scholarly journals Assessment of Performance and Some Welfare Indicators of Cows in Vietnamese Smallholder Dairy Farms

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 674
Author(s):  
Nguyen N. Bang ◽  
Nguyen V. Chanh ◽  
Nguyen X. Trach ◽  
Duong N. Khang ◽  
Ben J. Hayes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Stress ◽  
Milk Yield ◽  
Body Condition Score ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Point Scale ◽  
The South ◽  
Lactating Cows ◽  
The North ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Smallholder dairy farms (SDFs) are distributed widely across lowland and highland regions in Vietnam, but data on the productivity and welfare status of these cows remains limited. This cross-sectional study was conducted to describe and compare the productivity and welfare status of SDF cows across contrasting regions. It was conducted in autumn 2017 on 32 SDFs randomly selected from four typical but contrasting dairy regions (eight SDFs per region); a south lowland, a south highland, a north lowland, and a north highland region. Each farm was visited over a 24-h period (an afternoon followed by a morning milking and adjacent husbandry activities) to collect data of individual lactating cows (n = 345) and dry cows (n = 123), which included: milk yield and concentrations, body weight (BW), body condition score (BCS, 5-point scale, 5 = very fat), inseminations per conception, and level of heat stress experienced (panting score, 4.5-point scale, 0 = no stress). The high level of heat stress (96% of lactating cows were moderate to highly heat-stressed in the afternoon), low energy corrected milk yield (15.7 kg/cow/d), low percentage of lactating cows (37.3% herd), low BW (498 and 521 kg in lactating and dry cows, respectively), and low BCS of lactating cows (2.8) were the most important productivity and welfare concerns determined and these were most serious in the south lowland. By contrast, cows in the north lowland, a relatively hot but new dairying region, performed similarly to those in the south highland; a region historically considered to be one of the most suitable for dairy cows in Vietnam due to its cool environment. This indicates the potential to mitigate heat stress through new husbandry strategies. Cows in the north highland had the highest BW (535 and 569 kg in lactating and dry cows, respectively) and the highest energy corrected milk yield (19.2 kg/cow/d). Cows in all regions were heat-stressed during the daytime, although less so in the highlands compared to the lowlands. Opportunities for research into improving the productivity and welfare of Vietnamese SDF cows are discussed.

Diet factors and subclinical laminitis score in lactating cows of smallholder dairy farms in Thailand

2013 ◽  
Vol 155 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 197-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Pilachai ◽  
J.Th. Schonewille ◽  
C. Thamrongyoswittayakul ◽  
S. Aiumlamai ◽  
C. Wachirapakorn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Lactating Cows ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Genetic relationships of fertility traits with test-day milk yield and fat-to-protein ratio in tropical smallholder dairy farms

2015 ◽  
Vol 87 (5) ◽  
pp. 627-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sayan Buaban ◽  
Monchai Duangjinda ◽  
Mitsuyoshi Suzuki ◽  
Yutaka Masuda ◽  
Jureeratn Sanpote ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Milk Yield ◽  
Genetic Relationships ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Protein Ratio ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Fertility Traits ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

scholarly journals Randomised controlled trial on estrus and conception impacts of reproductive and nutrition interventions on Kenyan smallholder dairy farms.

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
John VanLeeuwen
Keyword(s):  
Nutrition Education ◽  
Body Condition Score ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Nutrition Interventions ◽  
Leguminous Shrubs ◽  
Sexed Semen ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

This field trial tested the hypothesis that providing Kenyan smallholder dairy farmers with training and resources can enhance cows’ cyclicity and conception using conventional or sexed semen. One hundred farmers were randomly selected and randomly allocated to five equal-sized intervention groups: 1) reproduction only; 2) nutrition only; 3) reproduction and nutrition; 4) education only (quasi-control); or 5) nothing (control). Reproductive interventions included provision of prostaglandin F2? (PG) and/or gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) to induce estrus, and reproduction education. Nutrition interventions included provision of leguminous shrubs and nutrition education. At monthly visits over 17 months, farm and cattle data were collected, and open cattle underwent physical and reproductive exams to determine readiness for farmer decisions on sexed semen utilization. Cox proportional hazards modeling (CoxPH) was used to determine if intervention group was significantly associated with risk of conception. The final dataset included 191 cows and 26 heifers. Lowest and highest heat submission percentages were 8.5% and 35.5% in the control and reproduction groups, respectively. Conception percentages in cows and heifers were 44.0%  and 54.5% for sexed semen and 72% and 79% for conventional semen, respectively. In the final multivariable CoxPH model, each unit increase in average body condition score was associated with 3.5 times higher risk of conception. Cattle that were inseminated following spontaneous heat had 1.8 times higher risk of conception over cows that were inseminated following a hormone-induced heat. In a significant interaction variable, when cows were supplemented with dairy meal in the last month of gestation, a higher risk of conception was achieved in cows on groups where leguminous shrubs were fed compared to groups where no leguminous shrubs were fed. This study concludes that focused effort on improving reproduction through education, hormone use and improved nutrition can improve heat submission and conception percentages on Kenyan smallholder dairy farms.

scholarly journals Comparative occurrence and antibiogram of extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli among post-weaned calves and lactating cows from smallholder dairy farms in a parallel animal husbandry area

2021 ◽  
pp. 1311-1318
Author(s):  
Chya Vannakovida ◽  
Kannika Na Lampang ◽  
Phongsakorn Chuammitri ◽  
Veerasak Punyapornwithaya ◽  
Khwanchai Kreausukon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Animal Husbandry ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Fecal Samples ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Zone Diameter ◽  
Lactating Cows ◽  
Extended Spectrum ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Background and Aim: Inappropriate overuse of antimicrobials might be associated with the spreading of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria in animal-based food products. Extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli have been recognized as an emerging global problem in a One Health approach. This study aimed to assess the occurrence and antimicrobial-susceptible profiles of ESBL-producing E. coli among post-weaned calves and lactating cows in a parallel animal husbandry area. Materials and Methods: Seventy-two pool fecal samples were collected from 36 smallholder dairy farms registered in Ban Hong Dairy Cooperatives, Lamphun Province, Thailand. Pre-enriched fecal samples were cultured in MacConkey agar supplemented with cefotaxime. The potential E. coli isolates were identified by not only biochemical tests but also polymerase chain reaction assay of the 16S rRNA gene. ESBL production was confirmed by the combination disk test. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed by the Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion method. Results: The occurrence of ESBL-producing E. coli at the farm level was 80.56%. The different phenotypic antibiogram of ESBL-producing E. coli was observed among post-weaned calf and lactating cow specimens. The most frequent resistance patterns of ESBL-producing isolates from both groups were amoxicillin-ceftiofur-cephalexin-cephalothin-cloxacillin-streptomycin-oxytetracycline-sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim. For the median zone diameter, enrofloxacin-resistant isolates with narrow zone diameter values from lactating cow specimens were particularly more than post-weaned calf specimens (p<0.05). Conclusion: These findings revealed the dynamic changes in ESBL-producing E. coli from calves and lactating cows in Lamphun Province, posing the inevitability to prevent bacterial transmission and optimize antimicrobial therapy in dairy farming.

scholarly journals Characteristics of Cowsheds in Vietnamese Smallholder Dairy Farms and Their Associations with Microclimate—A Preliminary Study

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 351
Author(s):  
Nguyen N. Bang ◽  
John B. Gaughan ◽  
Ben J. Hayes ◽  
Russell E. Lyons ◽  
Nguyen V. Chanh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Stress ◽  
Heat Load ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
High Heat ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Heat Load Index ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Air Speed ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

In smallholder dairy farms (SDFs), farmers often build cowsheds using local materials and based on self-accumulated experience without due consideration to reducing the risk of heat stress. This study aimed to characterise the heat stress abatement strategies and microclimate within SDF cowsheds from four typical dairy regions of Vietnam (south lowland, south highland, north lowland and north highland) and identify the housing parameters most associated with the microclimate. The study was conducted on 32 SDFs (eight SDFs per region) in autumn 2017. Twelve housing management variables, illustrating cowshed design and heat stress abatement methods of each SDF, were collected. Six microclimate parameters, collected within the cowshed, were temperature (AT), humidity, air speed (AS), heat load index (HLI), Temperature-humidity index (THI) and accumulated heat load units (AHLU) during a day (06:00 h to 18:00 h). Factor analysis and cluster analysis was applied to group cowsheds of SDFs into clusters where SDFs in the cluster had the same cowshed characteristics. Multivariable linear models were applied to define the parameters most likely to inform future research into heat stress mitigation on SDF. Averaged from 08:00 h to 18:00 h, microclimate inside the cowsheds was considered hot (HLI > 79) in the highland and very hot (HLI > 86) in the lowland regions. Cows in the lowland regions accumulated high heat load (AHLU > 50) by 18:00 h. Cowsheds of SDFs varied widely and grouped into seven cowshed types, but no type was more effective than others in reducing heat stress conditions within cowsheds. Using roof soakers together with fans decreased AT and HLI by 1.3 °C and 3.2 units, respectively, at 14:00 h compared to 11:00 h. Each 100 m increase in altitude was associated with decreases of 0.4 °C in AT, 1.3 units in HLI and 0.8 units in THI (p < 0.001). Each meter increase in the eave height of the cowshed roof was associated with decreases of 0.87 °C in AT, 3.31 units in HLI and 1.42 units in THI, and an increase of 0.14 m/s in AS (p < 0.05). The cowshed parameters that should be prioritised for future research into the amelioration of heat stress in SDF cows include using the roof soakers together with fans, increasing altitude, eave roof height and floor area per cow.

scholarly journals Impact of calf feeding practices on calf growth and health in smallholder dairy farms in Nyeri County, Kenya

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Situma ◽  
George K. Gitau ◽  
John VanLeeuwen ◽  
Charles M. Mulei ◽  
Dr. Peter Kimeli
Keyword(s):  
Body Condition Score ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Feeding Practices ◽  
Milk Intake ◽  
Daily Weight Gain ◽  
Weight Gains ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

The objective of this study was to assess potential impact of selected enhanced feeding practices on growth of smallholder dairy calves. In the period between May and August 2012, 36 privately owned Kenyan smallholder dairy farms with new-born calves were purposively selected to participate in a randomized control trial. The calves were randomly allocated to one of nine feed intervention groups based on three groups of Calf Starter Intake (CSI; 20% protein) and three groups of Milk Intake (MI): control, half, and full. Full CSI intake involved lead feeding to achieve up to 1 kg/day feed intake at weaning, half CSI was to maximize intake at 0.5kg/day at weaning, while control CSI was the farmers’ normal practice (0-0.2 kg/day). Full MI was 4 Liters/day and half milk intake was 2 Liters/day, while control MI was the farmers’ normal practice (2-10 Liters/day). Each of the nine intervention groups had four calves per group (one calf died during the 1st week) resulting in 35 calves. Data on calf weight and height were collected weekly through farm visits for a period of eight weeks, and management data were collected through an in-person questionnaire. The results showed significant differences in the mean average daily weight gains across the different feed intervention groups at P (<0.001). All full CSI groups had weight gains over 0.5 kg/day. The full CSI + control MI had a positive association with the mean average daily weight gain at (0.61 kg/day), higher than the other two full CSI groups because of higher MI in this small group. In mixed multivariable linear regression analyses, weekly calf weights were higher with calf age and body condition score, a normal gastrointestinal tract, and amount of calf starter consumed per day, along with feeding sweet potato vines.  

scholarly journals Evaluation of Dairy Cattle Productivity in Smallholder Farms in Nyeri County, Kenya

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Aweer Duot Ajak ◽  
Charles K. Gachuiri ◽  
Margaret M. M. Wanyoike
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Cattle ◽  
Milk Yield ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Breeding Systems ◽  
Cattle Production ◽  
Feed Resources ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Dairy cattle production contributes approximately 4.5% of the Kenyan National Gross Domestic Product, creates jobs along the value chain and plays a key role in food security. However, average milk yield per cow is still low under smallholder dairy production system despite concerted efforts to improve productivity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the productivity of smallholder dairy farms in 2 sub-counties of Nyeri County. A semi structured questionnaire was administered to collect data on feed resources and feeding systems, breeds and breeding systems, calf management, age at first service (AFS), age at first calving (AFC), calving interval (CI), milk yield (MY) and lactation length (LL) in smallholder dairy farms. Data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The dominant feed resources and feeding system were roughages (mostly Napier grass), concentrates and mineral supplements (87.2%) and stall feeding (74.2%). Majority of the farmers kept Friesians (82.2%) with (94.5%) using artificial insemination. Most of the farmers (83.5%) fed 2-4 litres of colostrum to the calves and the method of feeding was majorly bucket feeding (93.0%). High proportion of farmers (97.7%) fed the colostrum from 0-6 hours after calving and (59.6%) weaned calves at 3 months. The AFS was mainly 18-20 months and above, while the mean AFC, CI, and LL were 28.7±2.84, 15.2±5.11 and 10.0±4.90 months, respectively. The mean milk yield was 10.7±5.85 litres/cow/day. The main challenges to dairy cattle production were feed shortages (30.6%), low farmgate milk prices (28.3%) and high cost of concentrate feeds (17.8%). It was concluded that performance of dairy cattle in the study area was poor attributed mostly to feed shortages and low milk prices. To improve productivity, feed availability and cost together with farmgate price of milk should be addressed.

scholarly journals The performance of smallholder dairy farms in West Java

2021 ◽  
Vol 892 (1) ◽  
pp. 012098
Author(s):  
T B Purwantini ◽  
H P Saliem ◽  
E Ariningsih ◽  
Erwidodo ◽  
I S Anugrah ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Milk Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Dairy Herd ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Dairy Farming ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
West Java ◽  
Lactating Cows ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Abstract Small farmers dominate dairy farming in Indonesia, and the average productivity is low. An understanding of the performance of farmers and dairy farming businesses is needed to formulate policies for developing small-scale dairy farms. This study aims to provide information about the performance of dairy farms and recommend policies or measures to develop smallholder dairy farms in West Java. The data used in this paper is taken from the IndoDairy Smallholder Household Survey (ISHS) database, covering 600 dairy farm households selected randomly in Bandung, Garut, Cianjur, and Bogor Districts. Data collection took place between August and September 2017. A purposive and proportional random sampling method was utilized to select the samples. Data were analyzed by using descriptive statistical analysis. The results show that the main income activity of households (80%) was dairy farming. In addition to dairy farming, households received 10% of their income from off-farm activities, 8% from horticultural production, 2% from other livestock, and 1% from crop production. On average, dairy herd sizes were 5.6 cows per farm, of which the highest found in Bogor (7.7) and lowest in Garut (3.1). The results also show that milk production per cow ranged from 14.1 to 15.2 liters/day/lactating cows, with an average of 14.9 liters/day/lactating cows. Policies and efforts to increase milk production, productivity, and quality of fresh milk through improving feed technology and better dairy farming management are critically important to increasing smallholder dairy farmers’ income in Indonesia, especially in West Java.

scholarly journals Understanding variability in greenhouse gas emission estimates of smallholder dairy farms in Indonesia

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Titis Apdini ◽  
Windi Al Zahra ◽  
Simon J. Oosting ◽  
Imke J. M. de Boer ◽  
Marion de Vries ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Rainy Season ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emission ◽  
Dairy Farms ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Enteric Fermentation ◽  
Tropical Regions ◽  
Population Mean ◽  
Smallholder Dairy ◽  
Smallholder Dairy Farms

Abstract Purpose Life cycle assessment studies on smallholder farms in tropical regions generally use data that is collected at one moment in time, which could hamper assessment of the exact situation. We assessed seasonal differences in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGEs) from Indonesian dairy farms by means of longitudinal observations and evaluated the implications of number of farm visits on the variance of the estimated GHGE per kg milk (GHGEI) for a single farm, and the population mean. Methods An LCA study was done on 32 smallholder dairy farms in the Lembang district area, West Java, Indonesia. Farm visits (FVs) were performed every 2 months throughout 1 year: FV1–FV3 (rainy season) and FV4–FV6 (dry season). GHGEs were assessed for all processes up to the farm-gate, including upstream processes (production and transportation of feed, fertiliser, fuel and electricity) and on-farm processes (keeping animals, manure management and forage cultivation). We compared means of GHGE per unit of fat-and-protein-corrected milk (FPCM) produced in the rainy and the dry season. We evaluated the implication of number of farm visits on the variance of the estimated GHGEI, and on the variance of GHGE from different processes. Results and discussion GHGEI was higher in the rainy (1.32 kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM) than in the dry (0.91 kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM) season (P < 0.05). The between farm variance was 0.025 kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM in both seasons. The within farm variance in the estimate for the single farm mean decreased from 0.69 (1 visit) to 0.027 (26 visits) kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM (rainy season), and from 0.32 to 0.012 kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM (dry season). The within farm variance in the estimate for the population mean was 0.02 (rainy) and 0.01 (dry) kg CO2-eq kg−1 FPCM (1 visit), and decreased with an increase in farm visits. Forage cultivation was the main source of between farm variance, enteric fermentation the main source of within farm variance. Conclusions The estimated GHGEI was significantly higher in the rainy than in the dry season. The main contribution to variability in GHGEI is due to variation between observations from visits to the same farm. This source of variability can be reduced by increasing the number of visits per farm. Estimates for variation within and between farms enable a more informed decision about the data collection procedure.

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