EFFECT OF SEASON AND PARITY ON BLOOD PLASMA METABOLITES, MILK YIELD AND MILK COMPONENTS AND SOMATIC CELL COUNT IN NEWLY PARTURITION EGYPTIAN BUFFALO FEMALES

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Animal Production Research Institute (APRI), Dokki, Giza, Egypt.

2 Department of Animal Production, Faculty of Agriculture, Benha University, Egypt.

Abstract

Total of 24 newly parturition female buffaloes weighted above 450 kg were selected randomly and directly after parturition from APRI station herd which belonging to Animal Production Research Institute, Mahhalet Mousa, Ministry of Agriculture, Egypt and directly distributed into two groups of experimental animals as  twelve of them were selected as expected to give birth in winter months (October to March, S1) and the other twelve were selected as expected to give birth in summer months (April to September, S2).  Two sub-groups were allotted and they were in different parturition sequences from the 2nd parturition to the 14th one (P1 and P2), where up to 4 parity was in sub group 1 (P1) and the sub-group 2 (P2) were the animals from parity 5th and up till parity 14th. The aim of this investigation was to study the effect of seasons of the year expressed as Temperature–Humidity Index (THI) and parities on some blood plasma metabolites of female buffaloes as indicators to the animal health, milk yield and milk components The effect of season and parities on somatic cell count (SCC) in the milk were also aimed.moderate heat stress was recorded in S2 as proved by THI value which was 78.2 vs 60.6 in S1. Concentrations of total protein (7.6 g/100 ml in S1 vs 5.2 g/100 g/100 ml in S2) and globulins (4.5 g/100 ml in S1 vs 2.3 g/100ml in S2) in the plasma of healthy buffalo females were significantly (P< 0.01) influenced by season of calving ,the albumin concentrations were slightly higher (P> 0.05) in plasma of the buffalo females that gave birth in the winter (3.1 g / 100 ml) compared with summer calving (2.9 g / 100 ml). Plasma urea concentrations in S1 (winter calving) were more (P < 0.05) than its concentration in S2 (27.6 mg / 100 ml) in summer S2 versus (35 .0 mg/100 ml) in winter S1). Higher (P <0.01) AST activity was detected in the winter calves (S1) compared with the summer calves (S2).No significant effect (P > 0.05) for parity was detected among all plasma blood parameters investigated in the present study. Numerical higher values were recorded in winter season (S1) than in summer season (S2) in milk yield and milk components. No significant effect was observed by parities on both of them. Somatic cell count (SCC) proved to be affected by seasons but not by parities.

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