Monitoring Plasma Metabolic Profile, Fertility in Normal and Estrus Synchronized Suckled Kankrej Cows

Abstract

Background: Postpartum fertility in dairy bovines is one of the important criteria of sustainable dairy industry and economy of farmers. The Kankrej, a dual purpose zebu cattle, is known for its endurance, but is slow breeder with very late maturity, prolonged postpartum anestrous/subestrous and thereby calving interval. These peculiarities necessitate scientists to adopt fixed time AI (FTAI) protocols of estrus synchronization for improving their reproductive efficiency. Hence this study was aimed to assess the fertility and plasma metabolic profile of normal and synchronized anestrous/ subestrous suckled Kankrej cows of an organized farm.Methods: The study involved 36 parturient Kankrej cows of the University Farm that were maintained under identical nutritional and managerial practices. Blood samples were collected in heparinized vacutainers from all the animals on the day of calving and then at 10 days interval till 90 days for plasma metabolic profile. Animals monitored by per rectal palpation 10 days apart around day 70-80 postpartum revealed 30 cows to be anestrous or subestrous, which were randomly allocated to five different estrus synchronization protocols at day 90-92, each with six cows and a group of six cows that exhibited estrus and were bred by day 70-90 served as normal control. The treatment protocols included Ovsynch, CIDR, Ovsynch + CIDR, Cosynch and double PGF2α together with estimation of plasma metabolites on day 0, 7, 9/10 (AI) and then at 10 days interval up to day 40 post-AI. Result: The mean plasma total protein levels varied non-significantly, while total cholesterol and triglycerides varied significantly (p less than 0.01) between intervals until 90 days postpartum in most of the groups with gradual increase in the mean values from the day of calving. The estrus synchronization protocols, however. did not alter the plasma profile of these constituents. The estrus induction response with Ovsynch, CIDR, Ovsynch + CIDR, Cosynch and PGF2α treatment was 66.66, 83.33, 50.00, 66.66 and 66.66% and the conception rates at induced estrus 16.66, 33.33, 16.66, 50.00 and 50.00%, respectively. In normal cyclic control group, the conception rate at first cycle was 33.33%. The plasma total cholesterol and triglycerides were higher in conceived than non-conceived cows, particularly during early postpartum period and post-AI. It was concluded that CIDR, Cosynch and PGF2α protocols were better for estrus induction and conception rate in anestrous and subestrous suckled Kankrej cows, although they did not influence the plasma metabolic profile.