Changed Caecal Microbiota and Fermentation Contribute to the Beneficial Effects of Early Weaning with Alfalfa Hay, Starter Feed, and Milk Replacer on the Growth and Organ Development of Yak Calves.

Shengru Wu,Zhanhong Cui,Xiaodong Chen,Junhu Yao,Peiyue Wang

doi:10.3390/ani9110921

Shengru Wu, Zhanhong Cui + Show 3 more

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Simple SummaryYak calves during the pre-weaning period are mainly fed by maternal grazing and nursing, which is beneficial to the oestrus and mating of female yaks or the survival and growth of calves. Barn feeding and early weaning with mixed rations of available roughage and grains was presented as an alternative to maternal grazing and was supposed to be beneficial to the tremendous ruminal and intestinal development and growth of yak calves. The caecum is also the primary site of microbial fermentation, but the limited research has focused on the role of caecal microbiota in regulating the growth of yaks. The findings of the current study indicated that early weaning by supplying calves with milk replacer, alfalfa hay, and starter feed improves yak calf growth performance compared with maternal grazing and nursing, in part through alterations of caecal microbiota and caecal volatile fatty acid (VFA) production induced by supplementation with alfalfa hay and starter feed.This study aimed to investigate the effect of early weaning by supplying calves with alfalfa hay, starter feed, and milk replacer on caecal bacterial communities and on the growth of pre-weaned yak calves. Ten 30-day-old male yak calves were randomly assigned to 2 groups. The maternal grazing (MG) group was maternally nursed and grazed, and the early weaning (EW) group was supplied milk replacer, starter feed, and alfalfa hay twice per day. Compared with the yak calves in the MG group, the yak calves in the EW group showed significantly increased body weight, body height, body length, and chest girth. When suffering to the potential mechanism of improved growth of yak calves, except for the enhanced ruminal fermentation, the significantly increased total volatile fatty acids, propionate, butyrate, isobutyrate, and valerate in the caecum in the EW group could also serve to promote the growth of calves. By using 16S rDNA sequencing, some significantly increased caecal phylum and genera, which were all related to the enhanced caecal fermentation by utilizing both the fibrous and non-fibrous carbohydrates, were identified in the EW group. In conclusion, early weaning of yak calves by supplying them with alfalfa hay, starter feed, and milk replacer is more beneficial to the growth of yak calves when compared with maternal grazing and nursing, in part due to alterations in caecal microbiota and fermentation.

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IntroductionThe pre-weaning period is a critical period for the developmental plasticity and, subsequently, biological function changes of young ruminants [2,3]
Yak calves during the pre-weaning period are mainly fed by maternal grazing and nursing, which are not beneficial to the oestrus and mating of female yaks or the survival and growth of calves [1].the pre-weaning period is a critical period for the developmental plasticity and, subsequently, biological function changes of young ruminants [2,3]
The total volatile fatty acids (VFAs) concentration was significantly higher in the early weaning group than in the grazing group; of these, the propionate, butyrate, isobutyrate, and valerate were significantly increased in the early weaning group (Table 2)

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Introduction

The pre-weaning period is a critical period for the developmental plasticity and, subsequently, biological function changes of young ruminants [2,3]. Barn feeding and early weaning with mixed rations of available roughage and grains was presented as an alternative to maternal grazing and was supposed to be beneficial to the tremendous gastrointestinal ramifications and growth of yak calves and other juvenile ruminants [5,6]. The significantly enhanced rumen fermentation and changed rumen microbiota condition were implicated as the main reasons for the observed improved growth performance of cattle and lamb by supplying them with alfalfa hay, starter feed, and milk replacer in barn feeding and early weaning groups [4,5,6], which were rarely studied in the yak calves. The caecum is the major site of fermentation and absorption in the large intestine of ruminants, and approximately

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