title: Relationships between fertility and postpartum changes in body condition and body weight in lactating dairy cows.
abstract: The relationship between energy status and fertility in dairy cattle was retrospectively analyzed by comparing fertility with body condition score (BCS) near artificial insemination (AI; experiment 1), early postpartum changes in BCS (experiment 2), and postpartum changes in body weight (BW; experiment 3). To reduce the effect of cyclicity status, all cows were synchronized with Double-Ovsynch protocol before timed AI. In experiment 1, BCS of lactating dairy cows (n = 1,103) was evaluated near AI. Most cows (93%) were cycling at initiation of the breeding Ovsynch protocol (first GnRH injection). A lower percentage pregnant to AI (P/AI) was found in cows with lower (≤ 2.50) versus higher (≥ 2.75) BCS (40.4 vs. 49.2%). In experiment 2, lactating dairy cows on 2 commercial dairies (n = 1,887) were divided by BCS change from calving until the third week postpartum. Overall, P/AI at 70-d pregnancy diagnosis differed dramatically by BCS change and was least for cows that lost BCS, intermediate for cows that maintained BCS, and greatest for cows that gained BCS [22.8% (180/789), 36.0% (243/675), and 78.3% (331/423), respectively]. Surprisingly, a difference existed between farms with BCS change dramatically affecting P/AI on one farm and no effect on the other farm. In experiment 3, lactating dairy cows (n = 71) had BW measured weekly from the first to ninth week postpartum and then had superovulation induced using a modified Double-Ovsynch protocol. Cows were divided into quartiles (Q) by percentage of BW change (Q1 = least change; Q4 = most change) from calving until the third week postpartum. No effect was detected of quartile on number of ovulations, total embryos collected, or percentage of oocytes that were fertilized; however, the percentage of fertilized oocytes that were transferable embryos was greater for cows in Q1, Q2, and Q3 than Q4 (83.8, 75.2, 82.6, and 53.2%, respectively). In addition, percentage of degenerated embryos was least for cows in Q1, Q2, and Q3 and greatest for Q4 (9.6, 14.5, 12.6, and 35.2% respectively). In conclusion, for cows synchronized with a Double-Ovsynch protocol, an effect of low BCS (≤ 2.50) near AI on fertility was detected, but change in BCS during the first 3 wk postpartum had a more profound effect on P/AI to first timed AI. This effect could be partially explained by the reduction in embryo quality and increase in degenerate embryos byd 7 after AI in cows that lost more BW from the first to third week postpartum.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: P D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Carvalho
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: A H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Amundson
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: K S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Hackbart
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Fuenzalida
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Herlihy
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ayres
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Dresch
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: L M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Vieira
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: J N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Guenther
authors.affiliation: Balchem Corporation, New Hampton, NY 10958.
authors.forename: R R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Grummer
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Fricke
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706.
authors.forename: R D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Shaver
authors.affiliation: Department of Dairy Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53706. Electronic address: wiltbank@wisc.edu.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Wiltbank
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001823:Body Composition; D001835:Body Weight; D002417:Cattle / Q000502:physiology*; D004624:Embryo Transfer / Q000662:veterinary; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D005230:Fatty Acids, Nonesterified / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D007987:Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone / Q000378:metabolism; D007315:Insemination, Artificial / Q000662:veterinary; D007774:Lactation; D010060:Ovulation; D049590:Postpartum Period; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D005230:Fatty Acids, Nonesterified; D007987:Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone
keywords: body condition score loss; body weight loss; embryo quality; fertility
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