Ruminant

Wh                      GK

E. Mahjoubi, H. Amanlou, M. Hossein Yazdi, N. Aghaziarati, G. R. Noori, C. I. Vahl, B. J. Bradford, and L. H. Baumgard

Thirty-two Afshari lambs were used in a completely randomized design with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments to evaluate a nutritional supplement designed to provide multiple gluconeogenic precursors during heat stress (HS). Lambs were housed in thermal neutral (TN) conditions and fed ad libitum for 8 d to obtain covariate data (period 1 [P1]) for the subsequent experimental period (period 2 [P2]). During P2, which lasted 9 d, half of the lambs were subjected to HS and the other 16 lambs were maintained in TN conditions but pair fed (PFTN) to the HS lambs. Half of the lambs in each thermal regime were fed (top-dressed) 100 g/d of a feed supplement designed to provide gluconeogenic precursors (8 lambs in HS [heat stress with Glukosa {HSG}] and 8 lambs in PFTN [pair-fed thermal neutral with Glukosa]) and the other lambs in both thermal regimes were fed only the basal control diet (HS without Glukosa [HSC] and pair-fed thermal neutral without Glukosa). Heat stress decreased DMI (14%) and by design there were no differences between the thermal treatments, but HSG lambs had increased DMI (7.5%; P < 0.05) compared with the HSC lambs. Compared with PFTN lambs, rectal temperature and skin temperature at the rump,shoulder, and legs of HS lambs were increased (P < 0.05) at 0700 and 1400 h. Rectal temperature at 1400 h decreased for HSG lambs (0.15 ± 0.03°C; P < 0.05) compared with HSC lambs. Despite similar DMI between thermal treatments, ADG for HS and PFTN lambs in P2 was decreased 55 and 85%, respectively, compared with lambs in P1 (P < 0.01). Although the prefeeding glucose concentration was not affected by thermal treatment or diet, HSG lambs had increased postfeeding glucose concentration compared with HSC lambs (P < 0.05). In contrast to the glucose responses, circulating insulin was influenced only by thermal treatment; HS lambs had increased insulin concentration (P < 0.01) before feeding and decreased concentration (P < 0.05) after feeding compared with PFTN lambs. Heat-stressed lambs had decreased NEFA concentration before feeding (P < 0.01) but not after feeding relative to PFTN lambs. Although this nutritional strategy did not affect ADG, the lower rectal temperature in HSG lambs indicates that dietaryinclusion of a mixture of glucogenic precursors can potentially benefit animal health during HS.


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M. Hossein Yazdi, H. Amanlou, H.R.Mirzaei-Alamouti, M.T. Harkinezhad, A. Nabipour, E. Mahjoubi, N.Aghaziarati, G.R. Noori, L.H. Baumgard

Glucose appears to be a preferred systemic fuel during heat stress (HS) in a variety of species. Increasing the dietary grain contact can enhance the post-absorptive carbohydrate status, but providing excessive fermentable starch can cause rumen disorders and this is especially true during HS. Current study objectives were to evaluate the effects of a glycerol based supplemental product on growth and metabolic variables in Holstein bull calves during controlled HS. Before the star of the experiment, bull calves (n=14; 163.6 ± 30.1 kg body weight) were subjected to thermal neutral conditions [26.5± 3.4°C and a temperature – humidity index (THI) of 70.4 ± 2.8] for 7 d (period 1; P1). During this period, productive parameters as well as blood metabolites were measured and used as covariates for the subsequent HS period. Following P1, a cyclical HS pattern was implemented for 21 d (P2) where daily ambient temperatures ranged from 29.1 to 39.7°C and the THL was ˃ 74 for 24h/d and ˃ 83 for at least 14 h/d. during P2, half of the HS calves (n=7) received a control diet (CON) and the other half received the control diet supplemented with a product (300 g/d) containing gluconeogenic precursors (GLU). Throughout each period respiration rate, rectal temperature and skin temperature at the shoulder and rump were recorded at 0600, 1100 and 1500 h daily. Blood samples were obtained prior and 4 h post the a.m. feeding during both periods. Although HS markedly reduced DMI (18%) and growth as expected, supplemental GLU did not affect body weight gain. Supplemental GLU decreased the shoulder temperature at 0600 and 1500 h (P˂ 0.01) , and decreased respiratory rate at 1500 h (P˂ 0.02). Feeding GLU did not affect blood urea nitrogen (BUN), glucose or nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA) concentrations, but increased circulating insulin prior to the a.m. feeding (P˂0.03) and this demonstrates that GLU was effective at enhancing the post- absorptive carbohydrate status. Our results suggest that feeding supplemental GLU improves some body temperature indices but did not enhance growth performance in Holstein bull calves during HS.

 


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