Cumulative Risk of Bovine Mastitis Treatments in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden

Abstract

-Data from the national dairy cow recording systems during 1997 were used to calculate lactation-specific cumulative risk of mastitis treatments and cumulative risk of removal from the herds in Denmark, Finland Norway and Sweden. Sweden had the lowest risk of recorded mastitis treatments during 305 days of lactation and Norway had the highest risk. The incidence risk of recorded mastitis treatments during 305 days of lactation in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden was 0.177, 0.139, 0.215 and 0.127 for first parity cows and 0.228, 0.215, 0.358 and 0.204 for parities higher than three, respectively. The risk of a first parity cow being treated for mastitis was almost 3 times higher at calving in Norway than in Sweden. The period with the highest risk for mastitis treatments was from 2 days before calving until 14 days after calving and the highest risk for removal was from calving to 10 days after calving in all countries. The study clearly demonstrated differences in bovine mastitis treatment patterns among the Nordic countries. The most important findings were the differences in treatment risks during different lactations within each country, as well as differences in strategies with respect to the time during lactation mastitis was treated. Data recording; mastitis treatment; Nordic countries; dairy herds; cumulative incidence risk; culling.

Nordic dairy farmers’ threshold for contacting a veterinarian and consequences for disease recording: Mild clinical mastitis as an example

“…Disease incidence is calculated from these databases and used for herd management, advisory work, breeding programmes and research within each country. In addition, comparisons of disease incidence between the countries based on these registrations have been made in order to gain better knowledge of how to manage and control disease (Plym-Forshell et al, 1995;Valde et al, 2004). The countries show differences with regard to incidence of several disease complexes both in official disease statistics and when calculating disease incidence in a similar manner from raw data from the databases (Østerås et al, 2002;Valde et al, 2004).…”

“…In addition, comparisons of disease incidence between the countries based on these registrations have been made in order to gain better knowledge of how to manage and control disease (Plym-Forshell et al, 1995;Valde et al, 2004). The countries show differences with regard to incidence of several disease complexes both in official disease statistics and when calculating disease incidence in a similar manner from raw data from the databases (Østerås et al, 2002;Valde et al, 2004). Moreover, the completeness of farmerdetected disease cases in the national databases has been shown to vary; for clinical ketosis from 0.46 in SE to 0.77 in DK (Espetvedt et al, 2012), for locomotors disorders 0.20 in SE to 0.45 in DK (Lind et al, in press) and for clinical mastitis from 0.51 in FI to 0.90 in DK (Wolff et al, 2012).…”

Completeness of the disease recording systems for dairy cows in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden with special reference to clinical mastitis

“…Further, in a similar study using raw data from all four countries, discrepancies in between-country incidence risks of veterinary-treated CM were seen [7]. The Swedish dairy disease recording system has been subject to validation in earlier studies.…”

Herd health and health management in organic versus conventional dairy herds in Norway

“…In Norway, individual dairy cattle health cards are completed by a veterinarian whenever animals are treated medically, and the recording compliance by the veterinarians is thought to be good (Valde et al, 2004). Health treatments such as homeopathic treatments, not involving a visit by a veterinarian, are less likely to be reported on the cattle health cards.…”