The Use of Milk Progesterone Analysis in the Study of Oestrus Detection, Herd Fertility and Embryonic Mortality in Dairy Cows

Bulman, D.C.; Lamming, G. E.

doi:10.1016/s0007-1935(17)30010-6

Cited by 50 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 11 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Around 40% of embryos die during the first 2 weeks post conception (Lucy, 2001;Santos et al, 2004). Work conducted in the 1970s based on milk progesterone profiles estimated that a further 12% of cows experienced later embryo loss at 1 to 2 months of gestation (Bulman and Lamming, 1979). More recent studies have used ultrasound scanning to confirm the presence of an embryo at about 28 days post conception; these have shown that in some high-producing Holstein herds over 20% of cows pregnant at 28 days experience later embryo loss by 60 days, suggesting that the incidence of late embryonic mortality is increasing (Lucy, 2001;Santos et al, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors influencing heifer survival and fertility on commercial dairy farms

Wathes

Brickell

Bourne

et al. 2008

Animal

142

114

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The average dairy cow survives only three lactations, reducing the availability of replacement heifers. Prenatal losses occur due to early embryonic mortality (about 40%), later embryo loss (up to 20% in high-yielding herds) or abortion (about 5%). A recent survey of 19 UK herds showed that 7.9% of calves were born dead and 3.4% died within 1 month. During the rearing phase, 6.7% of animals were lost before reaching first service at 15 months due to disease or accident and another 2.3% failed to conceive. Many potential replacements therefore never enter the milking herd. This severely limits opportunities for on-farm selection of breeding cows in addition to presenting a welfare issue and causing economic loss. The most profitable animals once lactation is reached combine good milk production with a regular calving pattern. Some aspects of performance are related to age at first calving (AFC), which in turn is influenced by heifer growth rates. Poorly growing animals required more services to conceive, calved later and subsequently performed badly. Optimum fertility and maximum yield in the first lactation were associated with an AFC of 24 to 25 months. However, heifers calving at 22 to 23 months performed best in terms of total milk yield and survival over the first 5 years, partly because good heifer fertility was associated with better fertility later. We have investigated some possible juvenile predictors of future performance. Low-birth-weight calves were more likely to come from either primiparous mothers or older dams (31 lactations) with higher peak milk yields, suggesting that the uterine environment may limit prenatal calf growth due to competition for nutrients with maternal growth or milk production. Linear trait classification scores for frame size show genetic correlations with longevity. The skeletal measures of height and crown rump length in 1-month-old calves was correlated to subsequent stature, and frame size was correlated to weight at 15 months. It may thus be possible to predict performance from simple size measurements as juveniles. Neither endogenous nor stimulated growth hormone (GH) release in 6-month-old calves were related to milk yield in the first three lactations, but size of a stimulated GH peak was positively related to milk energy values in the first lactation. Cows with delayed ovulation (.45 days) in the first lactation had a higher GH pulse amplitude and lower IGF-I as a juvenile. Cows that partition excess energy into milk in their first lactation may suffer reduced longevity.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors influencing heifer survival and fertility on commercial dairy farms

Wathes

Brickell

Bourne

et al. 2008

Animal

142

114

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the absence of progesterone data it is impossible to know whether a cow detected on heat is truly in ovulatory oestrus. A single milk sample taken on the day of insemination was originally considered to be useful in evaluating the 'accuracy' of oestrus observation, high levels being attributed to faulty observation 4,10,13,16,19 . If MPC at the time of insemination is high in less than 10 % of the samples, heat detection accuracy was considered to be good.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…If MPC at the time of insemination is high in less than 10 % of the samples, heat detection accuracy was considered to be good. There is a very low probability of conception if insemination occurs while progesterone levels are elevated 4 . Low progesterone concentrations on the day of insemination, however, do not necessarily indicate ovulatory oestrus, as they also occur with certain gynaecological disorders such as follicular cysts and inactive ovaries.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is a high correlation between blood and milk progesterone concentrations (MPC) throughout the bovine oestrous cycle, with the milk concentration being consistently higher than in plasma 10,19,27 . Measurement of either blood, skim milk, whole milk or milk fat progesterone concentrations can be used to confirm or monitor post partum ovarian activity and oestrus, as well as pregnancy diagnosis, early embryonic mortality and ovarian pathology 3,4,9,11,[13][14][15][16][19][20][21]23,25,27 . In cattle, MPC has been used in various ways to evaluate oestrus detection.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By monitoring the MPC of a group of animals once to 3 times per week, post-ovulation rises in milk progesterone can be detected 15,21,25 . Single samples taken at the time of insemination may be used to confirm that progesterone concentrations are low; the finding of cows with high MPC at the time of insemination would indicate a lack of specificity for detection of oestrus 4,6,13,14,16 . Oestrus observation may also be evaluated by a double sampling regime on the day of heat detection and 6-7 days later 6,10,11,20 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Evaluation of oestrus observation and conception rates in suckling beef cows using whole milk progesterone concentration

Lourens¹,

Thompson²,

Bertschinger³

et al. 2002

J. S. Afr. Vet. Assoc.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A 2-sample regime was used to measure whole milk progesterone concentration on the day of oestrus and insemination (Day 0) and 6 days later (Day 6) in a sample of 50 primiparous and 100 multiparous suckling beef cows. Exposure to teaser bulls and observation by cattlemen identified the occurrence of oestrus. Three sets of criteria used to define ovulatory oestrus were compared : a) milk progesterone concentration less than 6 nmol / l on Day 0 ; b) milk progesterone less than 6 nmol / l on Day 0 and rising to greater than 6 nmol / l on Day 6; c) milk progesterone less than 6 nmol / l on Day 0 and rising to greater than 6 nmol / l on Day 6, or cow diagnosed pregnant to 1st insemination. Using only a single milk sample on Day 0 (criterion a) would have resulted in the positive predictive value of heat detection being estimated at 98.7%. Using a paired measurement (criterion b) resulted in a significantly lower estimate of 84.7%. The inclusion of cows that conceived despite not showing a marked rise in milk progesterone concentration (criterion c) resulted in a more accurate estimate of 89.3%. Use of a 2-sample regime also allowed calculation of conception rates while eliminating the effect of heat detection errors. In the cows sampled, of those in ovulatory oestrus that were inseminated, 73.1% conceived to the 1st insemination. These results demonstrate that artificial insemination within a limited breeding season can be successful if nutrition is optimal and management is intensive. The use of a 2-sample milk progesterone test may be a valuable tool in investigating heat detection and conception problems in beef herds in which artificial insemination is used

show abstract