COMMUNICATION & TEAM APPROACH
So often the case when cows are not milking well or milk butterfats and protein are poor the nutr
itionist gets the phone call to resolve the problem. The breeding advisor/technician is called when cows are not cycling, holding to services and the vet with issues such as ketosis, displaced abomasums, milk fevers’s, metritis etc etc.
Many of the issues raised can in fact be linked and one issue leads to another, yet on most dairy units the nutritionist, breeding advisor and vet never meet or know what issues they are having with mutual farms. Occasional but regular joint meetings can have significant impact on technical performance of a dairy unit.
An example might be significant incidence of displaced abomasums which is likely to be linked to dry cow management and nutrition. Low milk proteins, falling condition score and poor conception rates may be linked to energy levels of the milking cow diet. Working as a team on dairy units can result in problems being diagnosed quicker and therefore being resolved sooner. This has significant impact on dairy cow performance and therefore farm returns. Team approach avoids the SOS approach to managing a dairy unit and can lead to less vet visits to treat sick cows and by the breeding technician for repeat services.
Tags: communication, dairy, team work