Water Use and Dairy Production System: An Indian Experience

Increasing water scarcity and simultaneously growing demands for food and feed challenge agricultural production. Globally livestock feed sourcing is one of the major causes for water depletion; therefore, increasing livestock water use efficiency (LWUE) is necessary. There is a need to synthesise LWUE knowledge generated across different forage based livestock production systems (FLPS) over time and systematically identify entry points to enhance productive uses of freshwater resources. Although these systems vary by their degree of intensification, scale of water-related problems, and therefore in their values of LWUE, a number of common entry points to increase LWUE can be identified. To understand the pattern of livestock water use and social dynamics involved in water use and milk production, around 240 small and medium dairy farms in Karnataka, India, were used for the present study. Direct and indirect consumptive uses of water by animals considered were water used for drinking, water inputs through green and dry fodder, consumptive water usage for on-farm servicing and crop irrigation and water inputs through all upstream inputs such as medicines, vaccines and others. Water use efficiency (WUE) for production of milk alone is operationally defined in this study

Assessment of genetic diversity among Malnad Gidda, Punganur and Vechur-dwarf cattle breeds of India using microsatellite markers

The genetic diversity among 3 dwarf breeds of cattle in India, viz. Malnad Gidda, Punganur and Vechur were analysed using 12 sets of microsatellite markers. All 11 amplified microsatellite loci were polymorphic with a mean number of alleles of 7.818±1.66 across breeds and in different breeds it ranged from 7.273 in Malnad Gidda to 3.546 in Vechur. The mean polymorphic information content (PIC) value observed and expected heterozygosity values across the population were 0.642, 0.610 and 0.683, respectively. A moderate level of inbreeding was observed with the inbreeding estimates ranging from -0.027 (ILSTS6) to 0.271 (HAUT24). Among the 3 breeds the highest mean number of alleles (7.273), mean PIC value (0.639), observed heterozygosity (0.630) and lower inbreeding estimates at majority of loci were observed in Malnad Gidda cattle indicating high degree of heterozygosity compared to Punganur and Vechur breeds. Even though departure from Hardy Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE) was found in Vechur and Punganur cattle population at majority of the loci, the population combining the 3 breeds was maintained at HWE with respect to most of loci under study. The genetic distance analysis revealed highest genetic distance between Vechur and Punganur (0.331) and lowest between Malnad Gidda and Punganur (0.125)

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Investigation of body and udder skin surface temperature differentials as an early indicator of mastitis in Holstein Friesian crossbred cows using digital infrared thermography technique

Aim: The objective of this study was to investigate the ability of infrared thermography (IRT) technique and its interrelationship with conventional mastitis indicators for the early detection of mastitis in Holstein Friesian (HF) crossbred cows. Materials and Methods: A total of 76 quarters of lactating HF crossbred (Bos indicus × Bos taurus) cows (n=19) were monitored for body temperature (i.e., eye temperature) and udder skin surface temperature (USST) before milking using forward-looking infrared (FLIR) i5 camera. Milk samples were collected from each quarter and screened for mastitis using Somatic Cell Count (SCC), Electrical Conductivity (EC), and California mastitis test. Thermographic images were analyzed using FLIR Quick Report 1.2 image analysis software. Data on body and USST were compiled and analyzed statistically using SPSS 16.0 and Sigmaplot 11. Results: The mean±standard deviation (SD) body (37.23±0.08°C) and USST (37.22±0.04°C) of non-mastitic cow did not differ significantly; however, the mean USST of the mastitis-affected quarters were significantly higher than the body temperature and USST of unaffected quarters (p37.61°C. Conclusion: It is concluded that infrared thermal imaging technique could be used as a potential noninvasive, quick cowside diagnostic technique for screening and early detection of SCM and clinical mastitis in crossbred cows

Infrared thermography: A potential noninvasive tool to monitor udder health status in dairy cows

The animal husbandry and livestock sectors play a major role in the rural economy, especially for the small and marginal farmers. India has the largest livestock population in the world and ranks first in the milk production. Mastitis is the most common and expensive infectious disease in dairy cattle. The global economic losses per year due to mastitis amounts to USD 35 billion and for Indian dairy industry INR 6000 crores per year. Early detection of mastitis is very important to reduce the economic loss to the dairy farmers and dairy industry. Automated methods for early and reliable detection of mastitis are currently in focus under precision dairying. Skin surface temperature is an important indicator for the diagnosis of cow’s illnesses and for the estimation of their physiological status. Infrared thermography (IRT) is a simple, effective, on-site, and noninvasive method that detects surface heat, which is emitted as infrared radiation and generates pictorial images without causing radiation exposure. In human and bovine medicine, IRT is used as a diagnostic tool for assessment of normal and physiological status

Digital infrared thermal imaging of udder skin surface temperature: a novel non-invasive technology to monitor calving process in Murrah buffalo (Bubalus bubalis)

Abstract Quantifiable decline in the maternal body temperature during the pre-calving offers the possibilities for predicting the calving that can improve the calving management. As infrared thermography (IRT) is a simple non-contact tool for precise measurement of surface temperature, we investigated the use of IRT to establish thermal signatures around calving in the Murrah buffalo. The IRT of eye, right lateral, left lateral and rear side of udder skin surface temperature (USST) were recorded at 6 h interval from 96 h before the expected date of calving, at the time of calving and 24 h post-calving in Murrah buffaloes (n = 28). In parallel, blood samples were collected for progesterone (P4) assay. The results revealed that the IRT of the eye, right and left lateral and rear side of USST showed a significant decrease in the temperature from 48 h pre-calving till the onset of calving with a ΔT (°C) of 0.56, 0.91, 0.70, and 0.90, respectively. Mean USST significantly declined from 48 h pre-calving with a ΔT of 0.85 °C. The residual temperature of both eye and various ROI of the udder also followed a similar and significant declining trend from 48 to 0 h of calving indicating that circadian influence on the USST was minimum. Plasma P4 concentration significantly decreased from 72 h pre-calving till calving. It is concluded that a marked reduction in the IRT of the USST at 6–12 h pre-calving would be useful in predicting the onset of calving in the Murrah buffalo