Ketosis is a common metabolic disease in high-producing dairy cows during early lactation. It causes significant suffering and reflects the welfare costs of extreme production demands.
Ketosis in dairy cows reflects the welfare cost of selecting for extreme milk production beyond the metabolic capacity of the animal. High-producing cows enter negative energy balance immediately after calving, mobilizing body fat to supply energy for milk production. When fat mobilization exceeds liver processing capacity, ketone bodies accumulate causing the neurological and metabolic symptoms of clinical ketosis. These animals experience significant suffering. The underlying driver — genetic selection for maximum milk yield — creates metabolic vulnerability that makes transition disease nearly inevitable at high production levels. Welfare-focused breeding incorporates metabolic resilience alongside production traits.