Management of Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Herds: Optimization and Time Allocation
The objective of this study is to determine the most effective time allocation for digital dermatitis management and to quantify the marginal economic gain from extra time devoted to digital dermatitis management. The model simulating foot disease occurrence and the associated management was Dairy H...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/12/1988 |
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| author | Rodolphe Robcis Ahmed Ferchiou Mehdi Berrada Didier Raboisson |
| author_facet | Rodolphe Robcis Ahmed Ferchiou Mehdi Berrada Didier Raboisson |
| author_sort | Rodolphe Robcis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The objective of this study is to determine the most effective time allocation for digital dermatitis management and to quantify the marginal economic gain from extra time devoted to digital dermatitis management. The model simulating foot disease occurrence and the associated management was Dairy Health Simulator©. Then, an econometric model was applied to identify the relationship between the dairy workshop’s gross margin and time for lameness management as well as the hourly marginal gain curve associated with lameness management. The gross margin was optimized under two constraints, i.e., the overall time spent for lameness management and the mean lameness duration (mimicking cow welfare). The results show that allocating less time to lameness detection and more to footbath application can contribute as follows: (i) reduces time spent for lameness management, (ii) maintains the best welfare level, and (iii) obtains the highest gross margin. The optimal time to devote to footbath application ranged from 17.8 to 22.3 h/month. A hiring strategy was investigated, and the break-even point ranged from 16.1 to 19.8 h/month. The recommended time to spend on footbath application is relatively important; therefore, stakeholders should consider the importance of lameness to the dairy industry and should devote enough time for footbath applications. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:51:03Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c275c81c28cb4affa02bb8ea32d46042 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:51:03Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-c275c81c28cb4affa02bb8ea32d460422023-11-18T08:59:00ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152023-06-011312198810.3390/ani13121988Management of Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Herds: Optimization and Time AllocationRodolphe Robcis0Ahmed Ferchiou1Mehdi Berrada2Didier Raboisson3Unité Mixte de Recherche, Animal Santé Territoires Risques Ecosystèmes, Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, 34000 Montpellier, FranceUnité Mixte de Recherche, Animal Santé Territoires Risques Ecosystèmes, Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, 34000 Montpellier, FranceUnité Mixte de Recherche, Animal Santé Territoires Risques Ecosystèmes, Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, 34000 Montpellier, FranceUnité Mixte de Recherche, Animal Santé Territoires Risques Ecosystèmes, Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement, 34000 Montpellier, FranceThe objective of this study is to determine the most effective time allocation for digital dermatitis management and to quantify the marginal economic gain from extra time devoted to digital dermatitis management. The model simulating foot disease occurrence and the associated management was Dairy Health Simulator©. Then, an econometric model was applied to identify the relationship between the dairy workshop’s gross margin and time for lameness management as well as the hourly marginal gain curve associated with lameness management. The gross margin was optimized under two constraints, i.e., the overall time spent for lameness management and the mean lameness duration (mimicking cow welfare). The results show that allocating less time to lameness detection and more to footbath application can contribute as follows: (i) reduces time spent for lameness management, (ii) maintains the best welfare level, and (iii) obtains the highest gross margin. The optimal time to devote to footbath application ranged from 17.8 to 22.3 h/month. A hiring strategy was investigated, and the break-even point ranged from 16.1 to 19.8 h/month. The recommended time to spend on footbath application is relatively important; therefore, stakeholders should consider the importance of lameness to the dairy industry and should devote enough time for footbath applications.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/12/1988lamenesscoweconomicsherd managementfootbathanimal welfare |
| spellingShingle | Rodolphe Robcis Ahmed Ferchiou Mehdi Berrada Didier Raboisson Management of Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Herds: Optimization and Time Allocation Animals lameness cow economics herd management footbath animal welfare |
| title | Management of Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Herds: Optimization and Time Allocation |
| title_full | Management of Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Herds: Optimization and Time Allocation |
| title_fullStr | Management of Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Herds: Optimization and Time Allocation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Management of Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Herds: Optimization and Time Allocation |
| title_short | Management of Digital Dermatitis in Dairy Herds: Optimization and Time Allocation |
| title_sort | management of digital dermatitis in dairy herds optimization and time allocation |
| topic | lameness cow economics herd management footbath animal welfare |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/12/1988 |
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