Why the three weeks before and after calving are the highest-risk welfare period for dairy cows and how to manage it effectively.
The transition period is the pivotal welfare event of a dairy cow's productive life. The metabolic demands of late pregnancy combined with the sudden onset of high milk production create conditions in which the cow's regulatory systems are stressed to their physiological limits. Disease during this period is not a random unfortunate event — it is the predictable consequence of asking a highly selected animal to produce vast quantities of milk immediately after calving without adequate transition support. The welfare costs are multi-dimensional: metabolic diseases cause pain, anorexia and weakness; their sequelae (mastitis, lameness, reproductive failure) extend welfare harm across months. Welfare-aligned transition management prioritises the cow's physiological needs over short-term production maximisation.