Calving month and calf sex on the production and efficiency of herds

Vaz, Ricardo Zambarda; Lobato, José Fernando Piva; Restle, João; Costa, Pablo Tavares; Eloy, Lidiane Raquel; Ferreira, Otoniel Geter Lauz; Costa, João Luiz Benavides

doi:10.1590/1809-6891v21e-61977

Brasil

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Zootecnia • Ciênc. anim. bras. 21 • 2020 • https://doi.org/10.1590/1809-6891v21e-61977 linkcopy

Calving month and calf sex on the production and efficiency of herds

Authorship SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

Abstract

The calving period influences productivity and reproductive efficiency the herds. The objective of this study was to evaluate two calving months (October and November) and their effect on the efficiency of a breeding herd for three consecutive years. A total of 298 Braford cows were evaluated at three, four, and five years of age, with their calves early-weaned at 148 days of age. The performance characteristics of the cow/calf pairs were evaluated with the calving month and calf sex as the independent variables. The animals were kept as a single group for the three years of observation. Cows calving in November were heavier and had a higher body condition score at calving. Cows calving in October were heavier and produced heavier calves at weaning. Male calves were heavier at birth and weaning than females (30.8 vs 28.6 kg and 118.9 vs 114.7 kg, respectively). The pregnancy rate was 82.35 and 69.23% for cows calving in October and November, respectively. Calving intervals were shorter in cows calving in November. Cows calving in October were more efficient compared with those calving in November, with a higher actual fertility rate. The production of kilograms of the calf/cow pair was higher for cows calving in October.

Key Words: actual fertility; bovine; milk production; productivity; reproductive performance

Trait	October	November
Weights cows (kg)
At calving	362.1 ±2.2^b	370.7±2.4^a
At weaning	402.4±2.7^a	394.7±2.9^b
At the end of service	403.8±2.4^a	398.3±2.6^a
Weights calves (kg)
At birth	30.0±0.16^a	29.5±0.18^a
At weaning	123.8±1.5^a	109.8±1.6^b
Daily weight change of cows (kg)
From calving to weaning	0.275±0.015^a	0.168±0.016^b
Body condition of cows (points)
At calving	2.94±0.02^b	3.08±0.02^a
At weaning	3.65±0.03^a	3.56±0.04^a
At end of service	3.58±0.03^a	3.53±0.03^a
Estimated total milk production (L)	635.0±28.4^a	650.3±33.0^a

Trait	Males	Females
Weights cows (kg)
At calving	367.7±2.4^a	365.1 ±2.2^a
At weaning	397.8±2.9^a	399.2±2.7^a
At the end of service	401.1±2.6^a	401.0±2.4^a
Weights calves (kg)
At birth	30.8±0.18^a	28.6±0.16^b
At weaning	118.9±1.6^a	114.7±1.5^b
Body weight change of cows (kg)
From calving to weaning	0.203±0.016^a	0.230±0.015^a
Body condition of cows (points)
At calving	3.01±0.02^a	3.02±0.02^a
At weaning	3.61±0.04^a	3.60±0.03^a
At the end of service	3.56±0.03^a	3.55±0.03^a
Estimated total milk production (L)	661.8±31.2^a	623.5±29.1^a

Trait	October	November
Reproduction
Pregnancy rate (%)	82,35^A	69.23^B
Calving-conception interval (days)	106.0±1.7^b	85.5±1.9^a
Calving interval (days)	391.3±2.6^b	368.0±2.9^a
Weight (kg)
Cow-calf pair, at calving	392.0±2.2^b	400.2±2.4^a
Cow-calf pair, at weaning	526.5±3.0^a	504.4±3.3^b
Efficiency (kg)
Calf production efficiency¹	102.0±1.2^a	75.9±1.3^b
Calf production efficiency/kg cow²	26.2±0.36^a	19.5±0.40^b
Calf production efficiency at service³	0.314±0.01^a	0.280±0.01^b
Actual fertility¹	115.0±2.4^a	109.0±2.6^b
Actual cow-calf pair fertility⁵	132.1±3.4^a	117.5±3.6^b
Total weight change (kg)
Calf, during suckling	93.8±1.5^a	80.3±1.6^b
Cow, during lactation	40.6±2.2^a	24.9±2.4^b
Cow-calf pair, during suckling	134.5±2.6^a	104.2±2.9^b
Milk production efficiency
Efficiency in L/kg of calf	5.74±0.28^a	6.37±0.33^a
Efficiency of transformation (%)	20.7±1.01^a	17.2±1.18^b

Trait	Males	Females
Reproduction
Pregnancy rate (%)	68.22^a	72.30^a
Calving-conception interval (days)	96.3±2.0^a	95.3±1.6^a
Calving interval (days)	381.5±3.0^a	377.8±2.5^a
Weight (kg)
Cow-calf pair, at calving	398.5±2.4^a	393.7±2.2^a
Cow-calf pair, at weaning	516.9±3.3^a	513.9±3.0^a
Efficiency (kg)
Calf production¹	81.11±1.1^a	82.93±1.2^a
Calf production/kg cow	20.4±0.32^a	20.8±0.34^a
Calf production efficiency at service³	0.296±0.01^a	0.286±0.01^a
Actual efficiency⁴	113.1±2.7^a	110.9±2.2^a
Actual cow-calf pair efficiency⁵	123.8±3.9^a	125.8±3.2^a
Total weight change (kg)
Calves, during suckling	88.1±1.6^a	86.0±1.5^a
Cows, during lactation	30.8±2.4^a	34.6±2.4^a
Cow-calf pair, during suckling	118.9±2.9^a	120.6±2.6^a
Milk production efficiency
Efficiency in L/kg of calf	6.08±0.31^a	6.03±0.29^a
Milk-calf transformation efficiency (%)	18.2±1.11^a	19.7±1.04^a

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[TFN1] ^a,b in the same row differ (P<0.05) by the F test.