Effect of restricted suckling on milk yield, milk composition and udder health in cows and behaviour and weight gain in calves, in dual-purpose cattle in the tropics.
The study was conducted to evaluate the effects of restricted suckling (RS) in dual-purpose cows and calves compared to artificial rearing (AR). Twelve Holstein-Zebu cows with calves were assigned to each treatment. Cows were milked once daily in the morning with calves present to stimulate milk let-down. RS calves suckled 30 min after milking and 30 min in the afternoon, whereas AR calves were milk-fed from nipple bottles. The daily saleable milk yield was higher in RS than in AR cows (p < 0.01; 7.44 vs 6.50 kg/day), whereas RS cows had lower milk-fat content (p < 0.001). AR cows had higher California Mastitis Test scores (p < 0.001) and lower lactose content (p < 0.001) compared to RS cows, which indicates an improved udder health in RS cows. AR calves displayed more 'cross-suck' during suckling/milk feeding (p < 0.001) and during observations of general behaviour (p < 0.05), and more 'lick and sniff interior' during milking (p < 0.05) and suckling/milk feeding (p < 0.01), compared to RS calves. During observations of general behaviour the RS calves were more often observed to 'walk' (p < 0.01) and 'lick self' (p < 0.05) and less frequently to 'eat concentrate' (p < 0.05) than AR calves. Results support the hypothesis that RS increases milk yield, influences milk composition and improves udder health in cows, and decreases abnormal sucking in calves.
Fröberg
S
S
Department of Animal Nutrition and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Uppsala, Sweden. sofie.froberg@huv.slu.se
Aspegren-Güldorff
A
A
Olsson
I
I
Marin
B
B
Berg
C
C
Hernández
C
C
Galina
C S
CS
Lidfors
L
L
Svennersten-Sjaunja
K
K
D000818:Animals; D000833:Animals, Suckling; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D002417:Cattle / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D002452:Cell Count; D007774:Lactation; D016014:Linear Models; D008321:Mammary Glands, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D008892:Milk / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D008893:Milk Ejection / Q000502:physiology*; D013391:Sucking Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D015430:Weight Gain