With AHV, we keep your livestock healthy resulting in reduced need for antibiotics

Getting and keeping your animals healthy is the most important thing. Not only for your animals, but also for the sustainability of your business. At AHV, we are committed to breaking outdated perceptions and practices in the industry and working towards a high-quality and healthy food chain, supported by our own breakthrough technology. We are improving animal health and productivity worldwide. In doing so, we aim to influence the global footprint and social understanding of food production.

At AHV, we steer towards proactive animal health as much as possible. The healthier your animals are, the easier it is to make adjustments during challenges. In addition, we see that when your animals are healthy, this positively affects many other aspects. Think of an improved structure on your farm, but also better time management for you as a farmer, a better financial situation and reduced need for regular means such as antibiotics.

Longevity and quality improved with AHV

To reinforce this conclusion, the data team within AHV (AHV InSight) has collected and analysed a lot of useful data over the years. We see on dairy farms that longevity and quality of life improve significantly with the use of AHV. The improvement in cows is demonstrated by various health parameters and is also reflected in reduced use of traditional means. Recent results from an extensive data analysis of 39 Dutch and UK farms, show impressive results. On farms where the AHV Udder Health Program, Transition & Fertility Program and/or Longevity Program have been implemented, we see convincing figures.

Need for regular remedies in udder health decreases with 53.8% and 74.8% respectively

On 33 Dutch farms (5,530 dairy cows) and 6 farms in the UK (1,344 dairy cows), the results show a significant improvement in animal health. Here, we see a reduced dropout rate and the average age of the animals is increasing. Because the animals are healthier, we see the added benefit that the need to use regular drugs such as antibiotics for udder health has decreased by 53.8% and 74.8% respectively.

These results illustrate the invaluable value of our AHV Farm Advisors in supporting farmers worldwide by improving herd health.

Healthier animals lead to 53.8% less need for antibiotics in udder health

For the data analysis, 33 Dutch dairy farmers gave AHV access to analyse their data. Besides health parameters, these farms also provided insight into the use of traditional means on the farm. In The Netherlands, antibiotic use is represented by daily doses per animal year (DD/DJ). By using the AHV Udder Health Program proactively, actively, or reactively, we saw significant improvements in animal health.

• Proactive: Herd treatment, to optimise performance and reduce risk of health issues.
• Active: For cows with a high risk to develop a health issue in the short or long-term. Or cows with visible deviations in health parameters.
• Reactive: In case of directly visible health issues. Besides data, often visible in the behaviour and attitude of the animal.

€3.009,- more milk yield per cow

With the AHV Udder Health Program, it has been shown that udder health is greatly improved, thereby optimising animal health. Due to improved udder health, cows applied with AHV products are on average 8.4 months older. AHV additionally shows a direct positive impact on milk production in the same lactation compared to expected production (Streefland et al., 2023).

By supporting udder health, cows produce an average of €0.42 cents more milk per day of life (Herrema et al., 2023), representing 1.6% more milk per lactation. Due to the extended life span and improved milk yield per day, cows achieve €3,009,- more milk yields over their entire lifetime production. Due to improved animal health, we also see that the need for antibiotic use has decreased significantly, as shown in Figure 1.

Herd Health Plans (HHPs) reduce the need for regular remedies

Over a year ago, AHV UK & Ireland started implementing Herd Health Plans (HHP). As the name suggests, we proactively support farmers with our products and advice to improve the health of the entire herd. This has a clear positive impact on reproduction, production, and health parameters, which directly saves money for the farmer.

Because animals were healthier on these farms, the need to use antibiotics for udder health decreased by 74.8%. The table below shows the results on six HHP farms (1,344 cows) during the first year of implementation. The results were compared with those of the previous 12 months. Three farms used the Udder Health Program, and three farms used the Longevity program.

AHV responds to desire of farmer and consumer

The results from these 39 dairy farms with a total of 6,874 cows give a good picture of the impact of AHV. Earlier, this publication showed that the lifespan of AHV cows was extended by eight months Now it can be seen that the extended lifespan also has a positive impact on milk production and the need to use regular drugs such as antibiotics. A positive development, not only for the animals, but also for changes in society. There is increasing pressure and demand from consumers for healthier producing animals where fewer regular drugs are administered. AHV makes it possible to make this wish come true!

AHV Longevity Herd Health Plan

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14 days before calving

AHV Booster Tablet

Immediately after calving

1x AHV Metri Tablet

1x AHV StartLac Paste OR 2x Tablet

(1x tablet at calving and 1x 12-24 hours later)

1x AHV Aspi Tablet

7 days after calving

1x AHV Extra Tablet

1x AHV Booster Tablet

1x AHV Aspi Tablet

4-8 weeks before dry-off

1x AHV Extra Tablet

1x AHV Aspi Tablet

Sources

Streefland, G.-J., Herrema, F., & Martini, M. (2023). A Gradient Boosting model to predict the milk production. Smart Agricultural Technology, 6, 100302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atech.2023.100302

Herrema, F., Bieleman, H., Hoekstra, M., & Gomes, J. (2023). Longevity and Milk Production Improvement in Dairy Cows Using Plant-Derived Products. J Vet Heal Sci, 4(3), 128–140. https://www.opastpublishers.com/open-access-articles/longevity-and-milk-production-improvement-in-dairy-cows-using-plantderived-products.pdf