lameness (3-4 points) (3.88-5.92% of cows) became more prevalent in those cows that had dystocia than those that did not (0.27-2.37% of cows)

Association between Milk Electrical Conductivity Biomarkers with Lameness in Dairy Cows

Early identification of lameness at all phases of lactation improves milk yield and reduces the incidence of mastitis in the herd. According to the literature we hypothesized that there are associations of electrical conductivity variables of milk flow with lameness in dairy cows. The aim of this study was to determine if blood cortisol and electrical conductivity in the milk flow phases correlate with each other and whether they are related to cow lameness. On one farm, out of 1500 cows, 64 cows with signs of lameness and 56 healthy cows were selected with an average of 2.8 lactations and 60 days in the postpartum period. A local veterinarian who specializes in hoof care treatments identified and scored lameness. During evening milking, the milk flow of all 120 cows was measured using electronic milk flow meters (Lactocorder®, WMB AG, Balgache, Switzerland). Before each milking, two electronic mobile milk flow meters (Lactocorders) were mounted between the milking apparatus and the milking tube to take measurements. We found that the average cortisol concentration in the blood of the studied cows was significantly correlated with the laminitis score. Results of this study indicate that the number of non-lame cows with a milk electrical conductivity level of &lt;6 mS/cm even reached 90.8-92.3% of animals. Milk electrical conductivity indicators ≥ 6 mS/cm were determined in 17.8-29.0% more animals in the group of lame cows compared to the group of non-lame cows. According to our study, we detected that blood cortisol concentration had the strongest positive correlation with milk electrical conductivity indicators. Cows with a greater lameness score had a higher cortisol content and milk conductivity

Evaluation of the Metabolic Relationship between Cows and Calves by Monitoring Calf Health and Cow Automatic Milking System and Metabolic Parameters

With this study, we investigated the relationship between a cow\u27s and calf\u27s metabolic state, and its effect on health status. To achieve this, 20 calves of primiparous and 20 calves of multiparous cows were selected. The calves were monitored for 30 days and scored for signs of disease, as described in McQuirk (2008); according to score, they were divided into healthier calves; the Low calf score group (LCS, 5-8), Medium calf score group (MCS, 9-12) and High calf score group (HCS, 14-17); or calves most prone to disease. Their mothers were monitored for the same period with a Lely Astronaut 3 herd management system (Lely, Maassluis, The Netherlands) for rumination time, milk yield, milk fat, protein, lactose concentrations and milk fat to protein ratio. Both cows and calves were sampled for blood, and concentrations of glucose with β-hydroxybutyrate were registered. The results indicate that primiparous cows had a 16% higher blood glucose concentration (3.03 mmol/L SE = 0.093) compared with multiparous cows (2.61 mmol/L, SE = 0.102) (p< 0.01), but no difference in calf glucose was recorded. Β-hydroxybutyrate levels did not differ significantly between cows and calves by parity group. Rumination time was longest in the HCS group at 550.79 min/d. and was 16% longer compared with the LCS group (461.94 min/d.; p< 0.001) and 8% longer compared with the MCS group (505.56 min/d.; p< 0.001). The MCS group rumination time mean was statistically significantly higher compared with the LCS group by 8% (p< 0.001). Milk yield was also highest in the HCS group (44.8 kg/d.): 19% higher compared with the MCS group (36.31 kg/d., p< 0.001) and 13% higher than the LCS group (38.83 kg/d., p< 0.001). There was also a significant difference between the MCS and LCS groups of 6% (p< 0.001). The HCS group had the highest milk fat concentration (4.47%): it was 4% higher compared with the LCS group (4.28%, p< 0.001) and 5% higher than the MCS group (4.25%, p< 0.001). Milk fat to protein ratio was highest in the HCS group (1.21) and was 7% higher than in the MCS group (1.12, p< 0.001) and 8% higher than in the LCS group (1.11, p< 0.001). The LCS group was determined to have the highest concentration of milk lactose (4.66%). It was 1% higher compared with the MCS group (4.62%, p< 0.001) and 1.07% higher than the HCS group (4.61%, p< 0.001). We can conclude that parity did not affect calf health status and that cows of the HCS group showed symptoms of negative energy balance expressed through higher milk yield, higher milk fat concentration and higher milk fat to protein ratio, with lower milk lactose concentration. Further and more thorough research is needed to evaluate the relationship between pregnant cows and calves

Change in Rumination Behavior Parameters around Calving in Cows with Subclinical Ketosis Diagnosed during 30 Days after Calving

We hypothesized that cows with SCK (blood BHB over >1.2 mmol/L) diagnosed within the first 30 days of calving can be predicted by changes in rumination and activity behavioral parameters in the period before calving and indeed subsequently. A total of 45 cows were randomly selected from 60 dry cows from at least 40 days before calving. All the cows were fitted with RuniWatch sensors monitoring both intake behaviors (faceband) and general movement and activity behavior (pedometer) (RWS-ITIN + HOCH, Switzerland). Following an adaptation period of 10 days, rumination, eating, and activity parameters were monitored for 30 days before calving and 30 days after calving. Considering the design of the study, we divided the data of cows into three stages for statistical evaluation: (1) the last thirty days before calving (from day -30 to -1 of the study); (2) day of calving; and (3) the first thirty days after calving (from day 1 to 30 of the study). We found that before calving, those cows with a higher risk of having SCK diagnosed after calving had lower rumination time, eating time, drinking gulps, bolus, chews per min, chews per bolus, downtime, maximal temperature, and activity change. On the calving day, in cows with higher risk of SCK after calving, we found lower rumination time, eating time, chews per min, chews per bolus, uptime, downtime, minimal temperature, other chews, eating chews, drinking time, drinking gulps, activity, average temperature, maximal temperature, activity change, rumination chews, and eating chews. After calving in cows with SCK, we found lower rumination time, eating time 1, eating time 2, bolus, chews per bolus, uptime, downtime, minimal temperature, maximal temperature, rumination chews, and eating chews. Moreover, after calving we found higher drinking gulps, drinking time, activity, activity change, average temperature, other chews, and eating chews in cows with SCK. From a practical point of view, we recommend that by tracking changes in rumination and activity behavior parameters registered with RuniWatch sensors (such as rumination time, eating time, drinking time, drinking gulps, bolus, chews per minute, chews per bolus, downtime, maximal temperature, and activity change) before, during, and after calving, we can identify cows with a higher risk of SCK in the herd

Identification of Changes in Rumination Behavior Registered with an Online Sensor System in Cows with Subclinical Mastitis

The aim of the present study is to determine the relationship between subclinical mastitis and rumination behavior registered with an online sensor system. Based on the findings of the general clinical examination of 650 milking cows, 10 cows with subclinical mastitis (SCM) and 10 clinically healthy cows (HG) were selected (without clinical signs of any diseases). Rumination behavior biomarkers were registered with RumiWatch noseband sensors (RWS; ITIN + HOCH GmbH, Fütterungstechnik, Liestal, Switzerland). Sensors were implanted on the first day after calving. Data from the RWS 13 days before diagnosis of SCM and 13 days after diagnosis of SCM were compared with HG data from the same period. Healthy cows were checked alongside SCM cows on the same days. In our study, we found that healthy cows spent more time engaging in rumination and drinking (p&lt; 0.05) and also had more boluses per rumination. Moreover, among cows with subclinical mastitis, rumination time from day 4 to day 0 decreased by 60.91%, drinking time decreased by 48.47%, and the number of boluses per rumination decreased by 8.67% (p&lt; 0.05). The results indicate that subclinical affects time and rumination chews registered with sensor systems. However, additional studies with larger numbers of animals are required to confirm these results. Furthermore, the impact of heat stress, estrus, and other effects on rumination behavior biomarkers should be evaluated

Babesiosis in Southeastern, Central and Northeastern Europe: An Emerging and Re-Emerging Tick-Borne Disease of Humans and Animals

There is now considerable evidence that in Europe, babesiosis is an emerging infectious disease, with some of the causative species spreading as a consequence of the increasing range of their tick vector hosts. In this review, we summarize both the historic records and recent findings on the occurrence and incidence of babesiosis in 20 European countries located in southeastern Europe (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Serbia), central Europe (Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Switzerland), and northern and northeastern Europe (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Iceland, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, and Norway), identified in humans and selected species of domesticated animals (cats, dogs, horses, and cattle). Recorded cases of human babesiosis are still rare, but their number is expected to rise in the coming years. This is because of the widespread and longer seasonal activity of Ixodes ricinus as a result of climate change and because of the more extensive use of better molecular diagnostic methods. Bovine babesiosis has a re-emerging potential because of the likely loss of herd immunity, while canine babesiosis is rapidly expanding in central and northeastern Europe, its occurrence correlating with the rapid, successful expansion of the ornate dog tick (Dermacentor reticulatus) populations in Europe. Taken together, our analysis of the available reports shows clear evidence of an increasing annual incidence of babesiosis across Europe in both humans and animals that is changing in line with similar increases in the incidence of other tick-borne diseases. This situation is of major concern, and we recommend more extensive and frequent, standardized monitoring using a "One Health" approach

Research data supporting "Cross-linguistic patterns in the acquisition of quantifiers"

Response_Data.csv: Participant responses ('correct' or 'incorrect') to sentences with quantifiers ('all', 'none', 'some', 'some...not', 'most') in 31 languages presented in the context of different visual displays. Item_Coding.csv: How sentences with quantifiers ('all', 'none', 'some', 'some...not', 'most') were coded