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Can post-milking insemination increase conception rate in high-producing Holstein cows under heat stress? A retrospective study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 August 2019

R. Rahbar ,
A. Sadeghi-Sefidmazgi Open the ORCID record for A. Sadeghi-Sefidmazgi [Opens in a new window] ,
R. Abdullahpour  and
A. Nejati-Javaremi
R. Rahbar
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, Payame Noor University, PO Box 19395-3697, Tehran, Iran
A. Sadeghi-Sefidmazgi*
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Sciences, College of Agriculture, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111, Iran
R. Abdullahpour
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, Islamic Azad University, Qaemshahr Branch, Mazandaran, Iran
A. Nejati-Javaremi
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, University of Tehran, PO Box 3158711167-4111, Karaj, Alborz, Iran
*
Author for correspondence: A. Sadeghi-Sefidmazgi, E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Heat stress, especially in countries with hot climates, is a major cause of low fertility in high-producing dairy herds. Management strategies are needed to help producers improve the reproductive performance of their dairy animals under such conditions. The current study aims to evaluate the effects of pre- and post-milking insemination on the conception rate (CR) in dairy cows. The dataset included 1294 insemination records leading to pregnancy in 708 lactating Holstein dairy cows. The GLIMMIX model procedure of SAS based on the generalized linear mixed model methodology was used to analyse the results of insemination (success or failure) as a binomial distribution with the logit link function. Differences were observed in CRs between pre- and post-milking insemination. The pregnancy odds ratio (OR) for post-milking insemination relative to that for pre-milking one was estimated at 1.90 [1.23‒2.91; 95% confidence interval (CI)]. Different levels of interaction were obtained between average daily milk production and time of insemination. In the high-producing group, the pregnancy OR for the post-milking relative to that for the pre-milking insemination was estimated at 3.53 (2.00‒6.24; 95% CI). A significant interaction effect was obtained between insemination time and the temperature-humidity index. A pregnancy OR of 2.52 (1.22‒4.14; 95% CI) was recorded for the cows inseminated after milking on days with higher levels of heat and humidity stress v. the pre-milking inseminated ones. Based on the results, post-milking insemination of high-producing cows increased CRs, especially on days with high heat and humidity stress.

Keywords

Conception ratedairy farmfertilityheat stressherd management
Type
Animal Research Paper
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 157 , Issue 3 , April 2019 , pp. 254 - 259
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019 

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