Practices for the disbudding and dehorning of dairy calves by veterinarians and dairy producers in Ontario, Canada (original) (raw)
Related papers
Factors affecting Canadian veterinarians’ use of analgesics when dehorning beef and dairy calves
The Canadian Veterinary Journal La Revue Veterinaire Canadienne, 2007
Data collected through a national, randomized mail survey (response rate 50%) were used to identify reasons why veterinarians were likely (i) to use analgesic drugs when dehorning calves, and (ii) to perceive dehorning without analgesia as very painful. Logistic regression analysis indicated that veterinarians were more likely to be analgesic users the more they perceived that dehorning without analgesia was painful (OR = 1.7, P , 0.001). Other positive influences were if the veterinarian worked in British Columbia or Alberta (OR = 5.9, P = 0.005), and if they were primarily in dairy practice (OR = 3.7, P = 0.012) rather than beef practice. This effect of dairy practice was negated if the veterinarian also perceived that owners were unwilling to pay for analgesia (interaction term: OR = 0.25, P = 0.038). Veterinarians were also less likely to perceive dehorning without analgesia as very painful if they perceived that owners were unwilling to pay (OR = 0.58, P = 0.029). However, this effect on pain perception was offset by concern for personal safety (OR = 2.7, P = 0.015). The results are consistent with the relatively high level of outreach about animal welfare among farmers and veterinarians in the western provinces. The results confirm that many veterinarians' approach to pain management for dehorning is influenced considerably by concern about cost. However, pain management for dehorning is not expensive and there is unequivocal evidence that dehorning calves without pain management causes significant distress. Continuing education of veterinarians should help to increase analgesic usage.
Survey of disbudding practice on Czech dairy farms
Journal of Dairy Science, 2018
Disbudding is a routine practice in many dairy herds due to the effort to decrease the risk of injuries. Although the disbudding practice is regulated, it can vary among farms. The variation may be caused by many factors, such as herd size or type of breed, but also by farmers' perception of pain caused by disbudding. Hence, the aim of this study was to specify the disbudding practice on dairy farms in the Czech Republic and to assess these practices, including the use of pain mitigation medication, by breed, herd size, and sex of the disbudded calves. We analyzed data from 106 Czech dairy farms, which were collected by a trained interviewer at dairy meetings in 2014-2015. The farmers answered questions regarding the farm's basic characteristics, disbudding practice, and his/her attitude to the pain caused by disbudding. To test the influence of breed, herd size, and sex of disbudded calves on different variables, logistic regression models were used. Disbudding was performed in 92.5% of the surveyed farms; 63.3% of dairy calves were disbudded before 4 wk of age, and Czech Fleckvieh calves were 2.8 times more likely to be disbudded before 4 wk of age than Holstein calves. The hot-iron method was the most used method (69.4%). Calves were 4.5 times more likely to be disbudded by hot iron in herds where both heifers and bulls were disbudded than in herds where only heifers were disbudded. Most (>90%) surveyed farms did not use any pre-or post-procedure medication to mitigate the pain caused by disbudding. The disbudding procedure was performed mainly by farm personnel (94.9%), who were trained by a veterinarian or veterinary technician (46.9%) or by other farm personnel (37.8%) or were not trained (15.3%). Two-thirds of farmers observed behavioral changes in calves after disbudding. Most farmers estimated the pain caused by disbudding to be mild or moderate (20.4 or 45.9%, respectively) and 15.3% of farmers estimated it to be severe. Almost a quarter of interviewed farmers were unable to assess the duration of pain, 39.8% farmers estimated that the pain lasts only several minutes, and 20.4% estimated that the pain lasts up to 6 h. We detected a tendency that farmers of larger herds estimated pain duration to be shorter (odds ratio = 1.2). To improve calves' welfare, training is needed in disbudding practice, focusing on the advantage of pain mitigation.
Journal of dairy science, 2018
The use of pain control for disbudding and dehorning is important from both an animal and industry perspective. Best practices include the use of local anesthetic, commonly given as a cornual nerve block (CNB), and a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. The proportion is decreasing, but many dairy producers do not use local anesthesia, perhaps in part due to lack of knowledge of the CNB technique. Although this skill is typically learned in person from a veterinarian, alternative methods may be useful. The objective of this trial was to determine if there were differences in the efficacy of online training (n = 23), hands-on training (n = 20), and a combined approach (n = 23) for teaching producers to successfully administer a CNB and disbud a calf. The primary outcome was block efficacy, defined as a lack of established pain behaviors during iron application. Secondary outcomes were background knowledge (assessed by a written quiz), CNB and disbudding technique (evaluated by rubric...
Frequency of disagreements between producers and veterinarians about pain management in cattle
JDS Communications
This study explored producer and veterinarian perspectives on pain recognition and pain management for cattle, with the charts above showing sources of knowledge that producers and veterinarians used to gain information about pain recognition and treatment. Although both producers and veterinarians relied heavily on personal experience as their main source of knowledge about pain recognition, both groups identified other sources of information including continuing education opportunities and journal articles. Highlights • Cattle producers and veterinarians engage in conversations about pain mitigation. • Differences in opinion are infrequent and do not appear to affect their relationships. • Both producers and veterinarians rely on personal experiences to identify pain in cattle. • There is an opportunity to develop educational programs regarding pain management decisions.
The dehorning of dairy calves: practices and opinions of 639 farmers
Journal of dairy science, 2011
Calf dehorning is a routine husbandry practice on dairy farms that is justified by safety reasons for stockpersons and by a reduced risk of injures among herdmates. In Europe, the practice is regulated by law but little is known about the methods applied or about farmers' attitude to the practice. This study aimed to broaden the existing information on dehorning in dairy holdings by processing results of 639 farm questionnaires gathered in a traditional dairy area of northeastern Italy. Farm questionnaires were stratified according to herd size, type of housing, and productive purpose of the predominant reared breed(s). Chi-squared tests were performed to verify the significant association between a given practice or opinion and the 3 classification factors, and odd ratios were calculated. The outcomes of the study showed that dehorning was carried out on 80% of the surveyed farms, and disbudding was the method reported by all the interviewed farmers. Hot-iron cauterization was...
Canadian National Dairy Study: Heifer calf management
In the past decade, substantial changes have occurred in the way dairy heifer calves are managed. The objectives of this study, part of phase I of the 2015 Canadian National Dairy Study, were to examine heifer calf health and adoption of rearing practices, and to explore factors associated with different rearing strategies on Canadian dairy farms. The questionnaire was open to all licensed dairy producers in Canada and had a 12% response rate (n = 1,373). Fifty-one percent of respondents reported never allowing heifer calves to nurse their dam, and 17% always removed calves within 30 min of birth. Sixty-seven percent reported always feeding heifer calves 4 L of colostrum within 12 h of birth; 17% always fed colostrum between 2100 and 0400 h; 5% pasteurized all colostrum fed on farm. Seventy-seven percent of respondents reported calving and stillbirth information for 2014; the mean reported stillbirth rate was 4.9% (SD = 3.3). Forty percent housed calves in individual pens, 34% in group pens, 21% in individual hutches, 2% reported tethering calves, and 1% used group hutches. Of those who housed calves in groups, 59% reported a maximum group size of 3 to 10 calves, 31% reported a pair (2) of calves per pen or hutch, and 10% reported a group >10 calves. The maximum amount of milk offered to calves per day during the preweaned period was a mean of 8 L (SD = 3). Fifty percent of respondents reported mortality data for 2014; mean preweaning mortality was 6.4% (SD = 8.3), and postweaning mortality was 2.4% (SD = 4.4). Over 95% of producers reported disbudding practices; 86% used cautery, 11% used surgical amputation, and 9% used caustic paste. Twenty-eight percent reported disbud-ding at less than 3 wk of age, 60% at 3 to 8 wk, and 22% at 8 to 16 wk; 5% of respondents reported dehorning at more than 16 wk of age. Sixty-six percent of cautery users reported use of local anesthetic, 33% used sedation , and 25% used a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). Multivariable regression models showed that the use of local anesthetic when disbudding calves was associated with social media activity (odds ratio = 2.3) and high-speed internet access (odds ratio = 2.0), whereas sedation was associated with geographic region, and NSAID use was associated with disbudding at more than 3 wk of age. Exploring heifer rearing management practices, including adoption of best practices, may help focus future education and extension efforts. Poor reporting of mortality data may reflect a lack of recordkeeping on farm.
Journal of Dairy Science, 2008
The objective was to conduct a broad survey of dairy management practices that have an effect on animal well-being. Dairies were visited during the fall and winter of 2006 in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Indiana, Iowa, and New York. Data were collected on 113 dairies on colostrum feeding, dehorning, tail-docking, euthanasia methods, producer statements about welfare, use of specialized calf-raising farms (custom), level of satisfaction with calf-raising by producers, and cow behavior. Calves were raised by the owner on 50.4% of dairies; 30.1% were raised on custom farms during the milkfeeding period, 18.6% were custom raised after weaning, and 1% sold calves with the option to buy them back as first-lactation heifers. A total of 51.8% of producers were very satisfied with their current calf-raising methods. Three feedings of colostrum were fed to the calves on 23.9% of dairies, 2 feedings on 39.8% of farms, 1 feeding on 31.0% of farms, and colostrum replacement products were fed on 5.3% of farms. Many farms (61.9%) provided 3.8 L at first feeding. Calves were dehorned at different ages by various methods. By 8 wk, 34.5% of calves were dehorned. By 12 wk, 78.8% of calves were dehorned. The majority of calves were dehorned by hot iron (67.3%). The remainder were dehorned by gouging (8.8%), paste (9.7%), saw (3.5%), or unknown by calf owner (10.6%). Anesthetic use was reported by 12.4% of dairy owners and analgesia use by 1.8%. Tail-docking was observed on 82.3% of dairies. The most common reported docking time was pre-or postcalving (35.2%). The second most commonly reported time was d 1 (15.4%). Rubber band was the most common method (92.5%), followed by amputation (7.5%). Three dairies amputated precalving, 1 at 2 mo and 3 at d 1 or 2. Cow hygiene was the most common reason given to dock (73.5%), followed by parlor worker comfort (17.4%) and udder health (1.0%). Producers reported 2.0% of cows obviously lame. Gun was the preferred euthanasia method (85.7%), followed by IV euthanasia (8.0%), live pick-up (1.8%), and nondisclosure (3.5%).
2018
Calve dehorning is a frequently applied procedure that is intended to facilitate the management and increase the safety of farmers and calves. This report aimed to review reasons for disbudding and dehorning, and the different common dehorning methods including the use of drugs during the procedure and use of pharmacological analgesic, anaesthetic and sedation drugs, and its benefits for stress-and pain alleviation. Also the determination of effect on the wellbeing and productive performance of calves. Calve welfare is significantly reduced during dehorning, as it causes stress and pain. Many studies point to minimization of the pain perceived by the use of pharmacological agents. Beneficial effects were observed with the combined use of a sedative and local anaesthetic allows disbudding and dehorning without immediate pain and stress response, and the addition of a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug reduces the pain related responses during the hours following.
Animals, 2021
While veterinarians are instrumental to the welfare of calves (Bos taurus), limited knowledge exists concerning veterinary perceptions towards perioperative pain management in calves. As a part of a larger, nationwide study investigating the perceptions of veterinarians towards calf welfare, the current work sought to quantify veterinary perceptions towards perioperative pain management, including barriers to its use, and investigate demographic influences affecting those perceptions. An electronic mixed-methods survey was completed by 104 veterinarians registered with the Veterinary Council of New Zealand. The current work revealed that most veterinarians considered a multimodal approach as the most effective method for ameliorating perioperative pain in calves, rejected the practice of differential treatment based on developmental age, and perceived that postprocedural pain persists beyond 24 h for the majority of procedures included in the survey. Despite this, veterinarians iden...
Canadian veterinarians' use of analgesics in cattle, pigs, and horses in 2004 and 2005
The Canadian Veterinary Journal La Revue Veterinaire Canadienne, 2007
Anecdotal evidence suggests that many veterinarians may not use analgesics in livestock for routine surgical procedures or painful disease states. To investigate this, we conducted a national mail survey of a random sample of 1431 Canadian veterinarians (response rate, 50.1%). Questions primarily concerned veterinarians' analgesic usage for common surgeries and medical conditions in beef and dairy cattle, pigs, and horses, and attitudes toward pain management. More than 90% of veterinarians used analgesic drugs for equine surgeries, for cesarean section in sows and cows, and for bovine claw amputation and omentopexy. However, in these and other categories, the analgesics used were often inadequate, and many veterinarians did not give analgesics to young animals. When castrated, , 0.001% of piglets received analgesia, compared with 6.9% of beef calves and 18.7% of dairy calves # 6 mo of age, 19.9% of beef calves and 33.2% of dairy calves. 6 mo of age, and 95.8% of horses. Respondents largely agreed that there are no long-acting, cost-effective analgesics available for use in livestock (median rating 8/10; interquartile range 4-9), and that the long or unknown withdrawal periods of some drugs outweighed the benefits of using them (median rating 7/10; interquartile range 4-9). The results indicate an urgent need for veterinarians to manage pain in livestock better. Continuing education would help, as would an increase in the number of approved, cost-effective analgesic drugs with known withdrawal periods. Résumé-Utilisation des analgésiques chez les bovins, les porcs et les chevaux par les vétérinaires canadiens en 2004 et 2005. Résumé. Divers témoignages permettent de présumer que plusieurs vétérinaires pourraient ne pas utiliser d'analgésiques chez les bestiaux lors de procédures chirurgicales de routine ou lors d'épisodes maladifs douloureux. Afin d'étudier ces présomptions, nous avons procédé à une enquête postale nationale sur un échantillon de 1431 vétérinaires canadiens choisis au hasard (taux de réponse, 50,1 %). Les questions portaient particulièrement sur l'usage d'analgésiques par le vétérinaire lors de chirurgies et de problèmes médicaux courants chez les bovins de boucherie et laitiers, les porcs et les chevaux et sur les attitudes dans le contrôle de la douleur. Plus de 90 % des vétérinaires utilisaient des analgésiques pour les chirurgies équines, les césariennes porcines et bovines et pour l'amputation des onglons et l'omentopexie chez les bovins. Cependant, dans ces actes médicaux et dans certains autres, les analgésiques utilisés étaient souvent inadéquats et plusieurs vétérinaires n'en donnaient pas aux jeunes animaux. À la castration, , 0,001 % des porcelets recevaient une analgésie comparé à 6,9 % des veaux de boucheries et 18,7 % des veaux laitiers âgés de moins de 6 mois, 19,9 % des veaux de boucherie et 33,2 % des veaux laitiers âgés de plus de 6 mois et 95,8 % des chevaux. Les répondants étaient largement d'accord pour dire qu'il n'y avait pas d'analgésiques à longue action et d'un bon rapport coût-efficacité disponibles pour utilisation sur les bestiaux (estimation médiane de l'opinion 8/10; étendue interquantile 4-9) et que les désavantages reliés aux périodes de retrait longues ou inconnues de certaines drogues l'emportaient sur les bénéfices (estimation médiane de l'opinion 7/10; étendue interquantile 4-9). Les résultats montrent que les vétérinaires ont un urgent besoin de mieux contrôler la douleur des bestiaux. L'éducation continue pourrait être utile de même qu'une augmentation du nombre d'analgésiques approuvés, d'un bon rapport coût-efficacité et dont les périodes de retrait seraient connues.