Knowledgebase
Kingshay's Knowledgebase - Dry Cows
Body Condition Scoring (BCS) is a simple and effective farm management tool. It is a measure of body fat/energy reserves, that can be used to aid decisions or troubleshoo...
Dry cow feeding and management is central to any successful dairy business, however there is a tendency to put dry cows out in a field for the early dry period and leave ...
The optimal dry period length between lactations in dairy cows has been debated for many years. Traditionally, an 8-week dry period was considered the ideal duration - ba...
Lighting on a dairy farm is important for animal health and production, but can be a significant cost. This Farming Note addresses: Optimum lighting levels and hours ...
Milk fever (or hypocalcaemia) is a potentially fatal metabolic disorder where dairy cows experience calcium (Ca) deficiency. With the estimated economic cost per case bet...
Each new case of mastitis costs around £276. Many of these cases appear in early lactation, with up to 50% attributed to management in the dry period. Subclinical mastit...
Environmental mastitis pathogens are naturally present in the housed environment, but problems occur when the pathogen pressure becomes too high. This Farming Note cov...
The typical method for preventing new infections and treatment of intra-mammary infections during the dry period has historically been the blanket use of Dry Cow Therapy....