At high temperatures, evaporative cooling is the principal mechanism for heat dissipation in cattle. It is influenced by humidity and wind speed and by physiological factors such as respiration rate, and density and activity of sweat glands. Following exposure to heat, cattle appear to acclimatise within 2-7 weeks. The failure of homeostasis at high temperatures may lead to reduced productivity or even death. Knowledge of characteristic behavioural signs of increasing heat stress may alert cattle handlers to impending heat distress, particularly in areas of potential climatic extremes of high temperatures and humidities. Reduction of the heat increment of feeding by dietary manipulation may partially protect cattle from forecast heat stress. Under high heat stress, Bos indicus breeds and their crosses have better heat regulatory capacities than Bos taurus breeds, due to differences in metabolic rate, food and water consumption, sweating rate, and coat characteristics and colour. Also, because Bos taurus have a higher heat loading at the skin, they must evaporate substantially more sweat than Bos indicus to maintain normal body temperatures. Welfare concerns exist about heat stress and the provision of shade for feedlot cattle. In hot weather, cattle actively seek shade, which may reduce the radiant heat load by 30% or more. Under conditions of extreme heat load, shading may maintain production and reduce deaths from heat stroke. Shading of feed and water also offers production advantages for British and European breeds of cattle.
We characterized the changes in blood glucose concentrations in healthy cats exposed to a short stressor and determined the associations between glucose concentrations, behavioral indicators of stress, and blood variables implicated in stress hyperglycemia (plasma glucose, lactate, insulin, glucagon, cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine concentrations). Twenty healthy adult cats with normal glucose tolerance had a 5-minute spray bath. Struggling and vocalization were the most frequent behavioral responses. There was a strong relationship between struggling and concentrations of glucose and lactate. Glucose and lactate concentrations increased rapidly and significantly in all cats in response to bathing, with peak concentrations occurring at the end of the bath (glucose baseline 83 mg/dL, mean peak 162 mg/dL; lactate baseline 6.3 mg/dL, mean peak 64.0 mg/dL). Glucose response resolved within 90 minutes in 12 of the 20 cats. Changes in mean glucose concentrations were strongly correlated with changes in mean lactate (r = .84; P < .001) and mean norepinephrine concentrations (r = .81; P < .001). There was no significant correlation between changes in mean glucose concentrations and changes in mean insulin, glucagon, cortisol, or epinephrine concentrations. Struggling and lactate concentrations were predictive of hyperglycemia. Gluconeogenesis stimulated by lactate release is the likely mechanism for hyperglycemia in healthy cats in this model of acute stress. Careful handling techniques that minimize struggling associated with blood collection may reduce the incidence of stress hyperglycemia in cats.
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