During the early stages of lactation it is important that you monitor the body condition score (BCS) of freshly calved cows.
In early lactation the loss of body condition is not unusual, and excessive losses can be detrimental to the cow going forward.
At this stage, feed intakes are not sufficient to meet the demand of production for dairy cows and they enter what is known as negative energy balance (NEB).
Cows are in state of NEB when their energy requirements (i.e. maintenance, gestation, production) are not met by their energy intake.
Almost all cows will have some degree of NEB in early lactation, but excessive or prolonged NEB can lead to conditions such as ketosis, fatty liver and displaced abomasum.
These issues can then result in reduced levels of fertility in cows and will likely result in the animal being culled from the herd.
BCS
When assessing a cow’s BCS, the key areas to check are the fat cover over the loin, plates, and pin bones of the pelvis and tail areas. You should use your hand for this assessment.
Cows can be graded on a scoring system of between one and five:
Score 1: Individual transverse processes are fairly sharp to the touch and there is no fat around the tail head. Hip bones, tail head and ribs are visually prominent.
Score 2: Transverse processes can be identified individually when touched, but feel rounded rather than sharp. There is some tissue cover around the tail head and over the hip bones. Individual ribs are no longer obvious.
Score 3: Transverse processes can only be felt with firm pressure. Areas either side of the tail head have a fat cover that is felt easily.
Score 4: Fat cover around the tail head is evident as slight ’rounds’, and is soft to touch. Transverse processes cannot be felt even with firm pressure. Folds of fat are developing over the ribs.
Score 5: Bone structure is no longer noticeable, and the animal present a ‘blocky’ appearance. Tail head and hip bones are almost completely buried in fat, and folds of fat are apparent over the ribs. Transverse processes are completely covered by fat, and the animal’s mobility is impaired.
Everyone will score cows differently, but it is important that each farmer’s method of scoring is consistent.
Being consistent is key, as it ensures that cows have fair scores at each check.
OAD
For cows or heifers that have loss excess or maybe even just slightly too much condition in the weeks/months after calving, once-a-day (OAD) milking can be option.
To help these animals regain condition it is important that their output demand is reduced, so farmers will offer these cows extra concentrates – but this is likely not going to work.
Feeding extra concentrates is likely going to increase the production from the cows, rather than decrease it.
Milking these cows OAD will allow them to gain condition. It is important that you continue to feed them concentrates twice a day.