Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 November 2017
Recent studies have reported a substantial increase in the incidence of reproductive cycle problems in modern dairy cows (Opsomer et al., 1998; Royal et al., 1999). This increase is often attributed to the ever-increasing metabolic demands placed upon these cows by continually increasing milk yields. In this study we have monitored a variety of metabolic parameters in lactating dairy cows and related these to reproductive function in an attempt to establish metabolic predictors of impending reproductive failure.