Uses of PGF in Postpartum Period

There is increased interest among veterinarians and dairy producers in finding effective hormonal therapies for uterine infections in dairy cattle. T ests for detecting antibiotic residues in milk have become increasingly more sensitive and have raised concerns among producers and veterinarians that extra-Iabel use of antibiotics for treatment ofuterine infections may lead to violative antibiotic residues in bulk tank milk or in the carcass of cows sent to slaughter following therapy of individual cows. Use of Luteolytic Prostaglandins in the Postpartum Cow Luteolytic prostaglandins, either prostaglandin 2-alpha or its analogues (pGF), have been used in many trials to evaluate their potential value for improving the reproductive performance of dairy cows when treated within the first 40 days of the postpartum period. Three types of trials have been used to evaluate the comparative reproductive performance of cows treated in the postpartum period with PGF to untreated herdmates: l) Whole herd trials in which cows were randomly selected from the whole herd regardless of peripartum disease for comparison of cows treated with PGF in the postpartum period to non-treated herdmates, 2) Trials in which cows which were selected because they were considered to be at high risk for uterine infection