Identification of Risk Factors for Lameness Detection with Help of Biosensors

Abstract

In this study we hypothesized that the lameness of early lactation dairy cows would have an impact on inline biomarkers, such as rumination time (RT), milk fat (%), milk protein (%), milk fat/protein ratio (F/P), milk lactose (L, %), milk electrical conductivity of all udder quarters, body weight (BW), temperature of reticulorumen content (TRR), pH of reticulorumen content (pH), and walking activity (activity). All 30 lame cows (LCs) used in this experiment had a score of 3–4, identified according to the standard procedure of Sprecher et al.. The 30 healthy cows (HC) showed a lameness score of one. RT, milk fat, MY, milk protein, F/P, L, milk electrical conductivity of all udder quarters, and BW were registered using Lely Astronaut® A3 milking robots each time the cow was being milked. The TRR, cow activity, and pH of the contents of each cow’s reticulorumen were registered using specific smaXtec boluses. The study lasted a total of 28 days. Days “−14” to “−1” denote the days of the experimental period before the onset of clinical signs of lameness (day “0”), and days “1” to “13” indicate the period after the start of treatment. We found that from the ninth day before the diagnosis of laminitis until the end of our study, LCs had higher milk electrical conductivity in all udder quarters, and higher milk fat to protein ratios. On the 3rd day before the onset of clinical signs of the disease until the day of diagnosis, the milk fat of the LC group was reduced. The activity of the LCs decreased sharply from the second day to the first day after treatment. RT in the HC group tended to decrease during the experiment. pH in LCs also increased on the day of the appearance of clinical signs.

Retrospective study using biosensor data of a milking Holstein cow with jejunal haemorrhage syndrome

“…Hypocalcaemia is associated with decreased rumination time, activity, rumen temperature, and milk yield during the first 1 to 3 days after calving (Tsai et al 2021). Lame cows showed decreased rumination time over 2 weeks before the onset of clinical signs than healthy cows (Antanaitis et al 2021). In Anaplasma infection, rumination time decreases by over 30% from 4 days before the onset of manifestation (Teixeira et al 2022).…”

Relationship between Reticulorumen Parameters Measured in Real Time and Methane Emission and Heat Stress Risk in Dairy Cows

“…It was possible to monitor real-time parameters such as pH, temperature of reticulorumen content (TRR), and cow activity by smaXtec boluses (smaXtec animal care technology ® ) [ 24 , 25 ]. Antennas (smaXtec animal care technology ® ) were used to collect the data.…”

Digital Innovations in Agriculture

“…The eleventh article [18] concerned on the identification of risk factors for detecting lameness in cows using natural biosensors. Before the study, the authors hypothesized that the formation of inline biomarkers would depend on the lameness of dairy cows in early lactations.…”