What is it about?
Efficient reproduction is essential in dairy cattle production systems to ensure that cows reach their production potential and to prevent any unnecessary wastage of cows due to foetal loss and abortion. This article reviews the information on how bovine herpesvirus-1 (BHV1) causes infertility and foetal loss in dairy cattle and examines how the disease can be controlled and prevented through the use of vaccines.
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Why is it important?
By controlling the factors that reduce the fertility of dairy cattle the efficiency of milk production is increased and the greenhouse gas emissions per kilogramme of milk produced is reduced. Furthermore, infectious disease also reduces the well-being of the cattle and wherever possible significant infectious disease agents should be controlled. It is therefore critical to understand the relative importance of BHV-1 infection in dairy herds and the impact it has on foetal loss and abortion. The scientific literature provides evidence that several different approaches to vaccination against BHV1 infection can be taken to successfully control this disease.
Perspectives
For me carrying out this review was important because BHV1 infection and the control of infection at the herd level is a subject where popular opinion is divided and yet the published scientific literature presents a body of evidence that supports a unified case for vaccination to control the disease and increase the efficiency of milk production.
George Caldow
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Impact of bovine herpesvirus-1 infection on fertility in dairy cattle, November 2023, Mark Allen Group,
DOI: 10.12968/live.2023.28.6.263.
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