Negative energy balance (NEB) represents a fundamental problem for current high-yielding dairy herds as it is associated with various health disorders, reproduction failures and reduced milk yields. The present summary of research findings is focused on the indicators of NEB and related problems. The objective was to describe several indirect indicators applicable in dairy herds (e. g. body weight changes, locomotion activity, milk composition). In addition, some precision livestock farming technology examples are reported including threshold values of the parameters used for diagnostics and prevention of health disorders.