1553 Supplementation with a blend of capsicum and artificial sweetener alters milk yield and nutrient partitioning in lactating dairy cows

Abstract

Supplementation of lactating dairy cows with capsicum oleoresin (CAPS) or with SUCRAM (SUC; Pancosma, Geneva, Switzerland) increases milk and component yield; however, responses to the two additives fed in combination have not been described. Therefore, the objective of this experiment was to determine the effects of a CAPS-SUC blend on lactation performance of dairy cows. Primi- and multiparous lactating Holstein dairy cows were housed together in a free-stall pen and were milked using an automated milking system (AMS). During a 10-wk period, CAPS-SUC was blended with a carrier and was dispensed at the AMS for CAPS-SUC cows (n = 91) at a rate of 0.22 kg/d (doses of CAPS and SUC: 100 mg/d and 3.2 g/cow per day, respectively); control cows received no additive (n = 102). All cows were supplemented with 300 mg/d of monensin. Individual cow milk production and composition, milking frequency, and BW were recorded daily. Average DMI of the pen was monitored daily and did not change throughout the study. Supplementation with CAPS-SUC did not affect milking frequency (3.5 milkings/d; P > 0.60). There was a parity × treatment interaction for milk yield characterized by a decrease with CAPS-SUC in primiparous animals (34.7 vs. 32.1 kg/d; P < 0.001) but an increase in multiparous animals (41.4 vs. 44.6 kg/d; P < 0.001). Yield of milk fat (1.6 kg/d) and protein (1.2 kg/d) was not affected by treatment (P > 0.10). There was a treatment × parity × stage of lactation interaction for BW such that in cows less than 100 DIM, BW was increased with CAPS-SUC only in primiparous animals (590 vs. 616 kg; P < 0.001) whereas there was no effect in multiparous animals (P > 0.30). The prevalence of subclinical ketosis, indicated by milk fat-to-protein ratios, was decreased with CAPS-SUC (20 vs. 15%; P < 0.01). The decrease in milk yield of primiparous cows together with a corresponding increase in BW indicates that CAPS-SUC may have altered nutrient partitioning to support skeletal growth or accretion of tissue stores in those animals. This, taken together with the decreased incidence of ketosis and changes in milk production, reveals that CAPS-SUC can shift nutrient partitioning and consequent milk production performance of lactating dairy cows.