Energetic status of crossbreed dairy cows during transition period in two different seasons

ABSTRACTWe used 31 crossbreed dairy cows to compare the energetic profile in summer and winter. Blood samples were taken weekly prepartum, at calving and on days 2, 5, 10, 15, 21 and 30 postpartum. All metabolic indicators analyzed were influenced by the physiological status. The glucose concentrations were higher during winter while the triglyceride concentrations and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were higher in the summer. The season influenced the concentrations of cholesterol, AST and GGT, showing a different pattern between summer and winter. Non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) and beta-hidroxibutirate (BHB) were not influenced by the season. Cows that calved during winter had a greater body condition score (BCS) and lost more BCS until calving. During summer, 32.26% of the animals and 29.03% during winter had NEFA concentrations above the optimum level and 22.58% of the animals in summer and 19.35% in the winter had subclinical ketosis at some point during the transition period, making then more susceptible to diseases.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Moreira,T. F., Facury Filho,E. J., Meneses,R. M., Mendonça,F. L. M., Lima,J. A. M., Carvalho,A. U.
Format:	Digital revista
Language:	English
Published:	Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Escola de Veterinária 2015
Online Access:	http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0102-09352015000501327
Tags:	Add Tag No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!