Sauk Prairie Veterinary Clinic
Herd the Moos
May 2015
Sauk Prairie Veterinary Clinic
Customer Appreciation PicnicCelebrating 60 Years of Service
June 10, 2015 12 to 2 pm
Prairie du Sac Town Hall
Come enjoy a pulled pork or beef brisket
sandwich lunch and visit with current and
former SPVC employees and register for
door prizes.
Seeking the Oldest Dairy Cow
We are looking for the oldest dairy cow
among our herds. To enter your cow, she
must still be in the herd and proof of age has
to be provided by records such as
registration papers, DC305, or DHIA
records. The winner will receive a box of
Pirsue mastitis tubes and a Sauk Prairie Vet
Clinic t-shirt and two runners up will each
receive a t-shirt. Entries must be received
by June 5, 2015 before the clinic closes at 5
p.m.
Seeking the Oldest
Invoice/Statement
We are also looking for the oldest invoice
or statement from the Sauk Prairie
Veterinary Clinic that any of you can
produce from storage. The winner gets a
free t-shirt. Entries must be received by
June 5, 2015 before the clinic closes at 5
p.m.
Stillbirths - Still Room for
Improvement
Stillbirths have a negative economic
impact on farms. We will never achieve zero
percent stillbirths but we can take steps to
reduce the current rates. The data in the
graphs below show that the herds had a
stillbirth rate of 6.3% for first calf heifers
and 5.6 for second or greater lactation. The
overall rate was 6.1%. This was reduced
from 12.5% in heifers last year and 9%
overall, this was a very big improvement
from 2014. Fifty percent of all calves born
were heifers. The average twin rate was 4.8
percent, ranging
from 1 to 7%.
The primary way to reduce stillbirth
rates, especially in heifers, is to use careful
observations to assess when calving is
imminent, avoid early assistance and, if
necessary, provide the proper type of
assistance in a clean manner. Using genetic
information can reduce stillbirths by
selecting sires with low Daughter Stillbirth
Rates (DSB). An article in Progressive
Dairyman (April 1, 2014 pgs53-54), showed
data from first lactation heifers that were
sorted into high vs. low DSB. The heifers
from the high DSB group had a DOA rate of
13% while the low DSB heifers had a DOA
rate of 3%. Increased emphasis on the use of
low DSB sires can get a herd with 100
calving/year up to 10 more calves annually.
As you are all well aware, this can have a
big economic impact on your bottom line
especially with the current bull calf market
being greater than $400/calf. The last
potential area that has just been explored is
the use of a calving "hutch", especially for
first calf heifers. The information is very
preliminary but it does suggest that if first
calf heifers are provided an area, protected
on 3 sides by plywood plus a fourth side
with a door opening, they chose to calve in
this area.
Additionally, these heifers had a lower
stillbirth rate compared to heifers that did
not have access to a calving "hutch". The
theory is that on most dairy farms there is a
great deal of activity almost 24 hours/day.
The "hutch" provides an area that makes the
heifers feel protected and they don’t get up
to move around every time they hear or see
new things.
2015 Heifer Dead On Arrival (DOA)
Average = 6.3%
7
6
# of Farms
5
4
3
2
1
0
0-1
2-3
4-5
6-7
8-9
10-11
12-13
14-15
16-17
Heifer % DOA
2015 Overall Dead On Arrival (DOA)
Average = 6.1%
8
7
# of Farms
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
0-1
2-3
4-5
6-7
8-9
Overall DOA %
10-11
12-13
14-15
16-17