Influence of temperature-humidity index (THI) on daily production of dairy cows in Mediterranean region in Croatia

Gantner, Vesna; Mijić, Pero; Jovanovac, Sonja; Raguž, Nikola; Bobić, Tina; Kuterovac, Krešimir

doi:10.3920/978-90-8686-741-7_8

Cited by 18 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 11 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…For a cow with access to shade, the daily fat yield would, thus, decrease by 8 g/day per unit increase of HLI. This decline is comparable with the decline of 10 g/day per unit increase of the HLI above 80 that Hammami et al (2013) found, but not as steep as the decline of 0.07% found by Gantner et al (2012) at daily THI ⩾ 72. On the other hand, cows with access to shade showed a less marked decrease of the milk protein content.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

“…As HLI increased, after a lag-time of 3 days, the milk lactose production decreased by about 0.02% and the protein content decreased by about 0.01% per unit increase of HLI. This decline in protein content is less than the 0.06% decline reported by Gantner et al (2012) for cows in free-stall barns in Croatia. We demonstrated no unambiguous effect of shade on the relationship between HLI and milk composition.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 55%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Effect of summer conditions and shade on the production and metabolism of Holstein dairy cows on pasture in temperate climate

laer¹,

Tuyttens

Ampe³

et al. 2015

Animal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

For dairy cattle on pasture in temperate regions, it is largely unknown to what degree hot summer conditions impact energy metabolism, milk yield and milk composition and how effective shade is in reducing these negative effects. During the summer of 2012, a herd of Holstein cows was kept on pasture without access to shade (treatment NS). During the summers of 2011 and 2013, the herd was divided into a group with (treatment S) and a group without (treatment NS) access to shade. Shade was provided by young trees combined with shade cloths (80% reduction in solar radiation). A weather station registered the local climatic conditions on open pasture, from which we calculated daily average Heat Load Index (HLI) values. The effects of HLI and shade on rectal temperature (RT), blood plasma indicators of hyperventilation and metabolic changes due to heat stress, milk yield and milk composition were investigated. RT increased with increasing HLI, but was less for S cows than for NS cows (by 0.02°C and 0.03°C increase per unit increase of HLI, respectively). Hyperchloraemia (an increased blood plasma concentration of Cl − ), a sign of hyperventilation, increased for NS cows but not for S cows. The plasma concentration of alkaline phosphatase, a regulator of energy metabolism in the liver, decreased with increasing HLI for NS cows only. Access to shade, thus, reduced the effect of HLI on RT, hyperchloraemia and the regulation of metabolism by the liver. As HLI increased, the plasma concentration of cholesterol decreased (indicating increased lipolysis) and the plasma concentration of creatinine increased (indicating increased protein catabolism). These effects did not differ between S and NS cows. For NS cows, after a lag-time of 2 days, the milk yield decreased with increasing HLI. For S cows, the milk yield was unaffected by HLI and its quadratic factor. The milk concentrations of lactose, protein and fat decreased as HLI increased, but only the effect on milk protein content was remediated by shade. In conclusion, access to shade tempered the negative effects of high HLI on RT, hyperchloraemia and a blood plasma indicator of changing energy metabolism (generally) as well as prevented the decrease in milk yield observed in cows without access to shade.Keywords: heat stress, dairy cattle, temperate climate, milk, metabolism ImplicationsFor dairy cattle on pasture in temperate regions, it is largely unknown to what degree hot summer conditions impact energy metabolism, milk yield and milk composition and how effective shade is in preventing this. In this study, the effect of Belgian summer weather on dairy cows with and without access to shade was investigated. Hot summer conditions affected body temperature, metabolism and milk yield and composition. Some effects (the increase in body temperature and the decrease in milk yield, among others) were reduced by access to shade, provided by trees combined with shade cloth.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 80%

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 55%

Effect of summer conditions and shade on the production and metabolism of Holstein dairy cows on pasture in temperate climate

laer¹,

Tuyttens

Ampe³

et al. 2015

Animal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The standard lactation milk yield was 4 to 5% lower than that reported for the other calving seasons (Figure 2). Gantner et al [25] found that THI values often exceeded 72 in the three regions (eastern, Mediterranean, and central) of Croatia in spring and summer, during which cows tend to develop HS. During autumn and winter when THI values are typically lower than 72, cows rarely experience HS.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of Calving Season on Productive Performance of Dairy Cows

Stojnov,

Penev,

Dimov

et al. 2024

Dairy

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The aim of the present research was to study the influence of the calving season in conditions of the upcoming climate changes on the productive traits of dairy cows in Bulgaria. The study was conducted on a cattle farm with a capacity of 500 dairy cows, which were loose-housed in open free-stall barns (shed-type). In the research, 286 lactations of 199 Holstein cattle from the studied farm were included. The cows with the highest average milk yield for lactation—8522.2 kg—calved in the spring, while the cows with the lowest milk yield—8082.7 kg—calved in the summer. Cows that calved in the spring had the highest maximum daily milk yield (lactation peak)—38 kg—whereas cows that calved in the summer had the lowest—35.7 kg. Regarding the composition indicators of milk, fat, and protein content, no significant effect of the calving season was found, but there was a tendency for the lowest values for the percentage of fat in milk to be reported for cows that calved in the summer—3.68%—and the highest for those calved in the spring—3.71%. Regarding the percentage of protein in the milk, the lowest values were observed for cows that calved in autumn—3.19%—and the highest for cows that calved in summer—3.27%.

show abstract

“…To investigate changes in horn temperature during rumination, environmental temperature and relative humidity were combined to a temperature-humidity index (THI) score based on the following formula [64][65][66]:…”

Section: Hli and Thi Calculationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of the Thermal Response of the Horns in Dairy Cattle

Algra

Keijzer

Arndt

et al. 2023

Animals

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Dairy cattle are typically disbudded or dehorned. Little is known, however, about the biological function and role of horns during thermoregulatory processes in cattle, and thus about the potential physiological consequences of horn removal. Anecdotal evidence suggests that dairy cow horns increase in temperature during rumination, and few studies on other bovid species indicate that horns aid thermoregulation. The objective of this study was, therefore, to elucidate a possible thermoregulatory function of the horns in dairy cattle. Using non-invasive infrared thermography, we measured the superficial temperature of the horns, eyes, and ears of 18 focal cows on three different farms in a temperate climate zone under various environmental circumstances. Observations of social and non-social behaviours were conducted as well. Based on environmental temperature, humidity, and wind speed, the heat load index (HLI) was calculated as a measure of the heat load experienced by a cow. The temperature of the horns increased by 0.18 °C per unit HLI, indicating that horns serve the dissipation of heat. Dehorned cows had higher eye temperatures than horned cows, though this result should be interpreted with caution as the low sample size and experimental setup prevent casual conclusions. We did not, however, find changes in horn temperature during rumination, nor with any other behaviours. Our study thus supports a role of horns in thermoregulation, but not related to rumination. These results should be considered when assessing the potential consequences of horn removal, a painful procedure.

show abstract

Influence of temperature-humidity index (THI) on daily production of dairy cows in Mediterranean region in Croatia

Cited by 18 publications

References 11 publications

Effect of summer conditions and shade on the production and metabolism of Holstein dairy cows on pasture in temperate climate

Effect of summer conditions and shade on the production and metabolism of Holstein dairy cows on pasture in temperate climate

Effect of Calving Season on Productive Performance of Dairy Cows

Evaluation of the Thermal Response of the Horns in Dairy Cattle

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About