Effect of lameness in early lactation on selected reproductive parameters of dairy cows

Lameness of dairy cows is one of the diseases that significantly impact their health, welfare, production and reproduction parameters. Data were collected from 310 Czech Fleckvieh (Simmental) pregnant dairy cows in 2017 and 2018. The study aimed to determine the effect of lameness occurrence in the post-calving period until the insemination resulting in pregnancy, on selected reproductive parameters of the dairy cows: calving to conception interval (CCI) and number of services per conception (NSC). The following lameness criteria were used: incidence of lameness, cause of lameness (infectious, non-infectious, combined), number of affected limbs (one or multiple), number of lameness episodes (one or multiple). The CCI was significantly longer (P < 0.001) in lame animals (by 17 days), with the difference increasing to 28.25 days in the case of multiple affected limbs, and to 29.54 days in animals with multiple lameness episodes. A significant influence of infectious and combined diseases on the length of the CCI was confirmed, extending it by 21.82 and 24.9 days, respectively. NSC in lame animals (2.13) tended to differ from healthy cows (1.89) with a significant increase to 2.47 in cows with multiple lameness episodes (P < 0.05). This indicates that lameness in the post-calving period is an important aspect negatively influencing the monitored reproductive parameters of cows. The conclusion of the study shows that lameness in dairy cattle herds has a significant economic impact.