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Effects of postpartum NSAID treatment on milking performance, reproductive performance and survival of cows and calves experiencing both assisted and unassisted parturition
Gladden, N., McKeegan, D., Ellis, K...
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Objectives
Parturition assistance in cattle is common and has been shown to adversely affect reproductive performance, milk yield and culling risk. Effects of assisted birth on future productivity of calves have been less well studied although one study suggests that assisted birth may negatively affect future milk production. The underlying mechanisms for such adverse effects are not understood; however, multiple factors are likely to be involved, potentially including pain and inflammation. Although non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) analgesia is commonly provided following veterinary-assisted parturition, it is uncertain whether any positive NSAID effects extend to production parameters. It is also difficult to draw conclusions from available data as few studies compare assisted and unassisted parturition, and both NSAID treatment and production outcomes differ between studies. Additionally, longer-term effects of administering NSAID treatment to calves at birth on their future production have not been reported. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of both farmer-provided assistance and postpartum NSAID analgesia on subsequent production of cows as well as future production of calves. A factorial design allowed us to study not just the separate effects of assistance and NSAID treatment, but also the effects of interactions between assistance and treatment status.
Materials and methods
The study was performed on a commercial UK dairy farm; the cows are housed and calve all year round. Forty-seven cows and 47 calves experiencing farmer-assisted parturition and 42 cows and 44 calves experiencing unassisted parturition were recruited and randomly assigned to either an NSAID treatment group (45 cows and 46 calves) or a placebo group (44 cows and 45 calves). Ketoprofen or saline was administered within 3h of parturition to animals in the treatment or placebo groups respectively. Production data were obtained (with permission) from farm records for statistical analysis and animals were followed until either the end of their subsequent lactation (cows) or 1st lactation (calves), or until they left the herd.
Results
Milking performance
Irrespective of assistance status, NSAID-treated cows had a mean 305-d mature equivalent yield (305ME) 664kg higher than placebo-treated cows (p = 0.011). Additionally, NSAID-treated unassisted cows had a tendency towards a mean 305ME approximately 1500kg higher than cows in the other three interaction groups (p = 0.073).
Reproductive performance
The median calving to conception interval of NSAID-treated cows tended to be 22d shorter than placebo-treated cows, irrespective of assistance status (p = 0.056). Additionally, NSAID-treated cows tended to be more likely to conceive overall (compared to placebo-treated cows) (p = 0.056) and a greater proportion of cows in the NSAID treatment group were inseminated to observed oestrus than in the placebo group (72% vs. 57%), although this was not statistically significant. Irrespective of treatment status, parturition assistance was associated with poorer reproductive performance with affected cows being less likely to conceive overall (OR 0.02; 95% CI 0.002-0.32; p = 0.005) and by 150 and 200 DIM (both p < 0.05).
First lactation reproductive performance of calves was negatively affected by assisted birth: assisted calves were bred more times before conceiving (p = 0.001) and had a longer calving to conception interval (p = 0.027) than unassisted calves.
Survival
Thirty-one cows (34.8%) left the herd before completing the subsequent lactation; assisted parturition was associated with an increased risk of leaving the herd early (OR 4.53; 95% CI 1.53 – 13.5; p = 0.004). Although treatment status did not affect the overall risk of leaving the herd early, median survival time of culled NSAID-treated assisted cows was 268DIM, compared to 169DIM for culled placebo-treated assisted cows, although this was not statistically significant.
Calves experiencing birth assistance were eight times more likely to not complete their first lactation than unassisted calves (OR 7.95; 95% CI 1.31-48.4; p = 0.024).
Conclusions
This study supports previously demonstrated adverse effects of assisted parturition on cows’ reproductive performance and survival in the subsequent lactation. Only 305ME was positively affected by postpartum NSAID treatment, but this is an important finding due to the potential economic benefits provided by increasing milk yield. Results from this study also indicate that the effects of assisted birth may be long lasting and affect calves into their first lactation, although long lasting effects of ketoprofen treatment were not identified in calves.
Keywords: Parturition, NSAID, productivity, cow, calf
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