Prevalence of post-partum subclinical hypocalcemia in dairy cows and it s correlation with negative energy balance in suburban of Urmia

Subclinical hypocalcemia in dairy cattle is decrease in plasma calcium to less than 7.5 mg / dl with no clinical signs. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of post-partum subclinical hypocalcemia and it’s correlation with negative energy balance in suburban of Urmia, Iran. In this study blood sampling was done from 99 multi-parous cows (2 to 5 calving) during the first 48 hours after parturition (to evaluate serum calcium) and second week after parturition (to determine the levels of non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA)).198 blood samples were taken from 99 dairy cattle from 498 cattle population. The incidence rate of subclinical hypocalcaemia in this study was 18.2%. NEFA mean in cows with subclinical hypocalcaemia was significantly (p 0.7mmol / L) in cows with subclinical hypocalcaemia was six times higher than cows with normal serum calcium levels. The results showed the bad state of energy balance in dairy cows with subclinical hypocalcemia and probability of negative energy balance induced diseases such as ketosis. Subclinical hypocalcemia increases the sensitivity of dairy cows to mastitis, retained placenta, displaced abomasum, dystocia and ketosis. With attention to limited available information about this disease, further studies are required.