Ketosis affects transition dairy cows in early lactation, causing metabolic disease and reduced welfare. Proactive monitoring and management prevent significant suffering.
The transition period from late pregnancy to early lactation is the most welfare-critical time for a dairy cow. High milk production demands outstrip energy intake, creating negative energy balance that leads to fat mobilization and ketone accumulation. Subclinical ketosis causes a range of metabolic disturbances that impair immune function, reproduction, and general wellbeing before obvious clinical signs appear. Systematic ketone monitoring in the first two weeks of lactation enables identification and treatment of affected cows before the condition escalates into more serious metabolic disease.