scholarly journals Milk, Fertility and Udder Health Performance of Purebred Holstein and Three-Breed Rotational Crossbred Cows within French Farms: Insights on the Benefits of Functional Diversity

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 3414
Author(s):  
Julien Quénon ◽  
Marie-Angélina Magne

Using three-breed rotational crossbreeding in a purebred Holstein (HO) herd raises two questions: Do the different genetic classes of cows generated by crossbreeding perform differently? Are there any economic benefits of combining them within a herd? This study aimed at comparing the performance between the different genetic classes resulting from the use of three-breed rotational crossbreeding, and simulating the effect of combining them on herd profitability. Based on a dataset of 14 French commercial dairy herds using three-bred rotational crossbreeding from a HO herd over a 10-year period, we defined three genetic classes according to the theoretical value of heterosis and the percentage of HO genes. We performed linear models and estimated least square means to compare HO cows and the first and second generation of crosses (F1 and G2, respectively) on eight performance characteristics related to milk yield and solids, udder health and fertility. We used these to simulate profitability of five herd compositions differing according to HO, F1 and G2 proportions. We showed that HO, F1 and G2 cows had different and complementary performance profiles. HO had a win-lost trade-off between milk yield and fertility, G2 had the opposite trade-off and F1 had a win-win trade-off. Differences regarding milk solids and udder health were less clear-cut. We highlighted that combining HO with F1 or with both F1 and G2 (below 30%) could be more profitable than using purebred HO or crossbred herds in a conventional milk price scenario. These findings provide evidence on the benefits of functional diversity generated from the use of dairy crossbreeding in dairy herds.

2019 ◽  
Vol 59 (6) ◽  
pp. 1031 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arash Chegini ◽  
Navid Ghavi Hossein-Zadeh ◽  
Seyed Hossein Hosseini-Moghadam ◽  
Abdol Ahad Shadparvar

The objective of this study was to estimate genetic parameters including repeatability, heritability as well as genetic and environmental relationships between 305-day milk yield, milk fat and protein yield (Fat and Pro), milk fat and protein percentages (Fat% and Pro%), mastitis (Mast), number of mastitis occurrence and different measurements of somatic cell counts using linear and threshold animal as well as linear and threshold sire models in Holstein cows of Iran. Records of 33851 first lactation Holstein cows from five large dairy herds with calving dates from March 2002 to September 2014 were analysed, using Gibbs sampling methodology. Heritabilities of production traits estimated by linear animal model ranged from 0.14 (Fat%) to 0.29 (Pro%). Generally, udder health traits had low heritability (ranged from 0.005 to 0.10). Estimates of heritability for Mast using linear models were higher than those obtained with threshold models. However, in general estimates of heritabilities using threshold models were higher than those from linear models. There were unfavourable genetic correlations between production traits and Mast, which implies that breeding programs with emphasis on 305-day milk yield will experience deterioration in udder health. Despite low heritability of udder health traits, genetic variability exists for these traits that allow selecting superior animals and increasing resistance to Mast and animal welfare. Considering relatively high ratio of permanent environmental variance for Mast, culling decisions can be made with higher accuracy in order to reduce Mast incidence phenotypically over time.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Manuel Ariza ◽  
Thomas Meignan ◽  
Aurélien Madouasse ◽  
François Beaudeau ◽  
Nathalie Bareille

AbstractEnhanced milk composition can improve human health. The composition of milk determines its nutritional and market value. Therefore, in almost all pricing schemes the economic benefits obtained from raw milk sales are influenced by the milk yield and composition. The objective of this retrospective study was to quantify the average effects of supplementing extruded linseed, rich in α-linolenic acid, to dairy cows on milk yield and milk fat and protein content under field conditions. The study included test day records performed on cows from 1294 dairy herds during the period from 2008 to 2015 that were supplied at least 4 times with extruded linseed deliveries. Exposure statuses were defined according to the time sequence and the amount of extruded linseed distributed in the herd. The unexposed population was composed of cows being in a herd period when extruded linseed was not offered. In a linear dose-response relationship, every 100 g increase in exposure to EL was associated with an increased milk yield from 0.11 to 0.14 kg/day, decreased milk fat from 0.06 to 0.13 g/kg and decreased milk protein from 0 to 0.02 g/kg, according to the cow parity. This study provides information on the associations between estimated intakes of EL and milk production and composition using a large database obtained from commercial dairy herds.


2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (6) ◽  
pp. 2597 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deise Aline Knob ◽  
Dileta Regina Moro Alessio ◽  
André Thaler Neto ◽  
Fabrício Desconsi Mozzaquatro

The crossbreeding between dairy cow breeds has been used as an alternative to improve some characteristics such as milk composition, udder health, and reproductive aspects on dairy herds. The aim was to compare growth, milk yield and composition, and mammary gland health of crossbred Holstein x Simmental and purebred Holstein cows. Data were gathered from a farm located in Santa Catarina state, south of Brazil. Cow growth was assessed by weighing calves and heifers monthly. Yet for milk yield and udder health, data were taken from records of the official Dairy Herd Improvement Program carried out in the evaluated farm. These data were subjected to variance analysis using the MIXED procedure of SAS statistical software. Non-linear regressions were used to adjust the data to the growth curves. The crossbred Holstein x Simmental cows produced more milk than did purebreds (31.8 kg/day vs. 30.4 kg/day; p < 0.05), with higher contents of lactose (4.63% vs. 4.53%) and protein (3.14% vs. 3.03%), but no differences in fat content (3.00 vs. 2.96). Purebred cows had higher somatic cell score (SCS) 4.49 vs. 2.93 (P < 0.0001). Furthermore, no differences were found for the growth of calves and heifers. In conclusion, crossbred Holstein x Simmental cows have higher energy corrected milk as the Holstein ones, whit greater uncorrected milk yield only for cows with three or more lactations. Crossbreeds cows produce milk with better quality, indicated by lower SCS and higher solids content, besides showing a lower SCS and no differences regarding weight gain of calves and heifers.


2009 ◽  
Vol 76 (4) ◽  
pp. 402-410 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nils Fall ◽  
Ulf Emanuelson

Organic dairy farming is an expanding segment of the dairy sector where cow management differs from the conventional model in many respects. Thus, a comparative evaluation of disease and welfare status in organically and conventionally managed dairy cows is required. Assessment of milk yield, udder health and reproductive performance (RP) was done in 20 organically and 20 conventionally managed Swedish dairy herds. In accordance with earlier findings we confirmed lower milk yield in organic cows. Udder health and RP were chosen as indicators of animal health in view of their clinical relevance and the availability of appropriate data bases providing good background knowledge for further animal health assessment. No obvious differences were found in the investigations of somatic cell count (SCC) profiles or time to veterinary-treated cases of mastitis between organically and conventional managed cows. Pregnancy success at first insemination, an appropriate measurement of RP with biological interpretation and background, did not reveal any difference between management types, whereas the hazard rate-ratio (HR) of having a calving-interval was significantly lower (HR=0·71) in organically managed cows. The calving-interval is an important financial determinator in dairy production, but it is not considered an optimal indicator of biologic relevance as it partially reflects farmer decisions. In conclusion, the organically managed cows in this study did not differ from conventionally managed cows in udder health or RP, with the exception of calving interval.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 548
Author(s):  
Chia-Wen Lu ◽  
Yi-Chen Lee ◽  
Chia-Sheng Kuo ◽  
Chien-Hsieh Chiang ◽  
Hao-Hsiang Chang ◽  
...  

The association between serum concentrations of zinc, copper, or iron and the risk of metabolic syndrome are inconclusive. Therefore, we conduct a case-control study to explore the relationship between serum levels of zinc, copper, or iron and metabolic syndrome as well as each metabolic factor and insulin resistance. We enrolled 1165 adults, aged ≥ 40 (65.8 ± 10) years in a hospital-based population to compare the serum levels of zinc, copper, and iron between subjects with and without metabolic syndrome by using multivariate logistic regression analyses. The least square means were computed by general linear models to compare serum concentrations of zinc, copper, and iron in relation to the number of metabolic factors. The mean serum concentrations of zinc, copper, and iron were 941.91 ± 333.63 μg/L, 1043.45 ± 306.36 μg/L, and 1246.83 ± 538.13 μg/L, respectively. The odds ratios (ORs) of metabolic syndrome for the highest versus the lowest quartile were 5.83 (95% CI: 3.35–10.12; p for trend < 0.001) for zinc, 2.02 (95% CI: 1.25–3.25; p for trend: 0.013) for copper, and 2.11 (95% CI: 1.24–3.62; p for trend: 0.021) for iron after adjusting for age, sex, personal habits, body mass index, and homeostatic model assessment insulin resistance. Additionally, the serum zinc, copper, and iron concentrations increased as the number of metabolic factors rose (p for trend < 0.001). This was the first study to clearly demonstrate that higher serum levels of zinc, copper, and iron were associated with the risk of metabolic syndrome and the number of metabolic factors independent of BMI and insulin resistance.


Ruminants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-22
Author(s):  
Frank van Eerdenburg ◽  
Lars Ruud

Lying is an important behavior of dairy cattle. Cows should spend more than 50% of a day lying as it has a high impact on their milk yield and animal welfare. The design, size, and flooring properties of the free stalls influence the time cows spend lying, the way they lie down, and their rising movements. The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of the currently available information with the aim to assist farmers and advisors to come to an optimal design of the free stalls. The design of the free stalls should enable the cows to move and lie in positions as natural as possible. Cows should rest, with all parts of the body, on a clean, dry and soft bed, be able to stretch their front legs forward, lie on their sides with unobstructed space for their neck and head, and rest with their heads against their flanks without hindrance from a partition. When they stand, they should not be hindered by neck rails, partitions, or supports. A comfortable place for cows to lie down helps cows to stay healthy, improve welfare, and increase milk yield. Hence, the probability of a longer productive life for the cows increases and the number of replacements per year decreases.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 5095
Author(s):  
Jiang Jiang ◽  
Rui Feng ◽  
Eldon Y. Li

The sharing economy has evolved into a promising business concept that enables individuals to share their idle resources, improving resource utilization efficiency commercially. Recently, it has gained enormous academic attention. However, little concern has been given to the behavior of individual providers on the supply side. This paper aims to uncover the motivational and trust-based providers’ continuance intention of participation in the context of peer-to-peer ride-sharing services. Based on the survey data from 202 providers and the partial least-square analysis, we confirm the mediating effect of attitude in the relationships between participation continuance intention; trust; and three motivational dimensions: economic benefits, social–hedonic value, and sustainability. We further confirm the moderating effects of innovativeness using PROCESS. The results show that economic benefits, social–hedonic value, and sustainability significantly affect providers’ participation continuance intention. Moreover, attitudes toward the sharing economy play a complementary partial-mediating role in the relationships from economic benefits and social–hedonic value to participation continuance intention, which is negatively moderated by innovativeness. Trust does not significantly affect providers’ attitude toward the sharing economy and participation continuance intention in the peer-to-peer ride-sharing context.


2013 ◽  
Vol 278-280 ◽  
pp. 1323-1326
Author(s):  
Yan Hua Yu ◽  
Li Xia Song ◽  
Kun Lun Zhang

Fuzzy linear regression has been extensively studied since its inception symbolized by the work of Tanaka et al. in 1982. As one of the main estimation methods, fuzzy least squares approach is appealing because it corresponds, to some extent, to the well known statistical regression analysis. In this article, a restricted least squares method is proposed to fit fuzzy linear models with crisp inputs and symmetric fuzzy output. The paper puts forward a kind of fuzzy linear regression model based on structured element, This model has precise input data and fuzzy output data, Gives the regression coefficient and the fuzzy degree function determination method by using the least square method, studies the imitation degree question between the observed value and the forecast value.


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