Reproductive programs for beef cattle: incorporating management and reproductive techniques for better fertility
José Luiz M. Vasconcelos, Rafael Carvalho, Rogério F.G. Peres, Adnan D.P. Rodrigues, Izaias Claro Junior, Mauro Meneghetti, Fernando H. Aono, Wedson M. Costa, Catarina N. Lopes, Reinaldo F. Cooke, Ky G. Pohler
Abstract
This review summarizes strategies to increase overall pregnancy rates to TAI protocols, and potential areas for improvement in reproductive management of Nelore cows. Low BCS at calving and postpartum BCS loss negatively impacted percentage of pregnant females to TAI, with primiparous cows being the most sensitive to the effects of low BCS during the postpartum period. The current reproductive management recommended for replacement heifers (with TAI on day 0) consist of intravaginal progesterone device insertion from day -35 to -23, 0.6 mg i.m. injection of estradiol cypionate on day -23, insertion of another intravaginal progesterone device and 2.0 mg i.m. injection of estradiol benzoate on day -11, 12.5 mg i.m. injection of dinoprost tromethamine on day -4, intravaginal progesterone device removal and 0.6 mg i.m. injection of estradiol cypionate on day -2, and TAI on day 0. Supplementing corn for 41 days after the first TAI of the breeding season increased pregnancy to a second AI in primiparous cows, increased final proportion of pregnancy in primiparous cows, but decreased the final proportion of pregnancy in mature cows. In turn, supplementing melengestrol acetate or Ca salts of PUFA during the expected time of luteolysis was beneficial to pregnancy rates. Vaccinating cows against BoHV-1, BVDV, and Leptospira spp., particularly when both doses were administered before TAI, improved cow reproductive performance. Cow temperament has direct implications not only on reproductive efficiency of B. indicus females, but also on overall production efficiency in cow-calf system based on B. indicus cattle. Lastly, concentration of pregnancy-associated glycoproteins was driven by the ability of pregnancy maintenance and by sire used at TAI, whereas exploring this relationship might be interesting to improve sire fertility regarding late embryonic loss in Nelore females.
Keywords
References
Aono FH, Cooke RF, Alfieri AA, Vasconcelos JLM. 2013. Effects of vaccination against reproductive diseases on reproductive performance of beef cows submitted to fixed-timed AI in Brazilian cow-calf operations. Theriogenology, 79:242-248.
Claro Junior I, Sa Filho OG, Peres RFG, Aono FHS, Day ML, Vasconcelos JLM. 2010. Reproductive performance of prepubertal Bos indicus heifers after progesterone-based treatments. Theriogenology, 74:903- 911.
Cooke RF, Bohnert DW, Meneghetti M, Losi TC, Vasconcelos JLM. 2011. Effects of temperament on pregnancy rates to fixed-timed AI in Bos indicus beef cows. Livest Sci 142:108-113.
Cooke RF. 2014. Temperament and acclimation to human handling influence growth, health, and reproductive responses in Bos taurus and B. indicus cattle. J Anim Sci, 92:5325:5333.
Cooke RF, Schubach KM, Marques RS, Peres RG, Silva LGT, Carvalho R, Cipriano RS, Bohnert DW, Pires AV, Vasconcelos JLM. 2017. Effects of temperament on physiological, productive, and reproductive responses in Bos indicus beef cows. J Anim Sci, 95:1-8. doi: 10.2527/jas.2016.1098.
Costa WM, Carvalho ER, Pereira MHC, Peres RFG, Vasconcelos JLM. 2015. Supplementation with melengestrol acetate post TAI improves fertility in suckled Nelore cows. Anim Reprod, 12:660. (abstract).
Lopes CN, Scarpa AB, Cappellozza BI, Cooke RF, Vasconcelos JLM. 2009. Effects of rumen-protected polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation on reproductive performance of Bos indicus beef cows. J Anim Sci, 87:3935-3943.
Lopes CN, Cooke RF, Reis MM, Peres RFG, Vasconcelos JLM. 2011. Strategic supplementation of calcium salts of polyunsaturated fatty acids to enhance reproductive performance of Bos indicus beef cows. J Anim Sci, 89:3116-3124.
Meneghetti M, Vasconcelos JLM . 2008. Mês de parição, condição corporal e resposta ao protocolo de inseminação artificial em tempo fixo em vacas de corte primíparas. Arq Bras Med Vet Zootec, 60:786-793.
Meneghetti M, Sá Filho OG, Peres RFG, Lamb GC, Vasconcelos JLM. 2009. Fixed-time artificial insemination with estradiol and progesterone for B. indicus cows I: Basis for development of protocols. Theriogenology, 72:179-189, 2009.
Peres RFG, Carvalho R, Graff H, Furlan Junior JH, Rodrigues ADP, Franco GA, Keisler DH, Smith MF, Pohler KG, Vasconcelos JLM. 2016. Corn supplementation during 41 days after the begginning of TAI protocol and its effects on metabolic hormones and reproductive performance of Nelore females, Anim Reprod, 13:382. (abstract).
Pohler KG, Peres RFG, Greeen JA, Graff H, Martins T, Vasconcelos JLM, Smith MF. 2016. Use of bovine pregnancy-associated glycoproteins to predict late embryonic mortality in postpartum Nelore beef cows. Theriogenology, 85:1652-1659.
Rodrigues ADP, Peres RFG ; Lemes AP, Martins T, Pereira MHC; Day ML, Vasconcelos JLM. 2013 Progesterone-based strategies to induce ovulation in prepubertal Nellore heifers.Theriogenology, 79:135-141.
Rodrigues ADP, Peres RFG, Lemes AP, Martins T, Pereira MHC, Carvalho ER, Day ML, Vasconcelos JLM. 2014. Effect of interval from induction of puberty to initiation of a timed AI protocol on pregnancy rate in Nellore heifers. Theriogenology. v.82:760-766.
Rodrigues ADP, Peres RFG, Day ML, Vasconcelos JLM. 2016. Effect of eCG and P4 level in timed AI programs in bos indicus and bos indicus x bos taurus heifers. J Dairy Sci, 99(E-suppl. 1):502. (abstract).
Facebook
Google+
Twitter
LinkedIn
Mendeley
StumbleUpon
CiteULike
Reddit
Email