Nitrogen Balance of Dairy Cows Divergent for Milk Urea Nitrogen Consuming Either Plantain or Perennial Ryegrass

Inefficient nitrogen (N) use from pastoral dairy production systems has resulted in environmental degradation, as a result of excessive concentrations of urinary N excretion leaching into waterways and N2O emissions from urination events into the atmosphere. The objectives of this study were to measure and evaluate the total N balance of lactating dairy cows selected for milk urea N concentration breeding values (MUNBVs) consuming either a 100% perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) or 100% plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.) diet. Sixteen multiparous lactating Holstein-Friesian × Jersey cows divergent for MUNBV were housed in metabolism crates for 72 h, where intake and excretions were collected and measured. No effect of MUNBV was detected for total N excretion; however, different excretion characteristics were detected, per urination event. Low MUNBV cows had a 28% reduction in the concentration of urinary urea nitrogen (g/event) compared to high MUNBV cows when consuming a ryegrass diet. Cows consuming plantain regardless of their MUNBV value had a 62% and 48% reduction in urinary urea nitrogen (g/event) compared to high and low MUNBV cows consuming ryegrass, respectively. Cows consuming plantain also partitioned more N into faeces. These results suggest that breeding for low MUNBV cows on ryegrass diets and the use of a plantain diet will reduce urinary urea nitrogen loading rates and therefore estimated nitrate leaching values, thus reducing the environmental impact of pastoral dairy production systems.

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Animal as the Solution: Searching for Environmentally Friendly Dairy Cows

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su131810451 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (18) ◽

pp. 10451

Author(s):

Cameron J. Marshall ◽

Pablo Gregorini

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cows ◽

Selective Breeding ◽

Production Systems ◽

Environmentally Friendly ◽

Methane Emissions ◽

Potential Solution ◽

Urea Nitrogen ◽

Breeding Values ◽

Milk Urea ◽

Milk Urea Nitrogen

There is increasing societal concern surrounding the environmental externalities generated from ruminant production systems. Traditional responses to address these externalities have often been system-based. While these approaches have had promising results, they have served to view the animal as a problem that needs solving, rather than as a potential solution. This review attempts to answer the question: can we breed animals that are more environmentally friendly to address environmental outcomes and satisfy consumer demand? This was done by exploring the literature of examples where animals have been specifically bred to reduce their environmental impact. The use of milk urea nitrogen breeding values has been demonstrated as a tool allowing for selective breeding of dairy cows to reduce nitrogen losses. Low milk urea nitrogen breeding values have been documented to result in reduced urinary nitrogen concentrations per urination event, which ultimately reduces the level of nitrogen that will be lost from the system. The ability to breed for low methane emissions has also shown positive results, with several studies demonstrating the heritability and subsequent reductions in methane emissions via selective breeding programs. Several avenues also exist where animals can be selectively bred to increase the nutrient density of their final product, and thus help to address the growing demand for nutrient-dense food for a growing human population. Animal-based solutions are permanent, cumulative, and often more cost-effective than system-based approaches. With continuing research and interest in breeding for more positive environmental outcomes, the animal can now start to be viewed as a potential solution to many of the issues faced by ruminant production systems, rather than simply being seen as a problem.

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Milk urea-nitrogen negatively affected first-service breeding success in commercial dairy cows in Prince Edward Island, Canada

Preventive Veterinary Medicine ◽

10.1016/j.prevetmed.2007.05.005 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 82 (1-2) ◽

pp. 42-50 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

P. Arunvipas ◽

J.A. VanLeeuwen ◽

I.R. Dohoo ◽

E.R. Leger ◽

G.P. Keefe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cows ◽

Breeding Success ◽

Prince Edward Island ◽

Urea Nitrogen ◽

Milk Urea ◽

Milk Urea Nitrogen

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319 Predicting Urinary Nitrogen Excretion from Milk Urea Nitrogen of Fresh Forage or Total Mixed Ration Fed Dairy Cows: A Meta-analysis

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skab235.315 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 99 (Supplement_3) ◽

pp. 171-171

Author(s):

Matthew R Beck ◽

Cameron Marshall ◽

Konagh Garrett ◽

Andrew P Foote ◽

Ronaldo Vibart ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cows ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Live Weight ◽

Predictive Ability ◽

Nitrogen Excretion ◽

Good Precision ◽

Urea Nitrogen ◽

Total Mixed Ration ◽

Milk Urea ◽

Milk Urea Nitrogen

Abstract Urine nitrogen excretion (g/d; UN) represent a significant environmental impact for both confinement feeding and pastoral based dairy systems. It is difficult to measure UN directly due to animal handling and labor requirements, especially in forage based production systems. The currently available milk urea nitrogen (MUN) equations have been shown to overestimate UN excretion of grazing dairy cows compared with an equation using urinary creatinine and UN concentration, indicating that diet may alter the relationship between MUN and UN. This potential was explored using data retrieved (treatment means: n = 69 and 27 for fresh forage [FF] and total mixed ration [TMR] fed cattle, respectively) from the literature and new data obtained from dairy cows fed FF (n = 15) in metabolism crates was used to test the new equations. The TMR data from literature was further split into a training set (to develop the model; n = 53) and a test set (to validate the model; n = 16). There was an interaction for diet type (P < 0.01) where UN (g/d) = 0.023 × MUN (mg/dL) × live-weight (kg, LW) for TMR fed cattle, (similar to a pre-established equation); however, UN (g/d) = 0.015 × MUN × LW for FF fed cattle. For FF based equations, the New MUN equation and the creatinine equation showed good precision and accuracy (Lin’s CCC = 0.79 and 0.74, respectively) and adequate predictive ability (RMSEP = 29.8 and 35.9, respectively). The new MUN equation for TMR fed cattle showed excellent accuracy and precision (Lin’s CCC = 0.87) with good predictive ability (RMSEP = 24.3) for UN excretion (observed mean = 216.5 g/d). The new equations generated during this meta-analysis provide promising predictive ability of UN excretion, which can be used for management considerations, future research, and policy making.

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Effects of Milk Production, Season, Parity and Lactation Period on Variations of Milk Urea Nitrogen Concentration and Milk Components of Holstein Dairy Cows

Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences ◽

10.5713/ajas.2004.479 ◽

2004 ◽

Vol 17 (4) ◽

pp. 479-484 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

J. T. Yoon ◽

J. H. Lee ◽

C. K. Kim ◽

Y. C. Chung ◽

C.-H. Kim

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cows ◽

Milk Production ◽

Nitrogen Concentration ◽

Lactation Period ◽

Urea Nitrogen ◽

Milk Components ◽

Milk Urea ◽

Holstein Dairy Cows ◽

Milk Urea Nitrogen

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Antagonism in the carbon footprint between beef and dairy production systems

South African Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.4314/sajas.v44i5.4 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 44 (5) ◽

pp. 17-20

Author(s):

MM Scholtz ◽

J Du Toit ◽

FWC Neser

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cows ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Production Systems ◽

Beef Cows ◽

Dairy Farming ◽

Feed Water ◽

Dairy Production ◽

Pasture Production ◽

Total Mixed Ration ◽

Cow Calf

Primary beef cattle farming in South Africa is largely extensive, whereas dairy farming is based on both total mixed ration and pasture production systems. Under natural rangeland conditions, decomposition of manure is aerobic, which produces carbon dioxide (CO2), part of which is absorbed by the regrowth of vegetation rather than released into the atmosphere, and water (H2O) as end products. Thus the cow releases methane (CH4) and the manure CO2. This is in contrast to intensive cow-calf systems in large parts of Europe and North America, where large quantities of manure are stockpiled and undergo anaerobic decomposition and produce CH4. Thus both the cow and the manure release CH4, which result in a higher carbon footprint than the extensive cow-calf systems. In dairy farming, increasing cow efficiency through intensive feeding (same kg milk output by fewer animals) can reduce farm CH4 production by up to 15%. In addition, when differences in productivity are accounted for, pasture systems require more resources (land, feed, water, etc.) per unit of milk produced and the carbon footprint is greater than that of intensive systems. This raises the question as to why the carbon footprint of intensive dairy cow production systems is less, but the carbon footprint of intensive beef cow-calf production systems is higher. The explanation lies in the differences in production levels. In the case of beef cows the weight of the intensive cows will be ± 30% higher than that of the extensive cows, and the weaning weight of their calves will also differ by ± 30%. In the case of dairy cows the weight of the intensive cows will be ± 20% higher, but their milk production will be ± 60% higher. The higher increase in production (milk) of intensive dairy cows, compared to the increase in production (calf weight) of intensive beef cows, explains the antagonism in the carbon footprint between different beef and dairy production systems. Unfortunately, carbon sequestration estimates have been neglected and thus the quantitative effects of these differences are not known.Keywords: Cow-calf production, methane, pasture production, production levels, total mixed ration

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Evaluation of the Performance of Lactating Dairy Cows Fed on Paddy Straw Plus Non-Forage Fibre Sources Based Complete Feeds With Varying Levels of Neutral Detergent Fibre on the Basis of Milk Urea Nitrogen, Nitrogen Balance and Rumen Ammonia

International Journal of Livestock Research ◽

10.5455/ijlr.20200429065452 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

Biju Chacko ◽

Syam Mohan ◽

K Ally ◽

K Shyama

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cows ◽

Nitrogen Balance ◽

Paddy Straw ◽

Urea Nitrogen ◽

Neutral Detergent Fibre ◽

Lactating Dairy Cows ◽

Milk Urea ◽

Milk Urea Nitrogen

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The effect of non-nutritional factors on milk urea nitrogen levels in dairy cows in Prince Edward Island, Canada

Preventive Veterinary Medicine ◽

10.1016/s0167-5877(03)00061-8 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 59 (1-2) ◽

pp. 83-93 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

P Arunvipas ◽

I.R Dohoo ◽

J.A VanLeeuwen ◽

G.P Keefe

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cows ◽

Prince Edward Island ◽

Urea Nitrogen ◽

Nutritional Factors ◽

Nitrogen Levels ◽

Milk Urea ◽

Milk Urea Nitrogen

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Corn supplementation on milk urea nitrogen content of dairy cows grazing on temperate annual pasture

Ciência Rural ◽

10.1590/0103-8478cr20190077 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 50 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Aline Cristina Dall-Orsoletta ◽

João Gabriel Rossini Almeida ◽

Márcia Maria Oziemblowski ◽

Henrique Mendonça Nunes Ribeiro-Filho

Keyword(s):

Dairy Cows ◽

Protein Production ◽

Milk Protein ◽

Live Weight ◽

Corn Silage ◽

Utilization Efficiency ◽

Urea Nitrogen ◽

Plasma Urea ◽

Lactation Stage ◽

Milk Urea

ABSTRACT: The excretion of urinary nitrogen (N), one of the most important environmental contaminants from livestock systems, is highly correlated with milk urea N content. The objective of this research was to evaluate the use of different types of corn supplementation on milk urea N in grazing dairy cows. Twelve Holstein × Jersey lactating dairy cows were divided into six uniform groups according to milk production, lactation stage and live weight. Treatments were compared according to a 3 × 3 replicated Latin square experimental design, with three periods of seventeen days (twelve days to adaptation and five to measurements). The experimental treatments were exclusively grazing (G); grazing + supplementation with 4.2 kg DM of corn silage (CS) and grazing + supplementation with 3.2 kg DM of ground corn (GC). The pasture used was annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum L.) and white oats (Avena sativa L.). The milk protein production increased 65 g/day in the GC treatment group compared to the G and CS groups. The supplemented dairy cows showed lower milk urea N (-2.8 mg/dL) than unsupplemented cows, but the N utilization efficiency (g N output in milk/ g N intake) did not change between treatments (average = 0.26). Additionally, there was a relationship between milk and plasma urea nitrogen concentrations (R2 = 0.64). In conclusion, for dairy cows grazing annual temperate pastures, corn ground supplementation increased milk protein production and reduced the excretion of milk urea N, whereas corn silage reduced the excretion of milk urea N without affecting milk protein production.

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