Cattle
Barometer
The overall aim of the cattle group is to develop tools which can support farmers and veterinarians in their decision-making on farm to prevent and control respiratory and intestinal diseases in calves (bovine respiratory disease (BRD) and neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD)). The working titles of the tools are (1) early warning tool, (2) purchase assistant, (3) intervention rankers, and (4) barometer, though some are closely related and could be connected in the future.
Objectives
The first aim is to provide an end-user friendly descriptive representation (visualisation) of diagnostic data on BRD from different European countries to show prevalence and create awareness on pathogens and the importance of taking samples. A second objective is to warn farmers or other stakeholders (e.g. on a national level) that a farm (or multiple farms) are affected by an infection manifesting as BRD. This gives them the opportunity to take control and introduce prevention measures, such as biosecurity and vaccination.
Methods
We aim to develop this tool by using European laboratory data on infectious diseases from live animals and necropsy, including geolocation. The prevalence per pathogen (number of positive samples/per number of analyzed sample) per month and area will be visualized using Tableau and displayed on a website, starting with BRD. Next steps are creating early warnings based on the number of positive samples and meteorological data. Dynamic linear models developed by UCPH are being explored.
Progress
