Day 1: Lectures

Congress opening & Registrations 08:00 – 08:45

Welcome 08:45 – 09:00

Feeding and managing the dairy cow through transition

The underlying physiological changes that a cow experiences between the end of lactation and the subsequent one will be reviewed and then nutritional and management practices will be proposed to accommodate these changes along the transition period.

2 short presentations + wrap-up 10:00-10:45

Coffee break 10:45 – 11:15

Prevention of heat stress in dairy cattle

Heat stress in dairy cattle is a growing challenge to productivity as well as animal welfare and health. Climate change is making heat stress a matter of increasing concern also in regions with historically moderate climates and little or no history of heat stress events. The continual selection for higher yielding breeds and intensive production only exacerbate the susceptibility of cattle to heat stress. Recent studies on high-yielding cows in a moderate climate zone, for example, show that heat stress can occur even at temperatures below 20°C. This keynote lecture reviews the physiological principles that govern the thermoregulatory mechanisms of cattle as the basis for understanding the mechanics of heat stress and finding solutions. Focusing on practical applications, the development of useful indices of heat stress and thermal comfort will be presented based on current findings of our research of the effects of heat stress in intensively reared dairy cattle. Solutions to mitigate heat stress, preventive measures, as well as advanced techniques to avoid heat stress in existing housing systems are described and decision support for practical heat stress prevention is provided. Moving on to the leading edge of research in this area, advanced approaches and developments to improve heat stress measurement, robust monitoring systems, and big-data analysis and artificial intelligence that enable dynamic, model-based tools for real-time assessment and alleviation of heat stress will be outlined.

2 short presentations + wrap-up 12:15-13:00

Lunch 13u00 – 14u00

The financial impact of lameness in dairy cattle

Lameness is a prevalent and costly condition of dairy cows. There are direct costs associated with treatment of lameness, but most of the financial impact is through indirect costs. We will review these financial costs, as well as discussing the cost of lameness to the cow, and the dairy industry. We will also consider how we can approach reducing the cost of lameness.

2 short presentations + wrap-up 15:00-15:45

Coffee break 15:45 – 16:15

Recent insights into rearing youngstock

Rearing youngstock and the recommendations to do so have changed greatly in the past 10-20 years. We now better understand the management, nutrition, health, genetics, and housing needs of heifers to make them more productive animals on the farm. The discussion will focus on the physiological needs of the calf at weaning, through the transition to solid feeds, and taking them all the way to calving at the proper growth

2 short presentations + wrap-up 17:15-18:00

DRINKS & BITES 18:00-19:00