Calves are the future of the farm. One of the major threats to calves early in life is Neonatal Calf Diarrhea (NCD), and these can affect producers negatively.
Try our calculator to see the impact of NCD on your business.
Financial
Animal welfare
Time
Antibiotics
Reduce the cost especially the hidden cost
Neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD) has a financial impact on farms profitability.
Health is more profitable than disease.
By using preventive measures such as vaccination, you can reduce the cost of NCD especially the hidden cost, as NCD can impact the future production of sick calves (ex: impact on growth, reproduction, milk production ...)2,3,4 in addition to all costs related to the treatment of sick calves.
Avoid pain and stress
Neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD) are associated with lots of welfare issues in calves such as ataxia, dehydration through loss of fluids and weakness5.
Severe dehydration can also lead to death. Calves with a history of NCD may be also more susceptible to other diseases6.
By using preventive measures such as vaccination, calves will be preserved from potentially painful digestive troubles and their consequences due to NCD, and preserved from stress that can be generated in these situations.
Save time
100 calvings? You can save more than 20 hours of work*.
Animal welfare has become a major issue of public interest. Beyond maintaining the health of dairy cows and their productivity, there are several definitions of animal welfare.
In the case of neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD), not only a sick calf is a waste of time due to treatment administration (antibiotics, fluids...) but also due to time spent on diagnostics, cleaning, nursing, etc…
By using preventive measures such as vaccination, time can be saved and dedicated to other activities, potentially more profitable for the farm and you.
*estimated treatment time per day per sick calf: 20 min for dairy / 40 min for beef7
Antibiotics remain one of the primary treatments used for neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD) even though the cause of the NCD is not bacteria8. Indiscriminate exposure to antibiotics, especially through the oral route, increases the risk of development of resistance to antimicrobials and weakens the host’s immune system, increasing the risk for opportunistic pathogens9. The responsible use of antibiotics is critical today and must follow the rules "as little as possible, as much as necessary".
By using preventive measures such as vaccination, less antibiotics and chemicals can be used, preventing among others the potential risk of resistance development.
References
1. Žuffa, T., Durel, L., Hraška, V., Svitacová, D., Reyneke, R., & Štastný, P. (2019). Immune Response and Efficacy of a New Calf Scour Vaccine Injected Once during the last Trimester of Gestation. Concept in Dairy and Veterinary Science, 2(5), 266–271. https://lupinepublishers.com/dairy-veterinary-science-jounal/pdf/CDVS.MS.ID.000153.pdf
2. Svensson, C. and Hultgren, J. (2008). Associations Between Housing, Management, and Morbidity During Rearing and Subsequent First-Lactation Milk Production of Dairy Cows in Southwest Sweden J. Dairy Sci. 91, 1510–1518. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2007-0235
3. Abuelo, A., Cullens, F., Brester, J.L. (2021) Effect of preweaning disease on the reproductive performance and first-lactation milk production of heifers in a large dairy herd J. Dairy Sci. 104(6):7008-7017. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2020-19791
4. Aghakeshmiri, F., Azizzadeh, M., Farzaneh, N., & Gorjidooz, M. (2017). Effects of neonatal diarrhea and other conditions on subsequent productive and reproductive performance of heifer calves. Veterinary Research Communications, 41(2), 107–112. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11259-017-9678-9
5. Meganck, V., Hoflack, G., & Opsomer, G. (2014). Advances in prevention and therapy of neonatal dairy calf diarrhoea: a systematical review with emphasis on colostrum management and fluid therapy. Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica, 56, 75. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13028-014-0075-x
6. Cho, Y., Kyoung-Jin, Y. (2014) An overview of calf diarrhea - infectious etiology, diagnosis, and intervention. J. Vet. Sci., 15(1), 1-17 http://dx.doi.org/10.4142/jvs.2014.15.1.1
7. Lacreusette, M., Chrétiennot, C.E., Geollot, S., Sanne, E., (2019) Identification et levée des freins à la vaccination contre les agents d’entérites néonatales. Numéro spéciale Bulletin des GTV Gestion du jeune âge : éviter le retard au démarrage
8. Palczynski, L., Bleach, E., Brennan, M. and Robinson, P. (2021) Stakeholder Perceptions of Disease Management for Dairy Calves: “It’s Just Little Things That Make Such a Big Difference”. Animals, 11, 2829. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11102829
9. Bartels, C., Holzhauer, M., Jorritsma R., Swart, W., Lam T. (2010) Prevalence, prediction and risk factors of enteropathogens in normal and non-normal faeces of young Dutch dairy calves. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 93 ; 162–169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2009.09.020
