dairy body condition - Page 1

6 steps to maximize dry-off comfort and productivity

A well-managed dry-off period pays dividends in higher milk yield, healthier cows and fewer fresh cow problems.

March 24, 2026

A well-managed dry-off period pays dividends in higher milk yield, healthier cows and fewer fresh cow problems. By prioritizing comfort, health and body condition, producers can turn this resting phase into one of the most productive investments in the herd’s future performance.

When and how much muscle do cows lose and gain throughout lactation?

Understanding how and when muscle depletion occurs – and how nutrition can impact this process – is important for improving cow welfare and maximizing milk yields.

January 8, 2025

Jackie Boerman

Skeletal muscle plays a crucial role in dairy cows’ health and productivity, but it’s also a very dynamic tissue. It can be mobilized to support milk production during periods of negative energy balance, but recovery of lost muscle is much slower.

Shaping success: The role of fat and muscle in transition cows

Recent research efforts explore how muscle amount and mobilization impacts transition success and early lactation performance.

October 29, 2024

Kyrstin Gouveia

One factor that plays a role in the success of the transition period is the cow’s body composition, more specifically the fat and muscle of the cow. Both fat and muscle tissues are mobilized during the transition period to compensate for the negative nutrient balances and provide precursors for milk and milk components.

Rethinking the dry period by shortening or eliminating

Adjusting the dry period length can improve dairy cow health.

June 17, 2024

Alvaro Garcia

The dry period, usually lasting 60 days before calving, serves essential roles in preparing cows for lactation, promoting mammary cell renewal and facilitating treatment for subclinical mastitis. However, shortening or eliminating this period has become a strategy to manage milk production, redistributing energy balance and mitigating the risk of metabolic disorders like subclinical ketosis.

Managing the transition period for maximum success

Avoiding overconditioned cows at time of dry-off and replacing inorganic trace mineral salts with organic trace minerals can help make the transition period successful.

June 16, 2023

Eduardo S. Ribeiro

The impacts of management during the transition period can make or break future lactations and overall herd health, putting at risk investments in genetics, farm profitability and welfare.

There’s profit in knowing how much your cows weigh

March 2, 2022

Ron Patterson

Ideal weight is relative term across many species. Take humans, for example. Experts have developed an ideal body mass index based on population averages that indicates whether a person is at an ideal weight for their height.

Dynamics of body condition and health status affects cow fertility and survival

February 25, 2022

Diego Manriquez and Pablo Pinedo

During the peripartum, dairy cows face an increased demand for nutrients to support the initiating lactation. As this demand is followed by slower increments in dry matter intake (DMI), the levels of energy consumption do not meet the energetic requirements of the starting lactation.