The transition period around calving is the most welfare-critical phase for dairy cows, with metabolic diseases, immune suppression, and intense physiological demands creating major challenges.
The transition period represents a welfare crisis point for many dairy cows: immune function is naturally suppressed around calving, appetite is reduced precisely when energy demands peak, and metabolic adaptations can tip into disease when management is suboptimal. Cows with clinical ketosis show dullness, reduced appetite, and abnormal behaviour; milk fever causes recumbency and muscle weakness that are profoundly distressing. The cascade of secondary diseases following transition failure compounds suffering. Good transition management, including close monitoring, nutritional support, and early intervention, is a welfare priority with clear economic co-benefits. Overcrowding in close-up pens is a common structural welfare problem undermining transition health.