It is not acceptable to compromise animal welfare in any system of farming. Feeding should be aimed at meeting the nutritional requirements at the various stages of production. This paper deals with the detrimental effects that organic, extensive or low input farming systems may have on the energy status in early lactation of the high potential dairy cow. Bovine ketosis is the most important di...

The periparturient cow undergoes a transition from non-lactating to lactating at calving. The animal is tremendously challenged to maintain calcium homeostasis. Those that fail can develop milk fever, a clinical disorder that is life threatening to the cow and predisposes the animal to a variety of other disorders. Guidelines for monitoring the incidence of hypocalcemia and methods for treating...

The transition to lactation period in dairy cattle is characterized by metabolic challenges, negative energy balance, and adipose tissue mobilization. Metabolism of mobilized adipose tissue is part of the adaptive response to negative energy balance in dairy cattle; however, the capacity of the liver to completely oxidize nonesterified fatty acids may be limited and is reflective of oxaloacetat...

nything that compromises sow milk yield would be expected to have a negative impact on piglet performance. Periparturient hypogalactia syndrome has been associated with endometritis.1 Most sow herds have some incidence of endometritis, with reported incidences ranging from 1.1%–37.2% for different herds.2 Recent interest has focused on the postpartum administration of prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α) ...