The Season and Decade of Birth Affect Dairy Cow Longevity
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Data
2.2. Inclusion Criteria
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- All the farms considered were pasture-based dairy farms;
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- Cows born between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2019 were selected;
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- A minimum of one hundred cows per herd was required for a herd to be selected;
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- Restriction intervals were defined: cows with HL greater than 20 years and cows with age at first calving (AFC) under 20 months and over 48 months were excluded;
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- No cows culled before calving were considered;
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- The end of the study period was 1 July 2022. Cows were considered censored observations when no updated information was available between the last recorded event and the end of the study period. “Active cows” at the end of the study period for which a culling or death date was not available were only considered and used as censored observations for survival analysis.
2.3. Statistical Analysis
2.3.1. Descriptive Analysis
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- Mean and median values for HL and LPL were calculated considering the 249,441 already culled cows born between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2019;
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- The number of births per month and season was calculated considering the overall period and both decades separately;
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- Density plots for HL and LPL were constructed for each decade.
2.3.2. Inferential Analysis
- γijk = response variables herd life (HL) and length of productive life (LPL);
- µ = population mean;
- Si = ith fixed effect of the season of birth (four classes: autumn, winter, spring, summer);
- Dj = jth fixed effect of the decade of birth (two classes: 2000s and 2010s);
- (Si × Dj) = fixed effect of the ijth interaction between season and decade of birth (4 × 2 = 8 classes);
- υk = random effect of the kth herd (367 herds);
- εijk = random residual error.
2.4. Software
3. Results
3.1. Longevity Metrics
3.1.1. Longevity Metrics for the 2000 to 2019 Period
3.1.2. Longevity Metrics and Cows Born by Season of Birth
3.1.3. Longevity Metrics by Decade of Birth
3.1.4. Survival Probability Curves for HL and LPL
3.1.5. Interaction between Decade and Season for Longevity Measures
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Trait | Median ± IQR | Mean ± SE |
---|---|---|
Herd life (months) | 69.3 ± 38.1 | 73.4 ± 0.06 |
Length of productive life (months) | 37.7 ± 37.2 | 42.0 ± 0.05 |
Season | N (%) 1 | HL | LPL |
---|---|---|---|
Autumn | 99,632 (42.6%) | 67.94 ± 0.068 c | 37.51 ± 0.067 a |
Winter | 58,700 (25.1%) | 67.85 ± 0.090 c | 36.67 ± 0.089 b |
Spring | 42,309 (18.1%) | 69.10 ± 0.109 a | 37.65 ± 0.107 a |
Summer | 33,185 (14.2%) | 68.38 ± 0.119 b | 36.70 ± 0.118 b |
Decade | N (%) 1 | Herd Life | Length of Productive Life |
---|---|---|---|
2000s | 135,151 (59%) | 74.72 ± 0.062 a | 41.71 ± 0.062 a |
2010s | 98,675 (41%) | 61.92 ± 0.076 b | 32.57 ± 0.075 b |
Decade | Season | N (%) 1 | HL | LPL |
---|---|---|---|---|
2000 | Autumn | 54,159 (40%) | 74.13 ± 0.092 c | 41.81 ± 0.091 b |
Winter | 34,756 (26%) | 74.53 ± 0.115 bc | 41.67 ± 0.114 b | |
Spring | 27,151 (20%) | 75.34 ± 0.130 a | 42.34 ± 0.129 a | |
Summer | 19,085 (14%) | 74.87 ± 0.155 ab | 41.00 ± 0.153 c | |
2010 | Autumn | 45,473 (46%) | 61.76 ± 0.101 b | 33.22 ± 0.099 a |
Winter | 23,944 (24%) | 61.17 ± 0.139 c | 31.67 ± 0.137 c | |
Spring | 15,158 (16%) | 62.87 ± 0.174 a | 32.97 ± 0.172 ab | |
Summer | 14,100 (14%) | 61.88 ± 0.181 b | 32.40 ± 0.179 b |
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Bobadilla, P.E.; López-Villalobos, N.; Sotelo, F.; Damián, J.P. The Season and Decade of Birth Affect Dairy Cow Longevity. Dairy 2024, 5, 189-200. https://doi.org/10.3390/dairy5010016
Bobadilla PE, López-Villalobos N, Sotelo F, Damián JP. The Season and Decade of Birth Affect Dairy Cow Longevity. Dairy. 2024; 5(1):189-200. https://doi.org/10.3390/dairy5010016
Chicago/Turabian StyleBobadilla, Pablo Ernesto, Nicolás López-Villalobos, Fernando Sotelo, and Juan Pablo Damián. 2024. "The Season and Decade of Birth Affect Dairy Cow Longevity" Dairy 5, no. 1: 189-200. https://doi.org/10.3390/dairy5010016