Large-scale dairy farms around Damascus do not have enough land for forage cultivation mainly due to high price of land, allocation of land for vegetable production, which is more economically important than fodder cultivation and unfavourable climatic factors. Farms are therefore forced to transport roughage from distant crop cultivating areas. In the case of the dairy farm described in this w...

Most dairy farms in Wisconsin continue to follow a fairly generalized formula of how to produce milk. Cows and replacement heifers are fed primarily homegrown feed from crop rotations comprising alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), corn (Zea mays L.), oats (Avena spp.) and soybean (Glycine max L. Merr.). Protein and mineral supplements are purchased to compliment dairy diets. However, the dairy indust...

To examine the dissemination of Shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) within cattle groups, dairy calves on two farms utilizing different calf-rearing practices were exposed to a traceable STEC strain. Test strain dissemination differed significantly between farms, with a higher prevalence being associated with group penning. Pen floors and calf hides may be the main environmental mechanisms ...

This paper investigates determinants of growth of milk production in German dairy farms. Event history analysis is applied to estimate the likelihood of a farm’s moving from a nongrowing episode into a growing episode and to assess the impact of various covariates on that likelihood. The analysis is based upon a balanced panel of annual farm accounts from 616 specialised dairy farms from German...

Three Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates producing extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) were obtained from three dairy cows with clinical mastitis in two farms in western Japan. Two of the 3 isolates from cows in different farms were able to transfer plasmids carrying the blaCTX-M-2 gene to Escherichia coli recipient. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns of the 2 isolates were differ...

Dairy cattle are inseminated and pregnancy is established during lactation. Therefore, lactation and the reestablishment of pregnancy must overlap. Unfortunately, recent changes in the genetics, productivity, and management of dairy cows have led to a decline in reproductive efficiency. Reproductive decline in dairy cows began in the mid-1980’s and may be continuing on modern dairy farms (Lucy,...

The aim of this article is to investigate issues related to technical efficiency and scale of dairy farms in south-western Victoria, Australia. Data envelopment analysis (DEA) is the technique used and is applied to a sample of 59 farms in the 1999-2000 lactating season. The key result is that 51 per cent of the farms are operating at optimal scale, 34 per cent are below and 15 per cent are abo...

Dairy cattle are inseminated and pregnancy is established during lactation. Therefore, lactation and the reestablishment of pregnancy must overlap. Unfortunately, recent changes in the genetics, productivity, and management of dairy cows have led to a decline in reproductive efficiency. Reproductive decline in dairy cows began in the mid-1980’s and may be continuing on modern dairy farms (Lucy,...

Extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli strains are believed to be widely distributed among humans and animals; however, to date, there are only few studies that support this assumption on a regional or countrywide scale. Therefore, a study was designed to assess the prevalence of ESBL-producing E. coli in dairy cows and beef cattle in the southern part of Bavaria, Germa...

During recent years in Denmark higher rates of antibodies to Coxiella burnetii have been detected in animals and humans than previously reported. A study based on bulk tank milk samples from 100 randomly selected dairy herds was performed to estimate the prevalence and geographical distribution of antibody positive dairy herds. Using the CHEKIT Q-Fever Antibody ELISA Test Kit (IDEXX), the study...