Advances in Animal and Veterinary Sciences

Research Article
Adv. Anim. Vet. Sci. 3 (6): 354 - 361
http://dx.doi.org/10.14737/journal.aavs/2015/3.6.354.361
View Full HTML
Download PDF

Abdollah Samiei1, 2, Juan Boo Liang3*, Gholam Reza Ghorbani4, Hiroyuki Hirooka5, Saeid Ansari-Mahyari4, Hassan Sadri6, 7, Vincenzo Tufarelli8

1Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Institute of Bioscience, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Malaysia; 2Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Center of Golestan Province, Iran; 3Laboratory of Animal Production, Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Universiti Purta Malaysia, 43400 UPM, Serdang, Malaysia; 4Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, Iran; 5Departement of Animal Husbandry Resources, Kyoto University, Sakyo-ku Kyoto, Japan; 6Institute of Animal Science, Physiology and Hygiene Unit, University of Bonn, 53115 Bonn, Germany; 7Department of Clinical Science, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran; 8Department of Emergency and Organ Transplantation, Section of Veterinary Science and Animal Production, University of Bari ‘Aldo Moro’, 70010 Valenzano, Bari, Italy.

*Correspondence | Juan Boo Liang, Universiti Purta Malaysia, Serdang, Malaysia; Email: jbliang@upm.edu.my;
Vincenzo Tufarelli, University of Bari ‘Aldo Moro’, Valenzano, Bari, Italy; Email: vincenzo.tufarelli@uniba.it

Abstract
Subclinical ketosis is one of the most prevalent metabolic disorders that usually occurs in cows during the first weeks of lactation. This study investigated the relationship between energy level, body condition score and silage butyric acid with incidence of subclinical ketosis (SCK) in dairy cows during the first month of postpartum. Fifty healthy pregnant Holstein cows from 10 commercial dairy farms were studied. Whole blood β-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA) concentration equal or more than 1,400 μmol/L, at least in two successive blood samplings was considered as SCK. The mean plasma β-hydroxybutyrate concentration of SCK cows was 1,932 μmol/L whereas that for the healthy cows was 770 μmol/L. Diet nutrient was significantly affected by the farms studied. Crude protein, net energy for lactation, and non-fiber carbohydrates contents of the diets were lower, whereas that of neutral detergent fiber was higher than those recommended for lactating cows. The effect of farm on pH, lactic acid, propionic acid and lactic acid to acetic acid ratio of corn silage was significant. Effect of net energy for lactation was significant on SCK incidence. The incidence of SCK was not affected by body condition score, butyric silage, crude protein and non-fiber carbohydrates of the diets. Results show that the best way to prevent or minimize the incidence of SCK in dairy farms under commercial farming conditions as that of the present study would be to provide sufficient dietary energy to meet the needs of the cows, especially during the first month of postpartum when the SCK prevalence is normally high.

Keywords | Body condition score, Butyrate, Cow, Dietary energy, Suclinical ketosis