Assessing feed efficiency in early and mid lactation and its associations with performance and health in Holstein cows

Marinho, M. Nehme; Zimpel, R.; Peñagaricano, Francisco; Santos, J.E.P.

doi:10.3168/jds.2020-19652

Cited by 18 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…Further, mid-lactation BCS and body weight did not differ ( p ≥ 0.29; Table 4 ) by postpartum health status. The lack of relationship between feed efficiency and health status observed in the present study is supported by Nehme Marinho et al [ 43 ], who found no association between RFI quartile and postpartum health disorders (excluding HYK, which was not evaluated). Hostens et al [ 11 ] modeled lactation curves for cows that were grouped into similar HLT, DIS, and DIS+ categories and reported that the lactation curves were altered by health status.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 77%

Assessment of the Relationship between Postpartum Health and Mid-Lactation Performance, Behavior, and Feed Efficiency in Holstein Dairy Cows

Martin

Weigel

White

2021

Animals

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The objective of this study was to investigate the relationships between postpartum health disorders and mid-lactation performance, feed efficiency, and sensor-derived behavioral traits. Multiparous cows (n = 179) were monitored for health disorders for 21 days postpartum and enrolled in a 45-day trial between 50 to 200 days in milk, wherein feed intake, milk yield and components, body weight, body condition score, and activity, lying, and feeding behaviors were recorded. Feed efficiency was measured as residual feed intake and the ratio of fat- or energy-corrected milk to dry matter intake. Cows were classified as either having hyperketonemia (HYK; n = 72) or not (n = 107) and grouped by frequency of postpartum health disorders: none (HLT; n = 94), one (DIS; n = 63), or ≥2 (DIS+; n = 22). Cows that were diagnosed with HYK had higher mid-lactation yields of fat- and energy-corrected milk. No differences in feed efficiency were detected between HYK or health status groups. Highly active mid-lactation time was higher in healthy animals, and rumination time was lower in ≥4th lactation cows compared with HYK or DIS and DIS+ cows. Differences in mid-lactation behaviors between HYK and health status groups may reflect the long-term impacts of health disorders. The lack of a relationship between postpartum health and mid-lactation feed efficiency indicates that health disorders do not have long-lasting impacts on feed efficiency.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 77%

Assessment of the Relationship between Postpartum Health and Mid-Lactation Performance, Behavior, and Feed Efficiency in Holstein Dairy Cows

Martin

Weigel

White

2021

Animals

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“…Energy corrected milk (kg/d) was calculated as previously published 45 . Residual feed intake was calculated according to Nehme Marinho et al 46 , with the average of each day of lactation used in the study as time points. Briefly, a linear model including the fixed effects of NESec (Mcal/d), MBW (BW 0.75 ), and BEC (Mcal/d) were used in the MIXED procedure of SAS 9.4.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally, the organisms associated with DMI and each RFI parameter corrected for DMI in the rumen and lower gut were used in linear regression to understand how much of the variation in DMI (kg/d) could be explained by the microbiome. The calculation of DMI were performed using the original equation for RFI calculation 46 , one for each of the microbiomes, and the last one when all the parameters from the original equation and ASVs from both sites of the GI tract were taken into account. The lower gut microbiome associated with each efficiency variable in the metadata were also used to understand how much of the variation of these variables could be explained by their associated ASVs.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rumen and lower gut microbiomes relationship with feed efficiency and production traits throughout the lactation of Holstein dairy cows

Monteiro

Zhou

Gomes

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

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Fermentation of dietary nutrients in ruminants' gastrointestinal (GI) tract is an essential mechanism utilized to meet daily energy requirements. Especially in lactating dairy cows, the GI microbiome plays a pivotal role in the breakdown of indigestible plant polysaccharides and supply most AAs, fatty acids, and gluconeogenic precursors for milk synthesis. Although the contribution of the rumen microbiome to production efficiency in dairy cows has been widely researched over the years, variations throughout the lactation and the lower gut microbiome contribution to these traits remain poorly characterized. Therefore, we investigated throughout lactation the relationship between the rumen and lower gut microbiomes with production efficiency traits in Holstein cows. We found that the microbiome from both locations has temporal stability throughout lactation, yet factors such as feed intake levels played a significant role in shaping microbiome diversity. The composition of the rumen microbiome was dependent on feed intake. In contrast, the lower gut microbiome was less dependent on feed intake and associated with a potentially enhanced ability to digest dietary nutrients. Therefore, milk production traits may be more correlated with microorganisms present in the lower gut than previously expected. The current study's findings advance our understanding of the temporal relationship of the rumen and lower gut microbiomes by enabling a broader overview of the gut microbiome and production efficiency towards more sustainable livestock production.

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“…The use of RFI has been preferred because it accounts for milk production, body size traits, and parity [ 82 ] and is a potential target for genetic selection due to its connection to herd profitability and decreased environmental impact of dairy cattle. A study by Marinho et al [ 83 ] showed that the most feed-efficient cows ate approximately 4 kg/day less dry matter and produced the same amount of energy-corrected milk (ECM) with improved reproductive performance compared with the least feed-efficient cows.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implementation of Feed Efficiency in Iranian Holstein Breeding Program

Nadri

Sadeghi-Sefidmazgi

Zamani

et al. 2023

Animals

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This study aimed to evaluate the economic impact of improving feed efficiency on breeding objectives for Iranian Holsteins. Production and economic data from seven dairy herds were used to estimate the economic values of different traits, and a meta-analysis was conducted to analyze the genetic relationships between feed efficiency and other traits. Economic weights were calculated for various traits, with mean values per cow and per year across herds estimated at USD 0.34/kg for milk yield, USD 6.93/kg for fat yield, USD 5.53/kg for protein yield, USD −1.68/kg for dry matter intake, USD −1.70/kg for residual feed intake, USD 0.47/month for productive life, and USD −2.71/day for days open. The Iranian selection index was revised to improve feed efficiency, and the feed efficiency sub-index (FE$) introduced by the Holstein Association of the United States of America was adopted to reflect Iran’s economic and production systems. However, there were discrepancies between Iranian and US genetic coefficients in the sub-index, which could be attributed to differences in genetic and phenotypic parameters, as well as the economic value of each trait. More accurate estimates of economic values for each trait in FE$ could be obtained by collecting dry matter intake from Iranian herds and conducting genetic evaluations for residual feed intake.

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Assessing feed efficiency in early and mid lactation and its associations with performance and health in Holstein cows

Cited by 18 publications

References 37 publications

Assessment of the Relationship between Postpartum Health and Mid-Lactation Performance, Behavior, and Feed Efficiency in Holstein Dairy Cows

Assessment of the Relationship between Postpartum Health and Mid-Lactation Performance, Behavior, and Feed Efficiency in Holstein Dairy Cows

Rumen and lower gut microbiomes relationship with feed efficiency and production traits throughout the lactation of Holstein dairy cows

Implementation of Feed Efficiency in Iranian Holstein Breeding Program

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