The Milk Producer - June 2009 - (Page 36)

APPLIEDSCIENCE By Kees Plaizier, Shucong Li, Ehsan Khafipour, Naveen Gakha and Denis Krause Finding a better way New tools now being developed could help you detect a production-robbing disease that often goes untreated A common and costly metabolic disease of dairy cows, subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) depresses an affected dairy cow’s rumen pH for several hours each day. This condition can reduce milk production efficiency, impair herd health and lead to higher involuntary culling rates—all impacting your bottom line. Once this disease has been diag- Current diagnostic tools for subacute ruminal acidosis put stress on cows. 36 | June 2009 | MilkPRODUCER nosed, several options are available for its treatment and prevention, but drawbacks to current diagnostic tools mean that SARA often goes unnoticed and untreated. However, new tools are being developed. Diagnosing this disease currently relies on measuring the pH of rumen fluid samples collected with a stomach tube or by rumenocentesis. Using a stomach tube can stress a cow, and saliva can contaminate the collected rumen fluid, rendering these samples unrepresentative. Rumenocentesis uses a needle to extract rumen fluid. Local anesthesia might be needed, abscesses can occur and it can also stress the cow. Since rumen pH fluctuates considerably during the day, poor timing of rumen fluid collection relative to feeding time can limit the accuracy of the diagnosis. SARA diagnostic tests that don’t rely on rumen fluid collection would greatly benefit the dairy industry. Earlier research has suggested blood gasses and the pH of feces and urine change during SARA. As a result, we carried out a project that tested whether analyses of blood, urine, milk and feces samples, and feed and water intakes can aid diagnosis of this disease. The project included an on-station study conducted at the Glenlea Research Centre of the University of Manitoba, and an on-farm study involving 10 dairy Manitoba farms. During the on-station study, we induced SARA by feeding a high grain diet (grain-induced SARA) and a diet containing alfalfa pellets (pellet-induced SARA). This let us determine whether the method of causing low rumen pH affects a cow’s response to the rumen pH depression

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Milk Producer - June 2009

The Milk Producer - June 2009
Contents
Editor's Notes
DFO Chair's Message
Dairy Update
National Policy
Industry Roundup
DFC Promotion
Processor Spotlight
Empowering an Industry
Research
Applied Science
Rumi Nations
Markets
New 'N' Noted
Back Forty

The Milk Producer - June 2009