Establishment of young ruminants rearing system and its key scientific issues

Abstract

The growth and health performance of young animals has deep effect on the realization of their later genetic capacity. However, the rearing performance of young ruminants is far from the requirements of ruminant industry development in China, especially the prolonged suckling period, high mortality rate, and low growth rate of young ruminants severely hindered the development of ruminant industry. Technically, our poor comprehension of the nutritional physiology and nutrient requirements, standardized feeding and management strategies, specialized production, and modernized feeding equipment R&D for young ruminants are the bottlenecks existed in young ruminants rearing process. To solve these industry and technical problems of young ruminants, it is urgent and significant to do further effective research work and deep our understanding of young ruminant nutrition and physiology accomplished with guideline of question-orientation and supply-side structural reform, and it is also a pivotal step to finally promote the healthy and sustainable development of ruminant industry. More importantly, from the perspective of the ruminant industry development, it is essential to initialize an industry innovation alliance and an effective research service system based on the young ruminant industry development to support the extension of technical achievements and enhancement of the international competitiveness of the young ruminant industry. At the same time, it is vital to confirm the research work focusing on the development of young ruminants, including the nutritional physiology, nutrients requirements, and key products for the rearing of young ruminants. To improve the rearing effectiveness of young ruminants, the establishment of scientific and systematic young ruminants rearing system, which is a system to dig the genetic capacity for later fattening or milking performance by the early weaning and scientific feeding and management based on our deep comprehension of the development traits of the gastrointestinal tract and nutrient requirements etc., is a guarantee for the sustainable development of young ruminant industry. Facing the development of young ruminants in the future, therefore, it is suggested that some key scientific issues in young ruminant rearing process need to be strengthened, including the theoretical research of young ruminant rearing based on nutrition-gene expression and modern multi-omics technology, deep explore the mechanism of early nutritional regulation on their later potential growth and development, and the relationship between ewe nutrition regulation and young ruminant growth and health. Hereon, the sorting out of these related issues are meaningful for enhancing the content of science and technology in national young ruminant rearing field and promoting the development of ruminant industry forward large-scale, intensity and wisdom. At last, for the first time as the organizer of the China’s top science forum, Xiangshan Science Conferences, in Animal husbandry field, we propose again the establishment of young ruminant rearing system with joint supporting by scientist, enterpriser, and government departments to promote and guide the development of ruminant industry in China and even in the world.