Analysis of Hygienic Measures Taken Against Pre-weaning Calf Diarrhea by Cattle Farming Systems in Japan

Abstract

Diarrhea of pre-weaning calf seriously affects the management of cattle farms. Awareness and hygienic measures against this diarrhea vary between cattle farming systems, as faming practices vary. To understand these differences, we analyzed results of the nationwide questionnaire survey for diarrhea, which was carried out in the fiscal year of . Analysis was conducted using data of cattle farms, which kept pre-weaning calf at the time of the survey. For comparison, beef farms were classified into three types of farming systems, namely breeding farms, grower and finisher farms, and farms containing all stage of cattle. Dairy farms were also divided into two types by farm size. As a result, all types of beef farms showed relatively higher awareness and took hygienic measures against the diarrhea than dairy farms. On the other hand, farmers' notice to the diarrhea and incidence rates of rotavirus infection and coccidiosis, indicated that pre-weaning calf diarrhea occurred more often in beef farms than dairy farms. From these results, we considered that pre-weaning calf diarrhea caused problems in beef farms than dairy farms. Efficient and effective measures against this disease should be considered according to the type of farming system. Kruskal Wallis p < . Mann-Whitney U Microsoft Excel Microsoft corp. SPSS version SPSS inc.