Characteristics of foodstuffs and diets, and the quanti-qualitative milk parameters of Mediterranean buffaloes bred in Italy using the intensive system

The utilisation of a high level energy/protein diet for lactating Mediterranean buffaloes: Intake capacity and effects on quanti–qualitative milk parameters

“…Nutrient supply has to increase to match the demand imposed by enhanced milk yields, therefore it becomes greatly important to determine voluntary intake. However, recent published data concerning buffalo (Ranjhan, 1992;Proto, 1993;Bertoni and Piccioli Cappelli, 1994;Verna et al, 1994;Di Lella, 1998;Bartocci et al, 2002;Infascelli, 2003) are variable.…”

The behaviour and productivity of water buffalo in different breeding systems: a review

“…In contrast, Bartocci et al (2002) report an average production of 8.64 kg/head/day, composed of 47.71 g/kg of protein and 87.08 g/kg of fat. For water buffaloes in Italy, meanwhile, the average production reported for a 270-day lactation period were 2286.8 kg of milk with 196 kg of fat, representing 8.59%, and 104.7 kg of protein, representing 4.55% (Rosati and Van Vleck 2002).…”

“…A study designed to determine the most suitable level of protein and energy for milk production in multiparous water buffalo cows found that a diet with 6.63 MJ/kg of DM and 179.50 g/kg of raw protein led to a mean milk production of 13.08 kg/day with a composition that included 76.58 g/kg of fat, 46.14 g/kg of protein, and 39.94 g/kg of casein (Terramoccia et al 2012). Bartocci et al (2002) reported the dry matter intake requirement of for buffalo herds to be 10.61-16.75 kg/day. Milk production in water buffalo cows fed with corn and sorghum silage was determined to be 9.29 and 9.55 kg/day, respectively, although urea content differed significantly, varying from 39.1 mg/dl to 45.55 mg/dl, …”

“…↓ Agonistic behaviours (P ≤ 0.05) (Braghieri et al 2011b) Production of foods of animal origin during periods of scarce pasture (Jorge et al 2005) ↑ Non-agonistic social interactions such as sniffing and nuzzling (P < 0.01) (De Rosa et al 2009a) ↑ Weight gain (P ≤ 0.05) (Braghieri et al 2011b) Control of diet (Bartocci et al 2002) ↓ Reduced rectal temperature (39.14 vs. 40 °C) (Khongdee et al 2013) ↑ Weight at slaughter (P ≤ 0.05) (Braghieri et al 2011b) ↑ Greater use of the techniques of milk production used with bovine cattle (eg. 2 milkings per day) (Borghese 2013) ↓ Plasma cortisol concentration (2.14 vs. 3.38 ng/ml) (Khongdee et al 2013) ↑ Body condition (P ≤ 0.01) (Braghieri et al 2011b) ↓ Lower age at slaughter (400 kg at 15 months of age, approximately) (Borghese 2013) ↑ Food consumption (5.88 vs. 6.44 kg/ head/day) (Khongdee et al 2013) Weight gain of 706 g/day (Braghieri et al 2011b) ↑ Increased production indexes improve weight gain (Andrighetto et al 2008) ↑ Ruminant movements (22.6 vs. 48.4 mov/min) (Khongdee et al 2013) ↑ Space for walking with positive effects on claw conformation (Loberg et al 2004) Weight gain in the fattening phase of up to 1135 g/day (Spanghero et al 2004) ↑ Weight gain of 757 vs. 337 g/ animal/day (27); up to 1 kg/day with supplements (Peixoto et al 2012) ↑ Higher milk production (8.12 ± 0.002 vs. 7.77 ± 0.002 kg) (Lopes et al 2013) ↑ Higher cleanliness scores (2.80 ± 0.05 vs. 2.41 ± 0.05) (Lopes et al 2013) ↑ Antibody titres (P ≤ 0.05) (Grasso et al 1999) ↓ Time at rest (P ≤ 0.01) (Grasso et al 1999) …”

“…These sub-species have distinct chromosome karyotypes (50 and 48 chromosomes, respectively) (Yilmaz et al 2012), and some differences in morphology (body frame, body weight, horn shape, skin colour) and behaviour (i.e., wallowing in water vs. mud). The best-known breeds are Murrah, Mediterranea, Jaffarabadi, Nili-Ravi, Surti, Mehsana, Kundi, Nagpuri and Bhadawari (Bartocci et al 2002;Cruz 2007;Das et al 2008;Thiruvenkadan et al 2013). The water buffalo is a valuable species in part because it is considered a multipurpose animal (Abd El-Salam and El-Shibiny 2011; de la Cruz-Cruz 2014) since its meat, horns and skin can all be exploited, as can its rich and nutritious milk, which may be converted into many kinds of cheese, primarily mozzarella.…”