• Korean Journal of Animal Reproduction
• /
• v.17 no.1
• /
• pp.35-41
• /
• 1993

The study was conducted to investigate the effects on environmental factors on the reproductive performance of Korean native cattle based on the data from 13, 588 records which were surveyed from 1983 to 1992. The results obtained in this study are as follows; 1. Mean performaces of the reproductive traits were 510.2days for the age at 1st service, 525.0days for the age at 1st conception, 808.7 days for the age at 1st calving, 102.5 days for the days to 1st conception postpartum and 388.6 days of the calving inverval. The cows of Chunbuk province were tended to be bred and calved at younger age and showed shorter calving interval than those of other provinces. 2. The effect of birth year was significant for the reproductive performances, especially, in 1986~1987 when the cattle prices dropped sharply and reproductive performances were poor. 3. The times of 1st service and 1st conception of heifers calved in spring tended to be delayed. Days to 1st conception postpartum, calving interval and days to 1st service postpartum of cows calved in fall were shorter than other calving season's cows. 4. Days to 1st conception postpartum, calving interval and days to 1st service postpartum of cow's were shortened and gestation length was prolonged as the number of parity increases.

• Korean Journal of Animal Reproduction
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.295-303
• /
• 1994

The present study was conducted to examine the reprodutive performance and organs autopsy of culled dairy cows at alpine area. 795 culled dairy cows were managed and 206 culled dairy cows were examined by autopsy of reproductive organs at above 800m of sea level around the Daegwallryoung alpine area. The results of this study were at follows ; 1. Age and parity of culled dairy cows were 60.8 months and 3.0, respectively. 2. Age of first AI of heifer was 18.7 months, and age of pregnancy and parturition of heifer were 19.5 months and 28.6 months, respectively. 3. Al time per pregnancy was 1.7 and time of pregnancy after parturition, pregnancy period and calving interval were 140.9, 279.6 and 424.9 days, respectively. 4. Culled months after last parturition was 4.3 and the highest urogenital deseases of culled reason were 358(45.0%). 5. Reproductive organs deseases by autopsy were 120(58.4%), the highest ovary disease were 75(43.6%). 6. The highest ovary adhesions of reproductive organ diseases were 46(26.7%), infundibulum adhesion, obstruction of the oviduct and endometritis were 38(22.1%), 15(8.7%), and 14(8.2%), respectively. 7. In culled dairy cow for the reproductive organ disease, parity, age, culled months and AI number after last parturition were 3.2, 66.5 months, 7.9 months and 2.1, respectively.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.26 no.1
• /
• pp.43-49
• /
• 2013

The aim of this study was to compare both the performance of litters derived from two sire genetic origins (SGO), Vienna Blue (VB) and Burgundy Fawn (BF), along successive seasons of birth (SB; winter, spring, summer and autumn), and doe reproductive performance in an organic production system. A total of fifty-eight does consisting of a mixture of crosses of several medium-large size breeds at different parity order (P, 1 = nulliparous; 2 = primiparous; ${\geq}3$ = multiparous) and twelve males (6 VB and 6 BF) were housed indoors at environmental conditions that followed seasonality. An extensive reproductive rhythm was used and kits were weaned at $46{\pm}6$ d of age. Doe reproductive performance and the data of 105 litters (55 from VB and 50 from BF SGO) were recorded throughout the SB. No statistically significant differences related to SGO effect were observed. As regards parity order, multiparous does showed higher live weights (LW) (p<0.05), total born (p<0.01), total born alive (p<0.05) per delivery, and litter weight of born alive (p<0.05), but lower milk output at 21st d than primiparous does (p<0.05). The extensive reproductive rhythm mainly increased litter performance at birth in multiparous does but was not sufficient to permit a complete recovery of body reserves lost during lactation. Autumn SB negatively affected doe LW variation between deliveries. The number of pups born and born alive per delivery (p<0.05) and litter size at 21 d of age and at weaning (p<0.01) were lower during hot SB. Due to the lower litter size of pups born in summer and autumn, their individual weight at 21st d of age and daily individual growth rate 0 to 21 d were higher than those of pups born in winter (p<0.001). Litter performance at 21st d of age and individual pup pre-weaning growth rate were poorer for those born in spring than in other seasons due to the harmful effects of increased environmental temperatures. SB affected most of the performance traits of does and young rabbits reared under the organic farming system. The rabbits seemed better suited to organic rearing conditions during winter than in other seasons. The worst results overall were obtained in the spring SB, whereas the hot SB negatively affected both doe energy balance and prolificacy. In conclusion, the pups of the 2 SGO showed good pre-weaning performance and seemed suited to the organic rabbit production system.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.533-537
• /
• 2004

The experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis that supplementing diets of lactating first parity sows with a mixture of carbohydrases (CS) improves lactation performance and second parity reproductive performance. The CS used in this study contained 7 units/g of $\alpha$-1,6-galactosidase, 22 units/g of $\beta$-1,4-mannanase, $\beta$-1,4-mannosidase and trace amounts of other enzymes. Twenty primiparous sows (Newsham Hybrid) were allotted to either the control group (no CS supplement) or the CS group (0.1% CS supplement) and fed the experimental diets during 21 d lactation period. Sows and nursing pigs were weighed at birth and weekly until weaning. Days of weaning-to-estrus were recorded. Sows had free access to feed and water. Feed intake of sows was measured daily. During the second parity gestation and lactation, all the sows were fed the same gestation and lactation diets and their reproductive performance was measured. During the second parity, there were 14 sows (7 sows per group) remained productive. For the first lactation, maternal body weight loss of the CS group was smaller (p<0.05) than that of the control group. There was no difference in litter weight gain between two groups. Voluntary feed intake of sows did not differ between the two groups. Days of weaning-to-estrus of the CS group were smaller (p<0.05) than those of the control group. In the second parity, there was no difference in the reproductive performance between the two groups. In conclusion, supplementing CS in the diet of lactating sows during the first parity decreased body weight loss and days of weaning-to-estrus of sows. However, these effects of the CS supplementation in the first parity were not successfully carried over to the second parity.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
• /
• v.33 no.2
• /
• pp.93-96
• /
• 2016

This retrospective study evaluated the effect of age at first calving on the productive and reproductive performance in Holstein dairy cattle. Data were collected on 2,297 lactations from 19 dairy farms, including dates of birth, insemination, pregnancy, calving, and lactation and milk production (305-day milk yield at first lactation and lifetime milk yield). Lactation data were grouped based on age at first calving into the early (< 24 months, n = 414), moderate (24 ${\leq}$ and ${\leq}$ 28 months, n = 1,268), and late (> 28 months, n = 615) groups. The 305-day milk yield at first lactation was higher (p < 0.005) in the late group (8,461.9 kg) than in the early (8,130.8 kg) and moderate (8,261.9 kg) groups. Lifetime days in milk were shorter (p < 0.01) in the early group (1,045.7) than in the moderate (1,143.1) and late (1,110.7) groups, whereas the lifetime milk yield was higher (p < 0.05) in the moderate group (34,171.8 kg) than in the early group (31,791.6 kg). The second calving interval (days) differed (p < 0.0001) between the early (416.9), moderate (438.9), and late (455.3) groups. The culling rate at the first and second lactations tended to be higher (p = 0.08) in the early group (31.2%) than in the moderate group (26.0%), whereas it was intermediate in the late group (29.3%). In conclusion, dairy heifers aged 24-28 months at first calving showed a higher productive performance through an increased lifetime milk yield and a decreased culling rate.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.61 no.3
• /
• pp.154-162
• /
• 2019

This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of dietary energy and crude protein (CP) levels on reproductive performance, litter performance, milk quality, and blood profiles in gestating sows. A total of 59 multiparous sows (Yorkshire ${\times}$ Landrace) with similar body weights (BW), backfat thickness (BF), and parity were assigned to one of six treatments with 9 or 10 sows per treatment using a $2{\times}3$ factorial arrangement and completely randomized design. The first factor was two levels of dietary metabolizable energy (ME) density (13.40 or 13.82 MJ/kg) and the second factor was three dietary protein levels based from 35 day in gestating phases (10.5%, 12%, and 13.5%). Backfat thickness change in lactating sows decreased linearly as CP level increased (p = 0.03). Increased energy level in the gestating sow diet tended to increase the total number of piglets born (p = 0.07), but piglet weight decreased (p = 0.02). Dietary CP level had a negative effect on colostrum quality. Casein, protein, total solid, and solids-not-fat concentrations decreased linearly and lactose level increased linearly as CP level in the gestating sow diet increased (casein%: p = 0.03; protein%: p = 0.04; lactose%: p = 0.06; total solids: p = 0.03; solid-not-fat: p = 0.03, respectively). However, improving ME by 0.42 MJ/kg had no significant effect on the chemical composition of sow colostrum. There were no significant differences in blood glucose concentration in gestating sows when sows were fed different levels of energy during gestation, but blood glucose increased at 21 day of lactation when energy increased by 0.42 MJ/kg (p = 0.04). Blood urea nitrogen concentration increased linearly when dietary CP levels increased at 110 day in gestation, 24-hours postpartum, and 21 days of lactation (linear, p < 0.05, p < 0.05, and p < 0.05, respectively), and it also increased when dietary energy increased at 110 days of gestation and 24-hours postpartum (p < 0.01, and p < 0.01, respectively). A gestating sow diet containing 13.82 MJ/kg ME and 10.5% CP can improve reproductive performance, litter performance, and colostrum quality.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
• /
• v.37 no.3
• /
• pp.117-122
• /
• 2013

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation of pelleted-Italian Ryegrass (IRG) as a source of fiber on reproduction performance in pregnant sows. A total of 24 pregnant sows were randomly assigned to four dietary treatments, which was given a corn-soybean diet with 0%, 10%, 20%, and 30% pelleted-IRG from 105 days prepartum to 7 days postpartum. During experimental period, the sows fed the IRG supplemented diet showed the lower feed intake than the sows fed the control diet (p<0.05). The changes of body weight in sows from initial to pre- and/or post-partum was significantly smaller in sows fed the IRG supplemented diet than control group. It is thought that the lower weight gain in IRG supplemented groups is caused by low feed intake. Although there was no significant difference, sows fed the IRG supplemented diet tended to increase the litter size and birth weight in piglets compared with sows fed the control diet. This result suggests that the dietary supplementation of IRG has the positive effects to improve the reproductive performance in sows. But, the excessive feeding of IRG to sows might cause to retard the days of return to estrus, and decrease the contents of solid, milk protein, and milk fat in colostrum. Thus, the addition of about 10% IRG is desirable to increase the reproductive performance. Meanwhile, the feeding energy diet is better effective than feeding the fiber diets to improve overall productivity in sows after postpartum.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
• /
• v.38 no.4
• /
• pp.159-163
• /
• 2014

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of E. coli on boar sperm quality and reproductive performance in sows after artificial insemination. Three different levels of E. coli were artificially inoculated to semen with following concentrations; Control, 500, 5,000 and 50,000 colony forming unit (cfu)/ml. Semen samples were preserved at $17^{\circ}C$ for 5 days. Sperm motility was significantly decreased (p<0.05) on day 3 in the group inoculated with 5,000 cfu/ml compared to control groups. In all treatment groups, sperm motility was gradually decreased as storage time increased, but the decline pattern was more drastic in the groups inoculated with 5,000 and 50,000 cfu/ml groups from day 3 (p<0.05) compared to control group. After 3 day of storage at $17^{\circ}C$, sperm viability in sample inoculated with the highest concentration (50,000 cfu/ml) of bacteria was less (p<0.05) than that of control group. The pH of semen sample pH was maintained 7.2~7.5 in all groups during the experimental period. No differences (p>0.05) were found for both storage time and bacterial concentration. The pregnancy rate and live born piglets tend to decrease by increasing the concentration of E. coli in semen. In particular, the rate of pregnancy was lower in the group inoculated with 50,000 cfu/ml (58.3%) compare to the other groups (81.8, 75.0, 76.5%). These results suggest that the contamination of E. coli in boar semen negatively affects fertilizing ability of boar sperm and the reproductive performance obtained from sows after artificial insemination.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.29 no.6
• /
• pp.768-774
• /
• 2016

The present study investigated the impact of parity 1 gilt body weight during late gestation (d 109) on subsequent reproductive performance of sows and performance of suckling pigs. A total of 2,404 farrowing records over 6 parities were divided into six groups on the basis of body weight (190, 200, 210, 220, 230, and 240 kg) at d 109 of gestation of 585 gilts. Significant effects (p<0.05) of body weight on sow retention rate was noticed, with the 210 kg group having the lowest culling rate and highest total number of piglets born alive over the 6 parities. With increase of body weight, a linear increase (p<0.05) in losses of body weight and backfat during the lactation period of parity 1 and a linear decrease (p<0.05) in backfat loss for parities 4 and 6 were found. Compared with light sows, heavy sows had higher (p<0.05) litter weight at birth for parities 1 and 2 and at weaning in parity 1. Sow weaning-to-estrus interval of sows was not influenced (p>0.05) by body weight. In conclusion, maintaining optimal body weight during gestation would be beneficial to sows and suckling piglets.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
• /
• v.2 no.1
• /
• pp.94-101
• /
• 1994

DA-125, a new anthracycline antitumor antibiotic, was at dose levels of 0, 0.03, 0.1 and 0.3 mg/kg/day administered intravenously to Sprague-Dawley male rats from premating to mating period and to females from premating to early gestation period. Effects of test agent on general findings and reproductive performance of parent animals and embryonic development were examined. No treatment-related changes in clinical signs, body weight, food consumption and necropsy findings were observed in all groups of both sexes. At 0.3 mg/kg, a decrease in the weight of spleen was found only in male rats. Mating performance and fertility of parent animals were not adversely affected by all doses tested. Fl fetuses showed no changes related to treatment of DA-125, except that at 0.3 mg/kg, an increase in the resorption rate was seen. The results show that the no effect dose levels (NOELS) for general toxicity of parent animals and fetal development are 0.1 mg/kg/day and NOELS for reproductive capability are over 0.3 mg/kg/day.