The dry cow period is a critical phase in a dairy cow’s cycle, occurring between lactations to allow her body to recover and prepare for the next period of milk production. Proper management during this time is essential for the cow’s health and future productivity. Milk production in the early lactating period directly depends on the dry cow period, which sets the potential for milk production for the year. Read on to learn how proper dry cow management can help you have a successful year with less sickness and more profits.
How to Dry Off a Cow: Combatting Mastitis
Your dairy cattle should rest and recover during their dry period. It’s the time to help prevent common cow illnesses and improve their body condition.
The more optimal your herd’s body condition is during early lactation, the higher the milk production potential. So, ensuring their calving stage and transition to a fresh period go as smoothly as possible is critical.
How to Prevent Mastitis in Cows
As a dairy farmer, you play a crucial role in preventing mastitis in your herd. Some cows may have subclinical mastitis, while others may develop it during the dry period. This is an excellent time for you to get ahead of mastitis infections and work to prevent or treat them.
Cows naturally form a keratin plug that seals the teat canal from pathogens. However, not all cows produce this plug, significantly increasing the chances of post-freshening mastitis infections. Applying an internal teat sealant effectively reduces the risk of clinical mastitis and keeps your cows healthy.
Apply Dry Cow Therapy to Clear Up Lingering Mastitis
While internal teat sealants can help prevent mastitis, it’s critical to first treat your dairy herd or selected cows with intramammary antibiotic infusions. According to Alabama University, dry cow therapy can eliminate about 70% of existing infections.
Lately, dairy producers have been experimenting with selective dry cow treatments (SDCT) to reduce costs and antibiotic use. SDCT can reduce antibiotic use by 55%.
Dry Cow Nutrition: How It Affects Your Bottom Line
Dry cow feed requirements vary depending on the herd’s body condition. Dairy cows can’t consume sufficient dry matter to support milk production during early lactation. Instead, they rely on body reserves during this period, so dairy cows must enter early lactation with adequate body condition.
Cows usually use their body weight for about 12 weeks post-calving to help milk production. This allows them to reach a production peak they cannot produce from feed alone. The peak of milk production sets up the potential milk production for the year. About two additional pounds per day at the peak can give you an extra 400–500 lbs/cow during the entire lactation, according to McGill University. So, to boost your cow milk production, make sure your herd is adequately conditioned.
However, over-conditioning can lead to problems. Energy overconsumption during the dry period can result in higher body condition loss after calving, potentially reducing milk yields and increasing the risk of illness. Dry cattle should maintain a Body Condition Score (BCS) of about 3.0–3.25, as noted by DairyHerd.
See the table below for an idea of how the dry period affects the three lactation periods.
| Lactation Periods Length And Effects | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry Period | Early Lactation | Mid-Lactation | Late Lactation | |
| Period Length (Months) | ~2 | 0-4 | 4-8 | 8-12 |
| Body Weight | Increases to prepare for the next lactation. | Body reserves are used for lactation. Weight is dropping. | Gradually increasing. | As milk production reduces, body weight increases. |
| Milk Production | N/A | Maximum. It depends on the body condition. | Gradual decline. | Further decline, reaching minimum near the end of the period. |
| Dry Matter Intake | Increases to prepare for the next lactation. | Increases significantly. | Reaches peak before starting to decline. | Proceeds to decline. |
Your goal should be to achieve or maintain an adequate BCS throughout the dry period to prepare the herd for a fresh period. You need to carefully consider protein, fat, fiber, and micronutrients in your herd’s diet.
Star Blends can partner with your nutritionist to create a customized dairy cattle feed that helps optimize body condition, milk production, milk quality, and health. We offer a range of options for custom dry cow mix and mineral blends to tailor the diet to your herd’s needs.
Metabolic Problems Related to Dry Cow Nutrition
Below are some of the common metabolic issues dry cows may experience in relation to their diet. You can help prevent or minimize their effects with proper feed and supplementation.
- Displaced abomasum occurs with high grain and finely chopped forage. Symptoms are reduced feed intake, weight loss, and low milk production.
- Milk fever is caused by the cow’s inability to mobilize calcium from the bone as fast as it’s secreted in the milk at calving or early lactation. You can help prevent milk fever by feeding a low calcium ration before calving to stimulate the cow to start pulling the bone calcium in advance.
- Retained placenta doesn’t have a specific cause, but cow fat and certain vitamin deficiencies may increase the chances, as noted by Alabama State University.
- Ketosis occurs when ketone bodies are elevated in all body fluids. It can decrease milk production, reduce body condition, and affect cow neurology.
- Fat cow syndrome often results in reduced milk production, higher susceptibility to diseases, and a high death rate.
Dry Cow Housing and Environment
Dry cow housing should be dry with adequate ventilation to reduce bacteria on bedding and prevent mastitis. A dry and well-ventilated environment helps to keep the cows comfortable and healthy, which in turn can lead to higher milk production. The bedding area should be large and comfortable enough for pregnant dry cows.
When your dry cows go outside on a pasture, fence off all streams, ditches, ponds, or other areas where they could be exposed to large amounts of bacteria, as noted by the Pennsylvania State University. Likewise, dry cows shouldn’t be forced to group under a small shade cover as this can cause manure build-up and increase the risks of infections.
Optimize Your Dry Cows’ Health and Body Condition with Star Blends
Proper animal nutrition is a large piece of the dry cow management puzzle. You don’t have to figure it out alone, though. Star Blends creates custom feed for cows in all stages of life and production. We’ll work with you and your nutritionist to craft a feed blend to support your cows through their dry period. Contact our team today to learn more about our custom feed services.
