Drying-off practices on Swiss dairy farms: Status quo and adoption potential of integrating incomplete milking.

Bach, Lea; Ammann, Jeanine; Bruckmaier, Rupert M; Müller, Ute; Umstätter, Christina (2022). Drying-off practices on Swiss dairy farms: Status quo and adoption potential of integrating incomplete milking. Journal of dairy science, 105(10), pp. 8342-8353. American Dairy Science Association 10.3168/jds.2021-21735

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Drying-off practices to reduce milk production before dry-off are gaining attention because high milk yields at dry-off are becoming more common and increase the risk to cow health and welfare during the dry period. Incomplete milking for the last days before dry-off is one approach for reducing milk production. We conducted an online survey to determine the currently used drying-off practices on Swiss dairy farms and to identify the adoption potential of integrating incomplete milking before dry-off. In March 2021, the online survey was sent to a representative sample of 1,974 Swiss dairy farmers. A total of 518 completed questionnaires were analyzed. The mean number of dairy cows per farm was 39 (range: 11-140 cows). Thirty-five percent of cows produced considerable quantities of milk (>15 kg/d) at dry-off, and milk yield at dry-off increased with increasing annual milk yield. Abrupt dry-off was applied on 45% of the farms. The participants reported observing behavioral changes of cows such as increased vocalizations and decreased lying time associated with dry-off. Selective dry cow therapy was applied on 74% of the farms, and 44% of the participants indicated the use of antibiotics at dry-off as being "rather often," "often," or "always." Correlation analysis revealed that with increasing annual milk yields, the frequency of observed behavioral changes and antibiotic use at dry-off increased as well. Therefore, drying-off approaches that reduce milk production while supporting cow welfare are needed. We found that farmers showed an interest in testing the presented drying-off approach of incomplete milking. In addition, the farmers indicated that they would be more willing to test incomplete milking before dry-off if it became available for automated use in milking parlors or robots. Uncertainties regarding udder health appeared to be the main barrier for the adoption potential of this approach.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

05 Veterinary Medicine > Department of Clinical Research and Veterinary Public Health (DCR-VPH) > Veterinary Physiology
05 Veterinary Medicine > Department of Clinical Research and Veterinary Public Health (DCR-VPH)

UniBE Contributor:

Bruckmaier, Rupert

Subjects:

600 Technology > 630 Agriculture

ISSN:

0022-0302

Publisher:

American Dairy Science Association

Language:

English

Submitter:

Pubmed Import

Date Deposited:

05 Sep 2022 13:41

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 16:23

Publisher DOI:

10.3168/jds.2021-21735

PubMed ID:

36055842

Uncontrolled Keywords:

farmer perception gradual dry-off partial milking reduced milk harvest

BORIS DOI:

10.48350/172665

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/172665

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