PERIPARTURIENT CHANGES IN SOME BLOOD CONSTITUENTS AND MAMMARY GLAND SECRETIONS OF FRIESIAN COWS

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Animal Production Department, Faculty of Agriculture Cairo University Egypt.

2 Animal Production Research Institute, Egypt.

Abstract

A total of 16 pregnant multiparous Friesian cows used to study changes in some blood constituents and mammary secretions around parturition (-7 through +7 days). Plasma cortisol increased gradually, being the highest at parturition (9.13 ng / ml) and declined thereafter. Meanwhile, plasma progesterone decreased sharply and reached a minimum at parturition (0.62ng /ml) then slightly increased. Plasma IgG decreased gradually being 952.5mg/dl at parturition. Both total protein (TP) and total lipid (TL) in plasma showed the same trend in which they declined gradually till parturition (7.4g / dl and 9.1 g/l, respectively).Stored mammary secretions during prepartum period had higher somatic cell count (SCC) (4337 x (103) / ml ) that declined at parturition ( 3674 x 103 / ml) and sharply declined thereafter ( 814 x 103 / ml at + 7 days).Highest values of total solids, protein and solids not fat in mammary gland secretions were obtained at -7 days and decreased gradually thereafter to be minimum at + 7 days postpartum which indicated the changes from colostrum and transitional milk to normal milk. Fat content in mammary secretions was the highest during the period of colostrogenesis whereas lactose showed a reversed trend.

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