Analysis of the calving pattern of herds in small-scale dairy systems in central Mexico

Val-Arreola, D.; Kebreab, E.; Mills, J.A.N.

doi:10.22358/jafs/67625/2004

Cited by 2 publications

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“…The model provided a solution for a better nutrient supply and for maintaining a greater stocking rate than the traditional strategy, and included utilizing a combination of forages such as alfalfa hay, corn silage, fresh ryegrass, and oat hay. Second, LP and Markov chain components were built to study the effect of calving interval on calving pattern and herd structure (Val-Arreola et al, 2004b). The Markov chain model suggested adopting different reproduction strategies according to period of the year in which the cow was expected to calve.…”

Section: Nutrient Utilization At the Animal And Whole-farm Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent advances in modeling nutrient utilization in ruminants1

Kebreab

Dijkstra

Bannink

2009

Journal of Animal Science

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Mathematical modeling techniques have been applied to study various aspects of the ruminant, such as rumen function, postabsorptive metabolism, and product composition. This review focuses on advances made in modeling rumen fermentation and its associated rumen disorders, and energy and nutrient utilization and excretion with respect to environmental issues. Accurate prediction of fermentation stoichiometry has an impact on estimating the type of energy-yielding substrate available to the animal, and the ratio of lipogenic to glucogenic VFA is an important determinant of methanogenesis. Recent advances in modeling VFA stoichiometry offer ways for dietary manipulation to shift the fermentation in favor of glucogenic VFA. Increasing energy to the animal by supplementing with starch can lead to health problems such as subacute rumen acidosis caused by rumen pH depression. Mathematical models have been developed to describe changes in rumen pH and rumen fermentation. Models that relate rumen temperature to rumen pH have also been developed and have the potential to aid in the diagnosis of subacute rumen acidosis. The effect of pH has been studied mechanistically, and in such models, fractional passage rate has a large impact on substrate degradation and microbial efficiency in the rumen and should be an important theme in future studies. The efficiency with which energy is utilized by ruminants has been updated in recent studies. Mechanistic models of N utilization indicate that reducing dietary protein concentration, matching protein degradability to the microbial requirement, and increasing the energy status of the animal will reduce the output of N as waste. Recent mechanistic P models calculate the P requirement by taking into account P recycled through saliva and endogenous losses. Mechanistic P models suggest reducing current P amounts for lactating dairy cattle to at least 0.35% P in the diet, with a potential reduction of up to 1.3 kt/yr. A model that integrates nutrient utilization and health has great potential benefit for ruminant nutrition research. Finally, whole-animal or farm level models are discussed. An example that used a multiple-criteria decision-making framework is reviewed, and the approach is considered to be appropriate in dealing with the multidimensional nature of agricultural systems and can be applied to assist the decision process in cattle operations.

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Section: Nutrient Utilization At the Animal And Whole-farm Levelsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recent advances in modeling nutrient utilization in ruminants1

Kebreab

Dijkstra

Bannink

2009

Journal of Animal Science

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“…Technical coefficients correspond to a typical smallscale dairy farm located in Michoacan State, central Mexico. These enterprises comprise two basic components, one livestock production and the other crop production, with both being strongly interrelated (Val-Arreola et al, 2004a). Regarding the livestock component, herd size averaged 13 mature cows with a live weight of 550 kg and a milk yield of 14 L/d over a lactation period of 305 d (Méndez-y-Cazarín et al, 2000).…”

Section: Technical Coefficientsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…New approaches are required to provide insights into improving the efficiency of this type of system. Previous work has suggested considering changes related to: i) selecting the most appropriate feeding strategy according to resource availability and herd needs (Val-Arreola et al, 2005); ii) deciding the number of cows calving in each period of the year (Val-Arreola et al, 2004a); and iii) selecting the best forage production strategy (Val-Arreola et al, 2004b). The previous work, however, considered different aspects of the system in isolation, unlike the current study, which considers the system holistically, leading to more specific recommendations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Modeling Small-Scale Dairy Farms in Central Mexico Using Multi-Criteria Programming

Val-Arreola

Kebreab

France

2006

Journal of Dairy Science

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Milk supply from Mexican dairy farms does not meet demand and small-scale farms can contribute toward closing the gap. Two multi-criteria programming techniques, goal programming and compromise programming, were used in a study of small-scale dairy farms in central Mexico. To build the goal and compromise programming models, 4 ordinary linear programming models were also developed, which had objective functions to maximize metabolizable energy for milk production, to maximize margin of income over feed costs, to maximize metabolizable protein for milk production, and to minimize purchased feedstuffs. Neither multi-criteria approach was significantly better than the other; however, by applying both models it was possible to perform a more comprehensive analysis of these small-scale dairy systems. The multi-criteria programming models affirm findings from previous work and suggest that a forage strategy based on alfalfa, ryegrass, and corn silage would meet nutrient requirements of the herd. Both models suggested that there is an economic advantage in rescheduling the calving season to the second and third calendar quarters to better synchronize higher demand for nutrients with the period of high forage availability.

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Analysis of the calving pattern of herds in small-scale dairy systems in central Mexico

Cited by 2 publications

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Recent advances in modeling nutrient utilization in ruminants1

Recent advances in modeling nutrient utilization in ruminants1

Modeling Small-Scale Dairy Farms in Central Mexico Using Multi-Criteria Programming

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