The annual milk yield of dairy cows has been increasing, but the lifetime parity of dairy cows has been gradually decreasing (Essl, 1998; Hare, Norman, & Wright, 2006). Since the economic efficiency of dairy farming is mostly a result of achieved milk production and dairy cow longevity (Heins, Hansen, & Vries, 2012), a reduction in the lifetime parity number in dairy cows directly influences the profitability of dairy farming (Sewalem, Kistemaker, Ducrocq, & Doormaal, 2005). The main reasons for dairy cow culling in the United States of America were reproductive failure, mastitis and udder problems, lameness or injury, other diseases, and poor milk production (USDA, 2007), and reproductive disorders are the most common cause of dairy cow culling in Japan (Nakada, 2006). Most of the aforementioned problems are associated with the nutritive status of the cows around the time of calving. Lee and Kim (2006) reported that a milk yield increase and body condition loss during early lactation as well as periparturient disorders caused reproductive failure in dairy cows. Grohn and Rajala-Schultz (2000) reported that an improvement in milk yield resulted in high incidence rates of reproductive health problems. The extensive energy requirements of high-producing dairy cows result in a severe negative energy balance, which may adversely impact postpartum health and fertility during the early lactation period (Butler & Smith, 1989; Lucy, 2001). In general, the increase rate of dry matter intake (DMI) after