PSII-12 Effect of aspirin to intentionally induce leaky gut on performance, blood markers of stress, and carcass characteristics of feedlot cattle

Abstract The negative impacts of stress on gastrointestinal (GIT) barrier function can result in compromised animal health. Aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) is known to cause mucosal injury leading to increased gut permeability and tight junction damage. The objective of this study was to determine the long-term impact of leaky gut on animal physiology. In this experiment, 96 Simmental x Angus steers (355 ± 14.8 kg) were allotted by body weight and breed into two treatments: control (no aspirin) or aspirin fed at 50 mg/kg/d for 159 d. Steers were housed in 16 pens (8 pens/treatment) with 6 steers in each pen. Weight was recorded monthly and serum was collected on d 159 to be analyzed for lipopolysaccharide binding protein (LBP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), serum amyloid A (SAA), haptoglobin, and aspartate aminotransferase (AST). Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS. Average daily gain (ADG) tended to decrease in cattle fed aspirin (P= 0.10). Aspirin decreased hot carcass weight (P= 0.05) and rib-eye area (P= 0.01)and increased fat thickness (P= 0.02), marbling score (P = 0.003), and yield grade (P = 0.01). Percent KPH tended to increase (P= 0.10) for steers fed aspirin. Aspirin had no effect on body weight, dry matter intake, gain:feed, days on feed, dressing percentage, liver abscess score, or percent liver abscesses. Aspirin tended to increase serum LBP (P= 0.07), but had no effect on serum concentrations of IL-6, haptoglobin, SAA, and AST (P≥ 0.30). This study indicates that leaky gut induced by long-term administration of aspirin has negative impacts on feedlot performance and carcass leanness. The negative impact of aspirin induced leaky gut on animal performance suggests that leaky gut caused by other factors (subacute acidosis, stress) may be a significant problem for the feedlot industry.

Download Full-text

Effect of aspirin to intentionally induce leaky gut on performance, inflammation, and carcass characteristics of feedlot cattle

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skab328 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

N G Briggs ◽

B C Silva ◽

L A Godoi ◽

J P Schoonmaker

Keyword(s):

Negative Impact ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Mucosal Injury ◽

Feedlot Cattle ◽

Carcass Composition ◽

Leaky Gut ◽

Marbling Score ◽

Amyloid A ◽

Negative Impacts

Abstract The negative impacts of stress on gastrointestinal (GIT) barrier function can result in compromised animal growth and health. Aspirin is known to cause mucosal injury leading to increased gut permeability and tight junction damage and can be used as a model to study leaky gut in cattle. The objective of this study was to determine the long-term impact of aspirin induced chronic leaky gut on cattle growth and carcass attributes. Two treatments were evaluated in 2 studies: control (no aspirin) or 0.25% of the diet DM aspirin fed daily. Diets consisted of 50% corn, 24% dried distillers grains, 20% corn silage and 6 % supplement on a DM basis. In experiment 1, sixteen Angus x Simmental heifers, allotted by BW and breed composition, were fed diets for 154 d. On day 155, heifers were dosed with 1 L of a 180 mM Cr-EDTA solution using an esophageal tube and had urine collected every 1.5 to 3 h for 48 h for analysis of Cr as a measure of gut leakiness. In experiment 2, ninety-six Simmental x Angus steers (355.0 ± 14.8 kg) were allotted by body weight and breed composition and fed treatment diets for 159 d. Weight was recorded monthly and serum was collected on d 159 and analyzed for lipopolysaccharide binding protein (LBP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), serum amyloid A (SAA), haptoglobin, and aspartate aminotransferase (AST). Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS. Heifers fed 0.25% aspirin in experiment 1 excreted more Cr into urine compared to heifers not fed aspirin (overall treatment effect, P = 0.01). In experiment 2, aspirin tended to increase serum LBP (P = 0.06), but had no effect on concentrations of IL-6, haptoglobin, SAA, or AST (P ≥ 0.25). Aspirin tended to decrease average daily gain (P = 0.10), decreased hot carcass weight and rib-eye area (P ≤ 0.05), and increased fat thickness, marbling score, and yield grade (P ≤ 0.02). Aspirin tended to increase KPH% (P = 0.10) and had no effect on liver abscesses (P ≥ 0.80). This study indicates that leaky gut induced by long-term administration of aspirin has negative impacts on feedlot performance and carcass composition. The negative impact of aspirin induced leaky gut on animal performance suggests that chronic leaky gut caused by other factors (subacute acidosis, stress) may be a significant problem for the feedlot industry.

Download Full-text

Effect of oscillating feeding time and corn processing on performance and carcass characteristics of feedlot steers

Translational Animal Science ◽

10.1093/tas/txaa103 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 974-979

Author(s):

Alejandro E Relling ◽

David Douglas Clevenger ◽

Francis L Fluharty

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Growth Performance ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Carcass Characteristics ◽

Feedlot Cattle ◽

Feeding Time ◽

Marbling Score ◽

Similar Time ◽

Corn Processing ◽

Animal Growth

Abstract The objectives of this experiment were to evaluate the effect of oscillating feeding time (OFT) and corn processing (CoP) on performance and carcass characteristics of feedlot cattle. One hundred sixty-five steers (initial body weight [BW] 277.2 ± 27.80 kg) were blocked by initial BW and allotted to 24 pens. Pens within each block were randomly assigned based on a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. The two factors were CoP (whole shelled corn vs. ground corn [GC]) and feeding time (FT) (constant FT vs. 2 hours OFT). Animals were fed the same diet, only changing the CoP method depending on the treatment. Feed offered and feed refusals were collected daily. Body weight was collected at starting day of the experiment (d1) and every 28 d until the end of the experiment. At the end of the experiment, animals were harvested in a commercial slaughter facility, and carcass data were collected by a USDA grader. Animal growth performance and carcass characteristics data were analyzed with the PROC Mixed procedure (SAS) using CoP, FT, and their interaction as fixed variables; and treatments × pen within each block and block were considered random variables. There was no CoP by FT interaction differences (P > 0.10) on animal growth performance variables, nor on hot carcass weight, back fat, rib eye area, or the percentage of kidney, pelvic, and heart fat. There was a tendency for an interaction (P = 0.08) for marbling score, where the steers from the GC processing fed on the oscillating time had a lesser marbling score than the other three treatments. Oscillating feeding time improved (P = 0.05) average daily gain; but did not affect (P ≥ 0.11) dry matter intake (DMI), nor carcass characteristics compared with feeding at a similar time every day. There were no effects (P ≥ 0.11) of CoP on growth performance, nor carcass characteristics. In conclusion, a 2-hour oscillation in FT might not decrease steer feedlot performance. This may be due to the high degree of control of DMI with feed bunk management.

Download Full-text

PSVII-24 Blend of essential oils plus 25-hydroxy-vitamin-D3 as alternative to the use monensin on growth performance and dietary energetics in feedlot cattle raised under high ambient temperature

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skab235.805 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 99 (Supplement_3) ◽

pp. 452-453

Author(s):

Daniel Mendoza-Cortés ◽

Jorge L Ramos-Méndez ◽

Adrián Félix-Bernal ◽

Alfredo Estrada-Angulo ◽

Manuel Franco ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Essential Oils ◽

Ambient Temperature ◽

Vitamin D3 ◽

Animal Health ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Feedlot Cattle ◽

High Ambient Temperature ◽

Energy Utilization ◽

Daily Weight Gain ◽

Final Weight

Abstract Ninety young crossbreed bulls (approximately 25% Zebu breeding with the remainder represented by continental and British breeds in various proportions, initial weight=228.04±7.06 kg) were used in a 84-day feeding trial to assess the effects of treatments in feedlot cattle fed transition diets during high ambient temperatures. Treatments consisted of a steam-flaked corn-based diets (average 1.95 Mcal ENm/kg) supplemented with: 1) 20 mg monensin/kg diet (MON, Rumensin, Elanco Animal Health, Indianapolis, IN], and 2) 100 mg of blend of essential oils /kg diet plus 0.1 mg 25-hydroxy-vitamin-D3/kg diet (EO+HyD; CRINA® Ruminants and HyD®, DSM Nutritional Products, Basel, Switzerland). Both dry matter intake (DMI) and climatic variables were measured daily and the temperature humidity index (THI) was estimated. Daily maximal THI remained over 80 during the whole trial (avg. THI = 82.67). Cattle supplemented with EO+HyD increased average daily gain in 8.7% (1.446 vs. 1.320 kg/day, P < 0.01), gain-to-fed ratio in 4.5% (0.199 vs. 0.190; P = 0.03), final weight in 10.05 kg (349.48 vs. 339.43; P = 0.04) and tended (P = 0.07) to shown greater dietary net energy (2.5%) and observed-to-expected dietary NE ratio (3%). Even when EO+HyD tended to increase (4.3%; P = 0.06) DM intake, intake pattern variation were not different (P = 0.38) between MON and EO+HyD (Figure 1). Then, difference in ADG and final BW between MON and EO+HyD was not only a reflection of difference in energy intake, was also caused by difference in efficiency of energy utilization during conditions of high ambient temperature (a reduction of 7% in the estimated increase of coefficient of maintenance by heat load). Results indicate that supplementation with a combination of essential oil blend plus 25-hydroxy-vitamin-D3 can have greater beneficial effects than supplemental monensin on daily weight gain, final weight and feed intake during initiation-transition phase of cattle raised under high ambient temperature.

Download Full-text

Genetic parameters for growth and carcass traits of Japanese Black (Wagyu) cattle

Animal Science ◽

10.1017/s1357729800054898 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 71 (1) ◽

pp. 59-64 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

T. Oikawa ◽

T. Sanehira ◽

K. Sato ◽

Y. Mizoguchi ◽

H. Yamamoto ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Genetic Parameters ◽

Growth Traits ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Carcass Traits ◽

Genetic Correlations ◽

Subcutaneous Fat ◽

Marbling Score ◽

Data Set ◽

Pooled Data

AbstractRestricted maximum likelihood analyses fitting an animal model were conducted to estimate genetic parameters with a pooled-data set of performance tests (growth traits and food intake) on 661 bulls and progeny tests (growth traits and carcass traits) on 535 steers. Traits studied included concentrate intake (CONC), roughage intake (ROU), TDN conversion (TCNV), TDN intake (TINT) of bulls; rib eye area (REA), marbling score (MARB), dressing proportion (DRES) and subcutaneous fat depth (SCF) of steers. Body weight at start (BWS), body weight at finish (BWF) and average daily gain (ADG) of all animals were measured. Estimated heritabilities were 0·18 (CONC), 0·71 (ROU), 0·11 (TCNV) and 0·36 (TINT); 0·02 (REA), 0·49 (MARB), 0·15 (DRES), 0·15 (SCF), and from 0·20 to 0·38 for growth traits. Genetic correlations of ROU were different from those of CONC, probably due to inconsistent restrictions on concentrate intake; those of TINT with the weights, ADG and SCF were high. MARB showed positive genetic correlations with growth traits and low correlations with TINT and SCF. High potentiality for improvement of marbling score was suggested.

Download Full-text

The influence of shade allocation or total shade plus overhead fan on growth performance, efficiency of dietary energy utilization, and carcass characteristics of feedlot cattle under tropical ambient conditions

Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences ◽

10.5713/ajas.19.0112 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 33 (6) ◽

pp. 1034-1041

Author(s):

Beatriz I. Castro-Pérez ◽

Alfredo Estrada-Angulo ◽

Francisco G. Ríos-Rincón ◽

Víctor H. Núñez-Benítez ◽

Carlos R. Rivera-Méndez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Energy Requirement ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Carcass Characteristics ◽

Feedlot Cattle ◽

Energy Utilization ◽

Maximum Temperature ◽

Dietary Energy ◽

Marbling Score ◽

Quadratic Effect

Objective: The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the effect of shade allocation and shade plus fan on growth performance, dietary energy utilization and carcass characteristics of feedlot cattle under tropical ambient conditionsMethods: Two trials were conducted, involving a total of 1,560 young bulls (289±22 kg BW) assigned to 24 pens (65 bulls/pen and 6 pens/treatment). Pens were 585 m2 with 15 m fence line feed bunks. Shade treatments (m2 shade/animal) were: i) limited shade (LS) to 1.2 m2shade/animal (LS1.2); ii) limited shade to 2.4 m2 shade/animal (LS2.4); iii) total shade (TS) which correspond to 9 m2/animal, and iv) total shade equipped with fans (TS+F). Trials lasted 158 and 183 days. In both studies, the average weekly maximum temperature exceeded 34°C.Results: Increasing shade allocation tended (p = 0.08) to linearly increases average daily gain (ADG), and dry matter intake (DMI, quadratic effect, p = 0.03). This effect was most apparent between LS1.2 and LS2.4. Shade allocation, per se, did not affect gain efficiency or estimated dietary net energy (NE). Compared with TS, TS+F increased (p<0.05) ADG, gain efficiency, and tended (p = 0.06) to increase dietary NE. There was a quadratic effect of shade on longissimus area and marbling score, with values being lower (p<0.01) for LS2.4 than for LS1.2 or TS. Likewise, marbling score was lower for TS+F than for TS. Percentage kidney, pelvic, and heart (KPH) linearly decreased with increasing shade. In contrast, KPH was greater for TS than for TS+F.Conclusion: Providing more than 2.4 m2 shade/animal will not further enhance feedlot performance. The use of fans in combination with shade increases ADG and gain efficiency beyond that of shade, alone. These enhancements were not associated with increased DMI, but rather, to an amelioration of ambient temperature humidity index on maintenance energy requirement.

Download Full-text

Effects of a pineapple (Ananas comosus L.) cannery by-product on growth performance and carcass characteristics in finishing Hanwoo steers

Animal Bioscience ◽

10.5713/ajas.20.0234 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 34 (2) ◽

pp. 233-242

Author(s):

Yongjun Choi ◽

Sangrak Lee ◽

Youngjun Na

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Growth Performance ◽

Body Weight Gain ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Carcass Characteristics ◽

Amino Acid Profile ◽

Ananas Comosus ◽

Marbling Score ◽

Negative Effects ◽

Feeding Group

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the effect of pineapple cannery by-product (PCB) level on the growth performance and carcass characteristics of finishing Hanwoo steers.Methods: The feeding stage was divided into early and late finishing stages. A total of 60 castrated Hanwoo steers (13.9±0.8 months old, 418.8±36.5 kg initial body weight [BW]) were blocked by initial BW and then randomly allotted into 12 pens (five head/pen). The pens were randomly assigned to control (CONT), low PCB (LPCB), or high PCB (HPCB) treatments. These diets contained 0%, 1.5%, or 3.0% of PCB (on a dry matter [DM] basis; as-fed basis was 0%, 10.6%, or 21.2%), respectively.Results: For the early finishing stage, body weight gain (BWG) and average daily gain (ADG) of the CONT and LPCB feeding groups were greater (p<0.05) than those of the HPCB feeding group. In addition, there were linear and quadratic effects on BWG and ADG with increasing dietary PCB level (p<0.05). The gain to feed (G:F) ratio tends to quadratically decrease with an increasing PCB level in the early finishing stage (p = 0.076). Growth performances of late finishing stage were not affected by PCB level. The marbling score of the LPCB feeding group was similar to that of the CONT feeding group. However, there was a linear decrease (p< 0.05) in marbling score and quality grade among treatments as PCB was increased in the diet. In the longissimus muscle free amino acid profile, histidine composition increased linearly (p<0.05) with an increasing level of PCB.Conclusion: The level of PCB 1.5% DM in diet can be used for finishing steers without any adverse effects on growth and carcass performances. However, there were some negative effects on growth and carcass performance in the HPCB feeding group.

Download Full-text

PSI-4 Effect of rumen protected capsaicin on dry matter intake, average daily gain, and carcass characteristics in finishing beef cattle

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skz258.586 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 97 (Supplement_3) ◽

pp. 290-290 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

John C Eidsvik ◽

John J McKinnon ◽

Diego Moya Fernandez ◽

Alexandra Blanchard

Keyword(s):

Dry Matter ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Carcass Characteristics ◽

Feedlot Cattle ◽

Dry Matter Intake ◽

Canola Meal ◽

High Dose ◽

Marbling Score ◽

Mineral Supplement ◽

Dressing Percentage

Abstract The objective was to evaluate growth performance and carcass characteristics for feedlot cattle fed two sources of rumen protected capsaicin at two dose rates. A total of 450 steers, stratified by BW, were assigned into 30 pens. Pens were randomly assigned to receive 1 of 5 treatments containing (DM basis) of 86.2% barley grain, 6.0% barley silage, 6.2% canola meal, and 1.6% vitamin and mineral supplement. Treatments contained no additive (CON) or included a low or high dose of Nexulin (100 mg/d for NEXLO and 330 mg/d for NEXHI) or CapsXL (77 mg/d CAPLO or 250 mg/d for CAPHI). Steers averaged 507 kg BW at the start of the study and 686 kg at the end of the study (69 days on feed) with no differences among treatments (P > 0.28). Dry matter intake, ADG, gain:feed, dressing percentage, backfat thickness, and rib-eye area were not affected by treatment (P > 0.33). Steers fed CAPLO and NEXLO tended (P = 0.07) to have lesser marbling scores than CON, CAPHI and NEXHI. The proportion of steers in Canadian yield grades 1 and 2 did not differ among treatments, while those in yield grade 3 were greater (P = 0.03) in NEXLO (29%) than the CON (10.0%) and NEXHI (12.2%) treatments, with those fed CAPLO (20%) and CAPHI (19%) being intermediate but not different. Treatment did not affect the proportion of steers in quality grades B4, A, or prime, but tended to increase the proportion of steers grading AAA (P = 0.08) and decrease the proportion grading AA (P = 0.06). Overall, the data from this experiment suggest the potential for capsaicin to affect carcass yield grade, marbling score and quality grades without affecting DMI, ADG, or dressing percentage.

Download Full-text

PSX-15 Fall grazing of annual forages with fall born lambs may improve animal growth and total protein concentrations when compared to stockpiled pastures

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skaa278.786 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽

pp. 451-452

Author(s):

Braden J Campbell ◽

Christine Gelley ◽

Jefferson S McCutcheon ◽

Francis L Fluharty ◽

Anthony J Parker

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Plasma Protein ◽

Body Weight Gain ◽

Animal Health ◽

Critical Role ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Gastrointestinal Parasites ◽

Total Plasma ◽

Plasma Protein Concentration ◽

Total Plasma Protein

Abstract There is a consistent demand for grass-fed livestock products in the domestic market. Alternative grazing strategies should be considered to sustain the year-round production of grass-fed products that meet consumer demand and support animal health and performance. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of annual forages on the growth and parasite resilience of growing lambs. We hypothesized that lambs grazing annual forages would increase their body weight at a greater rate when compared to lambs grazing stockpiled pasture. A total of 54, 60-day-old lambs (24 kg ± 4.9 kg) were stratified by weight, sex, and randomly assigned to one of three grazing treatments: 1) oats (O); 2) turnips (T); and 3) stockpiled tall fescue pasture (F). Lamb body weight and indices of parasitism were measured every 14 days. Data were analyzed using PROC MIXED in SAS. There was a treatment × day effect for body weight such that T lambs were heavier on days 42 and 56 than O and F lambs (P < 0.03). Furthermore, there was a treatment × day effect for average daily gain (ADG) whereas T lambs had a greater ADG on days 28 and 42 than O and F lambs (P < 0.0001). In addition, on day 42, F lambs had a greater ADG when compared to O lambs (P < 0.003). For the indices of parasitism, T lambs demonstrated lesser total plasma protein concentration on days 28 and 42 when compared with O lambs (P < 0.05). Forage type plays a critical role in lamb resilience to gastrointestinal parasites and body weight gain whereas T lambs showed a greater liveweight gain. However, T lambs also demonstrated lesser concentrations of total plasma protein when compared to O lambs. Under these conditions, annual forages adequately sustained the growth of fall grazing lambs.

Download Full-text

PSVII-14 Performance and health responses of feedlot cattle consuming different feed additives during a 45-day receiving period

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skaa278.533 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽

pp. 295-296

Author(s):

Eduardo Colombo ◽

Reinaldo F Cooke ◽

Alice Brandão ◽

Jacob Wiegand ◽

Kelsey Schubach ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Respiratory Disease ◽

Feed Intake ◽

Feed Efficiency ◽

Treatment Effects ◽

Animal Health ◽

Feedlot Cattle ◽

Feed Additives ◽

Total Incidence ◽

To Receive

Abstract This experiment compared performance and health responses of feedlot cattle consuming different feed additives during a 45-d receiving period. Angus-influenced steers (n = 256) were purchased from a commercial auction yard, and road-transported (12 h) to the experimental feedyard on d -1. Upon arrival, body weight (BW) was recorded and steers were ranked by BW into 1 or 18 drylot pens (14 or 15 steers/pen). Pens were randomly assigned to receive RAMP® from d 0 to d 45 with the inclusion of: 1) Rumensin + Tylan (Elanco Animal Health; Greenfield, IN; 360 mg and 90 mg per animal/daily, respectively; RT), 2) Rumensin + Celmanax + Certillus (Church and Dwight Co., Inc., Princeton, NJ; 18 g and 28 per animal/daily, respectively; RCC), or Celmanax + Certillus (18 g and 28 per animal/daily, respectively; CC). Feed intake during the initial 21 d of the experiment was greater (P ≤ 0.05) in CC vs. RCC and RT. No treatment effects were detected for steer BW gain and feed efficiency (P ≥ 0.41). Total incidence of steers treated for respiratory disease did not differ between treatments (77.9, 82.3, and 80.0%, respectively, P = 0.77). Removal of steers from the experiment due to extreme morbidity of mortality was greater (P = 0.02) in RT vs. CC, and intermediate for RCC (22.4, 7.0, and 12.9%, respectively). Accordingly, total liveweight per pen on d 45 was greater (P ≤ 0.05) for CC and RCC vs. RT (3.79, 3.61, and 3.20 ton, respectively). Inclusion of CC into a receiving diet improved initial feed intake compared with ionophore-containing diets, but without changing steer performance. Moreover, CC and RCC resulted in improved health responses during the 45-d receiving period compared with the traditional RT receiving diet. These results suggest that CC ingredients improved intake and immunocompetence of receiving cattle.

Download Full-text

Impacts of Prepubertal Rearing Intensity and Calf Health on First-Lactation Yield and Lifetime Performance

Annals of Animal Science ◽

10.2478/aoas-2018-0051 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

pp. 201-214

Author(s):

Nina Volkmann ◽

Nicole Kemper ◽

Anke Römer

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Milk Yield ◽

Average Daily Gain ◽

Long Term Effects ◽

Duration Of Treatment ◽

Feeding Intensity ◽

Long Term Study ◽

Lifetime Performance ◽

Daily Gain

AbstractThe objective of the present study was to investigate possible long-term effects of calf and heifer feeding intensity on first-lactation milk yield and lifetime efficiency (milk per day of life). Detailed records from a total number of 2,252 female German Holstein calves from one commercial farm were obtained from birth to culling. Data regarding all information about calf’s birth, rearing time until first insemination, first calving, first-lactation yield and lifetime performance were collected over a 12-year period. This large data volume was merged, handled, checked for plausibility, classified and evaluated. Analyses revealed that body weight at an age of six months was significantly influenced by the average daily gain in the first two weeks of life (P<0.0001) and by the duration of treatment for respiratory diseases (P=0.0080). Moreover, first-lactation yield was affected by average daily gain in the whole first year of life (P=0.0013) and particularly in the period of month nine to twelve (P=0.00187). Lifetime efficiency was significantly influenced by body weight at first insemination (P=0.0051), average milk yield (P<0.0001) and reason for culling (P<0.0001). The results of this long-term study confirm that growth is important in general, but as shown by the negative correlation between average daily gain from month nine to twelve and the first lactation milk yield, nutrient intake (energy and protein) should be adapted to enable a controlled growth especially at certain periods of life. After six months of age, daily gain has to be controlled to avoid fat accumulation for a healthy and effective start of lactation. In addition, this analysis revealed that after passing first lactation, particularly health and fertility are the keys for a long efficient lifetime of dairy cows.

Download Full-text