Author: Fauve Henst, (ZLTO) - May 30, 2018

Ketosis is often caused by the fact that after calving a cow doesn’t consume enough energy to meet her needs. A cow can get very sick from ketosis, which causes her to lay down a lot and eat less which increases the effect of ketosis. A cow that has a BCS of >3.75 at calving has a greater risk at ketosis. A high BCS at calving occurs when an energetic ration is fed in the dry period. Dried off cows that eat a lot of energy before calving have a lower rumen fill, because they eat less dry matter. Which results in a lower intake capacity after calving. 

The BCS camera enables the farmer to monitor his cows closely in vulnerable periods and adjust the feed more specifically when the BCS of a cow is increasing too much. As discussed above a cow can be too fat at calving but it can also have a BCS of <3.25 which means there was too little energy provided in late lactation and dry period. This increases the risk at reproduction problems and a lower milk production during the lactation. Thereby high milk producers might drop below a BCS of 2.75 which can also cause problems regarding the reproduction. And lastly when a cow has a BCS > 3.75 at dry off this might cause problems at calving and reproduction in the next lactation.

If the BCS is scored regularly by using the BCS camera, a more specific feeding management can be applied on the farm. Group averages can be assessed and feed can be adjusted according to the BCS. Thereby, individual cows are monitored. While improving the feeding strategy to prevent ketosis the farmer might also see an improvement in reproduction, higher milk production and a better health of the herd. The camera can be placed at a selection gate after the milking parlour or robot and therefore is a stress-free method for determining BCS.