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Antibiotics are one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century, and they have saved millions of human and animal lives. Antibiotics are vital for treatment of bacterial infections in both humans and in animals.
The National Animal Health Monitoring System (NAHMS) estimates pre-weaning mortality of calves to be 10.8 percent, with diarrhea as the leading cause of death. Scours or diarrhea can be the result of any number of causes, including infectious agents like bacteria, viruses or parasites.
Transition from dry pregnant stage to freshening and onset of lactation causes tremendous stress in dairy cows. Cows need significantly more calcium while lactating as compared to the last stages of gestation. Colostrum and milk are loaded with calcium, and fresh cows must be able to adjust to this sudden calcium drain to maintain health and productivity. This is particularly critical for a cow’s second lactation and greater. Low blood calcium can lead to milk fever.
Getting cows and heifers off to a good start at the beginning of lactation is critical for the profitability of the dairy. Even with all the advances in nutrition and veterinary care, freshening and the onset of lactation are very stressful for dairy cows.
Fresh cows are susceptible to a number of infections and metabolic disorders due to stress, low immunity and reduced dry matter intake. Two of the most common metabolic disorders in fresh cows are milk fever and ketosis.
