temperature-humidity index values and their significance

8
56 V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011) Introduction Heat stress could be reason of the significant increase of production cost in the dairy industry. Armstrong (1994) noticed that the relative daily cows’ production is constant when temperatures are low and medium, while after passing a thresh- old, starts to decrease. The rate of decline increases with rising temperatures. Exposition of dairy cattle to high ambient temperatures (Ta), high relative hu- midity (RH) and solar radiation for extended peri- ods decrease the ability of the lactating dairy cow to Vesna Gantner 1 *, Pero Mijić 1 , Krešimir Kuterovac 2 , Drago Solić 3 , Ranko Gantner 1 1 Poljoprivredni fakultet u Osijeku, Sveučilište J.J. Strossmayera u Osijeku, Trg Svetog Trojstva 3, Osijek, Hrvatska 2 Agrokor d.d., Trg D. Petrovića 3, Zagreb, Hrvatska 3 Hrvatska poljoprivredna agencija, Ilica 101, Zagreb, Hrvatska Received - Prispjelo: 06.11.2010. Accepted - Prihvaćeno: 12.01.2011. Summary The objectives of this study were to determine the microclimatic conditions in stables in three climactic regions (East, Mediterranean, and Central) of Croatia as well as to evaluate the effect of temperature-humidity index (THI) values on the daily production of dairy cattle. With that purpose, 1675686 test-day records collected from January 2005 until April 2010 were extracted from HPA (Croatian Agricultural Agency) database. For estimation of the effect of THI on daily production of dairy cows fixed-effect model that took into account the effects of lactation stage, breed, calving season, measuring season, and THI group (T 1 - THI72; T 2 - THI>72) was used. Model was applied to each class of parity (P 1 ,P 2 ,P 3 ,P 4 and P 5 ) and region. During the analysed period, the highest monthly averages of ambient temperature were determined in Mediterranean region, the highest monthly averages of relative humidity were observed in Central region, while the highest monthly mean values of temperature-humidity index (THI) were determined in Mediterranean region. Heat stress conditions indicated with mean daily values of THI>72 were determined during spring and summer season in all analysed regions. Absence of heat stress conditions during autumn and winter season also characterised all three regions. Highly significant (P<0.01) decrease of daily milk yield as well as of daily fat and protein content due to enhanced THI was observed in all cows regardless the parity class and in all three climatic regions. Furthermore, the most deteriorate effect of heat stress was observed in East region. During heat stress period, with the aim of minimization of the effects of heat stress, it is necessary to regulate management strategies in the dairy herd. Key words: dairy cattle; daily production; temperature-humidity index Original scientific paper - Izvorni znanstveni rad UDK: 637.112 Temperature-humidity index values and their significance on the daily production of dairy cattle *Corresponding author/Dopisni autor: E-mail: [email protected] disperse heat. At the same time, lactating dairy cows create a large quantity of metabolic heat. So, accu- mulated and produced heat joined with decreased cooling capability induced by environmental condi- tions, causes heat stress in the animals. Finally, heat stress induces increase of body temperature. John- son (1980) observed that when the body tempera- ture is significantly elevated, feed intake, metabo- lism, body weight and milk yields decrease to help alleviate the heat imbalance. Johnson et al. (1962) determined that with the termination of the hot sea- son, in high-producing cows, the productivity does

Upload: others

Post on 10-Feb-2022

2 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

56 V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011)

Introduction

Heat stress could be reason of the significantincrease of production cost in the dairy industry.Armstrong (1994)noticed that the relativedailycows’ production is constant when temperaturesare lowandmedium,whileafterpassinga thresh-old,startstodecrease.Therateofdeclineincreaseswithrisingtemperatures.Expositionofdairycattletohighambienttemperatures(Ta),highrelativehu-midity(RH)andsolarradiationforextendedperi-odsdecreasetheabilityofthelactatingdairycowto

Vesna Gantner1*, Pero Mijić1, Krešimir Kuterovac2, Drago Solić3, Ranko Gantner1

1PoljoprivrednifakultetuOsijeku,SveučilišteJ.J.StrossmayerauOsijeku,TrgSvetogTrojstva3,Osijek,Hrvatska

2Agrokord.d.,TrgD.Petrovića3,Zagreb,Hrvatska3Hrvatskapoljoprivrednaagencija,Ilica101,Zagreb,Hrvatska

Received-Prispjelo:06.11.2010.Accepted-Prihvaćeno:12.01.2011.

Summary

Theobjectivesofthisstudyweretodeterminethemicroclimaticconditionsinstablesinthreeclimacticregions(East,Mediterranean,andCentral)ofCroatiaaswellastoevaluatetheeffectoftemperature-humidityindex(THI)valuesonthedailyproductionofdairycattle.Withthatpurpose,1675686test-dayrecordscollectedfromJanuary2005untilApril2010wereextractedfromHPA(CroatianAgriculturalAgency)database.ForestimationoftheeffectofTHIondailyproductionofdairycowsfixed-effectmodelthattookintoaccounttheeffectsoflactationstage,breed,calvingseason,measuringseason,andTHIgroup(T1-THI≤72;T2-THI>72)wasused.Modelwasappliedtoeachclassofparity (P1,P2,P3,P4andP5)andregion.During theanalysedperiod, thehighestmonthly averagesof ambient temperatureweredetermined inMediterranean region, thehighestmonthlyaveragesofrelativehumiditywereobservedinCentralregion,whilethehighestmonthlymeanvaluesoftemperature-humidityindex(THI)weredeterminedinMediterraneanregion.HeatstressconditionsindicatedwithmeandailyvaluesofTHI>72weredeterminedduringspringandsummerseasoninallanalysedregions.Absenceofheatstressconditionsduringautumnandwinterseasonalsocharacterisedallthreeregions.Highlysignificant(P<0.01)decreaseofdailymilkyieldaswellasofdailyfatandproteincontentduetoenhancedTHIwasobservedinallcowsregardlesstheparityclassandinallthreeclimaticregions.Furthermore,themostdeteriorateeffectofheatstresswasobservedinEastregion.Duringheatstressperiod,withtheaimofminimizationoftheeffectsofheatstress,itisnecessarytoregulatemanagementstrategiesinthedairyherd.

Key words: dairycattle;dailyproduction;temperature-humidityindex

Originalscientificpaper-Izvorniznanstvenirad UDK:637.112

Temperature-humidity index values and their significance on the daily production of dairy cattle

*Corresponding author/Dopisni autor: E-mail: [email protected]

disperseheat.Atthesametime,lactatingdairycowscreatealargequantityofmetabolicheat.So,accu-mulated andproducedheat joinedwithdecreasedcoolingcapabilityinducedbyenvironmentalcondi-tions,causesheatstressintheanimals.Finally,heatstressinducesincreaseofbodytemperature.John-son(1980)observedthatwhenthebodytempera-ture is significantly elevated, feed intake,metabo-lism,bodyweightandmilkyieldsdecreasetohelpalleviatetheheatimbalance.Johnsonetal.(1962)determinedthatwiththeterminationofthehotsea-son, inhigh-producingcows, theproductivitydoes

V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011) 57

not completely return to normal since the energydeficitcannotbefullycompensated.Thepermanentdropinthecurrent lactationisproportionaltothelengthoftheheatstress.Thetemperature-humidityindex(THI)couldbeusedtodeterminetheinflu-ence of heat stress on productivity of dairy cows.MilkproductionisaffectedbyheatstresswhenTHIvaluesarehigherthan72,whichcorrespondsto22°Cat100%humidity,25°Cat50%humidity,or28°Cat20%humidity(DuPreezetal.,1990a).Johnson(1980)reportedthat,whenTHIreaches72,milkproductionaswellasfeedintakebeginstodecrease.Theamountofmilkyielddecreaseduringthe summerperiod incomparisonwith thewinterperiodforHolsteincowsabout10%to40%(DuPreezetal.,1990b).UnderMediterraneanclimaticconditions,milkyielddropsby0.41kgpercowperdayforeachpointincreaseinthevalueofTHIabove69(Bouraouietal.,2002).Besidechangesinmilkyield, heat stress could also cause changes inmilkcomposition,somaticcellcounts(SCC)andmastitisfrequencies(Rodriguezetal.,1985,DuPreezetal.,1990b).

Theobjectivesofthisstudyweretodeterminethemicroclimaticconditionsinstablesinthreecli-macticregionsofCroatiaaswellastoevaluatetheeffectoftemperature-humidityindexvaluesonthedailyproductionofdairycattle.

Material and methods

Datasets

Foranalysisofvariabilityofmicroclimaticcondi-tionsinthestableaswellastheirsignificanceonthedailyproductionofdairycattleinCroatia,1675686test-dayrecordscollectedfromJanuary2005untilApril2010on8273dairyfarmsallaroundCroatiawere extracted from HPA (Croatian AgriculturalAgency)database.MilkrecordinginCroatiaoccurs

accordingtothealternativemilkrecordingmethodeveryfourweekswhen,dependingoftheparticular-lyfarm,theHPAcontrolassistant(A)orthefarmer(B)measuresmorningoreveningmilkyield,notesinitialtimeofcontrolmilkingandinitialtimeofpre-viousmilking,and,foranalysisofmilkcomposition,takesmilksamplefromeachlactatingcow.Foranal-ysisofmilkfat,proteinandlactosecontentMilkoS-can133Bwasused.Theintervalbetweensuccessivemilking,requiredforprojectionofdailyvalues,wascomputed as the time from the beginning of pre-viousmilking to the beginning of controlmilking.Dailyproductionofmilkyieldandcomponentswasprojectedusingprojectionparametersestimatedinauthors’earlierresearch(Gantner,2008).Logicalcontrol of productiondatawas performed accord-ingtoICARstandards(2003).Theyieldsrecordedafter the500th lactationdaywasdeleted fromthedataset.

Accordingtotheparity,cowsweredividedintofive classes that are heifers (P1), cows in secondlactation(P2),cowsinthirdlactation(P3),cowsinfourth lactation (P4), and cows in fifth andhigherlactations(P5).VariabilityofanalyzedtraitsinregardtoparityclassesisshowninTable1.

Accordingtothetestdate,fourmeasuringsea-sonsubgroupswerecreated(S1-spring-includingtheperiodfromApriltillJune;S2-summer-includ-ingtheperiodfromJulytillSeptember;S3-autumn-includingtheperiodfromOctobertillDecember;and S4 -winter - including the period from Janu-ary tillMarch).Cowsweredivided in two calvingseasonsubgroupsregardingthecalvingdate(C1andC2 that include animals calved in spring/summerand autumn/winter season). In accordance to thegeographicalandclimaticcharacteristicsofCroatiathree different regionswere formed, namelyEast,Mediterranean, and Central region where 2795,1980, and 3500 respectively dairy farms were in-cludedinresearch.

Table 1. Descriptionofdatasetusedforanalysis(n=1675686)

Parameter

Parity

P1 P2 P3 P4 P5Dailymilkyield,kg 16.62±6.69 17.73±7.84 17.89±7.93 17.34±7.54 15.93±6.79

Dailyfatcontent,% 4.23±0.91 4.25±0.95 4.22±0.95 4.17±0.94 4.09±0.92

Dailyproteincontent,% 3.47±0.48 3.50±0.49 3.47±0.48 3.45±0.47 3.44±0.46

58 V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011)

The temperature and the relative humidityin stablewere recordedateachmilking.Thedailytemperature-humidityindex(THI)valueswerecal-culatedusingtheequationbyKibler(1964):

THI=1.8Ta-(1-RH)(Ta-14.3)+32 (1)

where:

Ta - measured ambient temperature in °C, RH -relativehumidityasafractionoftheunit.Accord-ingtothevalueofthetemperature-humidityindex(THI),twoTHIsubgroupswerecreated(T1whereTHI≤72;andT2whereTHI>72).

For estimation of the effect of temperature-humidityindex(THI)ondailyproductionofdairycowsfollowingfixed-effectmodelwasused:

yijkl=μ+b1(d/305)+b2(d/305)2+b3ln(305/d)+

b4ln2(305/d)+Bi+Cj+Sk+Tl+eijkl (2)

where:

yijkl=predicteddailyperformance(yieldorcontent),

μ=intercept.

bi=regressioncoefficientsofAliandSchaefferlacta-tioncurve(1987),

d=lactationstage(days),

Bi=effectofbreed(i=Holstein;Simmental),

Cj=effectofcalvingseason(j=1-spring/summer;2-autumn/winter),

Sk = effect of measuring season (k = 1 - spring;2-summer;3-autumn;4-winter),

Tl=effectofTHIgroup(l=1-THI≤72;2-THI>72),

eijkl=residual.

The significance of differences between themeansofthedailymilkyield,aswellasbetweenthemeans of the daily fat and protein contentwithintheTHIclassesinregardtoparityclassesbyclimaticregionswastestedwithScheffetest.Forthestatisti-calanalysisandthefiguresdrawingtheSAS/STATpackagewasused(SASInstituteInc.,2000).

Results and discussion

Variationsintheambienttemperature(Ta,oC),relative humidity (RH, %), and the temperature-humidityindex(THI)inthestablenotedduringthemeasuringmonthsforanalysedregions(East,Medi-terranean,Central)arereportedinTable2.

Comparing themonthly averages ofmicrocli-matic parameters in analysed regions, highest am-bienttemperaturesweredeterminedinMediterra-nean,whilehighestrelativehumiditywereobserved

Table2.Microclimateconditionsinthestablesduringmeasuringmonthsinaccordancetotheregions(East,Mediterranean,andCentral)

Month/Season

Region/Parameter

East Mediterranean Central

Ta,°C RH,% THI Ta,°C RH,% THI Ta,°C RH,% THI

I./S4 7.5±4.3 69.5±9.8 47.5±6.6 10.3±4.7 70.7±9.6 51.7±7.1 9.6±4.5 73.8±8.7 50.5±6.9

II./S4 8.1±4.6 67.5±9.7 48.4±7.0 11.2±4.9 68.6±9.7 53.1±7.2 10.3±4.5 71.9±8.7 51.6±6.9

III./S4 10.2±4.7 67.1±9.9 51.6±7.4 13.3±5.1 66.6±9.9 56.2±7.3 12.1±4.8 69.4±9.1 54.4±7.2

IV./S1 13.8±5.2 66.4±9.3 56.9±7.8 17.0±5.1 64.0±9.4 61.5±7.2 16.1±4.8 66.9±4.8 60.3±7.0

V./S1 17.6±5.8 65.5±9.8 62.5±8.5 20.4±5.1 65.5±9.7 66.6±7.4 19.8±5.1 67.5±9.5 65.8±7.5

VI./S1 20.4±6.1 67.4±9.7 66.7±9.0 23.3±5.2 67.7±9.2 70.9±7.8 22.5±5.1 68.9±9.5 69.8±7.6

VII./S2 23.1±6.1 66.1±9.9 70.6±8.8 24.9±4.7 68.6±9.5 73.5±6.9 23.9±4.9 68.7±9.8 71.9±7.3

VIII./S2 21.7±5.8 66.2±9.9 68.6±8.3 23.5±4.7 68.6±9.6 71.4±7.1 22.9±4.5 69.6±9.1 70.7±6.9

IX./S2 18.8±5.6 66.6±9.8 64.3±8.0 20.3±4.7 69.8±9.3 66.7±7.1 19.5±4.7 70.9±8.8 65.5±7.1

X./S3 14.6±5.4 69.6±9.7 58.1±8.1 17.0±4.9 70.1±9.0 61.8±7.3 15.9±4.7 71.9±8.5 60.1±7.2

XI./S3 10.9±5.1 69.9±9.4 52.2±7.8 13.2±4.9 70.5±9.8 56.1±7.4 12.5±4.5 72.6±9.0 55.0±6.9

XII./S3 8.4±4.8 70.5±9.8 48.7±7.4 11.2±4.7 72.1±9.6 53.1±7.1 10.3±4.6 74.1±8.6 51.6±7.0

Ta-ambienttemperature(°C);RH-relativehumidity(%);THI-temperature-humidityindex

V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011) 59

in Central region. In Mediterranean region werealsodeterminedthehighestvaluesoftemperature-humidityindex(THI).Theseverityofheatstressiscorrelatedtobothambienttemperatureandhumid-ity level. The bovine thermal comfort zone is -13°C to+25 °C.Within this temperature range, theanimalcomfortisoptimal,withabodytemperaturebetween38.4°Cand39.1°C(LefebvreandPla-mondon,2003).Above25°C,andeven20°Cforsomeauthors,thecowsuffersfromheatstress: itshealth status and production performance are af-fected.Berman(1968)determinedthatforlactat-ingdairycowstheambienttemperaturesabove25°Care associatedwith lower feed intake,drops inmilkproduction and reducedmetabolic rate.Ber-manet al. (1985)noticed that theupper limitofambienttemperaturesatwhichHolsteincattlemaymaintainastablebodytemperatureis25to26°C,andthatabove25°Cpracticesshouldbeinstituted

tominimize the rise inbody temperature.Bianca(1965)determineddecrease in dailymilk yield ofHolstein, JerseyandBrownSwisscows inamountof3,7and2%ofnormalatatemperatureof29°Cand40%relativehumidity.Increaseofrelativehu-midityto90%inducesadditionaldecreaseofmilkyieldfor31,25,and17%ofnormalyield.Useofatemperature-humidityindexisaonewaytomeas-urethecombinedeffectoftemperatureandhumid-ity.AmeandailyTHIinvalueof72isconsideredtobethecriticalpointatwhichmilkyieldisreduced(Johnson,1987).IncreasingTHIintherangeof71to81reducedthemilkyieldandintakeoffeedandwaterfordairycows(Johnsonetal.,1963).Theef-fectwasgreatestwhenTHIexceeded76.DuPreezetal.(1990b)statedthatmilkproductionisaffectedbyheatstresswhenTHIvaluesarehigherthan72,whichcorrespondsto22°Cat100%humidity,25°Cat50%humidity,or28°Cat20%humidity.

Figure2.Averagetemperature-humidityindexesduringtheautumn(C)andthewinter(D)season

Figure1.Averagetemperature-humidityindexesduringthespring(A)andthesummer(B)season

60 V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011)

Mean daily THI values during spring (Figure1A)andsummer(Figure1B)seasonwerehighestinMediterraneanregionwere,during15daysinspringand38days insummer,meandailyTHIvalueex-ceededcritical(72)indicatingheatstressconditions.Lowest frequency of days with heat stress condi-tionswere observed inEastern region.Absence ofheatstressconditions(THI<72)duringautumnandwinterseasoncharacterisedallthreeregions(Figure2Cand2D).

Effect of exceeded THI on daily milk yieldandcomponentsinrelationtoparityclassesandcli-matic regions are shown in table 3.Highly signifi-cant (P<0.01)decreaseofdailymilk yielddue toenhancedTHIwasobserved inheifers in all threeregions.Thehighestamountofdailyloss(>0.9kg/day)wasdeterminedinheifersbreedinEastregion.RegardingtheeffectofTHIvalueabovecriticalondailyfatandproteincontentinheifercows,highlysignificant(P<0.01)decreasewasobservedinallan-alysedregions.Furthermore,incowsinsecondlac-tationhighlysignificant(P<0.01)decreaseofdailymilkyieldaswellasofdailyfatandproteincontent

inducedbyheatstressconditionswereobservedinallregions.Highlysignificant(P<0.01)decreaseofanalysed productive parameters were also deter-minedinoldercowsinallclimaticregions,whilethemostdeteriorateeffectofheatstresswasobservedinEastregion.

Deteriorate effect of exceeded THI on dailymilkyields andcomponentswerealsoobserved inother studies. Ingraham (1979) estimated thatmilkyieldreductionwas0.32kgperunit increasein THI. Schneider et al. (1988) observed thatheat stressed dairy cows in one chamber experi-ments consumed less feed (13.6 vs. 19.4 kg/day),morewater(86.0vs.81.9l/day)andproducedlessmilk(16.5vs.20.0kg/day)thancowsinathermalneutralenvironment.McDowell(1976)suggestedthatmilkproduction is reducedby15%accompa-niedbya35%decreaseintheefficiencyofenergyutilizationforproductivepurposes,whenalactatingHolsteincowistransferredfromanairtemperatureof18to30°C.Johnsonetal.(1963)reportedthatthemilkyieldandtheDMI(drymatterintake)ex-hibited significant declines (by 1.8 and 1.4 kg for

Table3.LsmeansofproductionparametersforTHIgroups(T1,T2)inrelationtoparityclasses(P1,P2,P3,P4,P5)andregions(East,Mediterranean,Central)

Parity

Parameter

Region/THIgroup

East Mediterranean Central

T1 T2 T1 T2 T1 T2

P1

Dailymilkyield,kg 17.734A 16.814B 17.264A 16.497A 15.809A 15.452B

Dailyfatcontent,% 4.110A 4.061B 4.246A 4.196B 4.279A 4.208B

Dailyproteincontent,% 3.445A 3.401B 3.452A 3.395B 3.447A 3.389B

P2

Dailymilkyield,kg 19.076A 18.038B 18.322A 17.842B 16.910A 16.605B

Dailyfatcontent,% 4.128A 4.057B 4.281A 4.241B 4.293A 4.208B

Dailyproteincontent,% 3.474A 3.414B 3.514A 3.470B 3.502A 3.440B

P3

Dailymilkyield,kg 19.173A 18.597B 18.564A 18.091A 17.187A 16.826B

Dailyfatcontent,% 4.107A 4.049B 4.229A 4.199B 4.256A 4.196B

Dailyproteincontent,% 3.443A 3.380B 3.470A 3.429B 3.466A 3.409B

P4

Dailymilkyield,kg 18.605A 18.312B 18.053A 17.518B 16.687A 16.291B

Dailyfatcontent,% 4.075A 4.023B 4.189A 4.134B 4.195A 4.167B

Dailyproteincontent,% 3.432A 3.375B 3.451A 3.416B 3.449A 3.398B

P5

Dailymilkyield,kg 16.947A 16.269B 16.762A 16.398B 15.445A 15.161B

Dailyfatcontent,% 4.020A 3.941B 4.102A 4.054B 4.099A 4.049B

Dailyproteincontent,% 3.411A 3.358B 3.447A 3.387B 3.433A 3.376B

*thevalueswithintheclassesofparityandregionsmarkedwiththedifferentlettersdifferhighlysignificant(P>0.01)

V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011) 61

each0.55°Cincrease inrectaltemperature)whenmaximum THI reached 77. A significant negativecorrelationbetweenTHIandDMIwasdeterminedforcows in thesouth-easternU.S.(Holteretal.,1996;1997).SameauthorspresumethattheeffectofTHIisprobablymediatedthroughtheeffectsofincreasing body temperature on cowperformance.Umphrey et al. (2001) reported that the partialcorrelationbetweenmilkyieldandrectaltempera-tureforcowsinAlabamawas-0.135.Ravagnoloetal. (2000)determined thatmilk yield declined by0.2kgperunitincreaseinTHIwhenTHIexceeded72.Bouraouietal.(2002)observedthatthedailyTHI was negatively correlated to milk yield (r =-0.76) and feed intake (r= -0.24). Same authorsalsodetermined thatmilkyielddecreasedby0.41kgper cowper day for eachpoint increase in theTHI>69.Thereductioninmilkproductionduringheatstressmaybeduetodecreasednutrientintakeanddecreasednutrientuptakebytheportaldrainedvisceraofthecow.Bloodflowshiftedtoperipheraltissuesforcoolingpurposesmayalternutrientme-tabolismandcontributetolowermilkyieldduringhotweather.Westetal.(2002)reportedthat,dur-inghotweather,themeanTHItwodaysearlierhadthe greatest effect onmilk yield, while DMI wasmostsensitivetothemeanairtemperaturetwodaysearlier.MilkyieldforHolsteinsdeclined0.88kgperTHIunitincreaseforthe2-dlagofmeanTHI,whileDMIdeclined0.85kgforeachdegree(°C)increaseinthemeanairtemperature.Theauthorspresumethat the delayed impact of climatic variables onproductioncouldberelatedtoalteredfeedintake,delay between intake and utilization of consumednutrients,orchangesintheendocrinestatusofthecow.

Milk fat andmilkproteinpercentage alsode-creasesduetoheatstress.Bouraouietal.(2002)determineddecreaseofdailyfat(3.24vs.3.58%)andprotein(2.88vs.2.96%)content,aswellasde-creaseofdailyfat(0.68vs.0.48)andprotein(0.56vs.0.43)yieldsduring summer in regard to springperiod.Thedepressionsinmilkfatandproteinper-centages associated with heat stress environmentswere also determined by Rodrigez et al. (1985).Ontheotherhand,KnappandGrummer(1991)foundno significantdecrease in fatpercentage forcowsunderheatstress.Thedifferencebetweenre-sultsobtainedinthisresearchandthosereportedby

KnappandGrummer(1991)couldbecausedbyuse of totalmixed rations (TMR)which probablyalleviate milk fat depression commonly associatedwithheatstressbymaintainingtheintendedforageto concentrate intake and, ensuring adequate fibreforproperrumenfermentation. InthesamestudyKnapp andGrummer (1991) observeddecreaseof milk protein with increase of maximum dailytemperature.Thereductioninmilkproteinisprob-ablycausedbyadecreasedDMIandenergyintake.Emery(1978)quotedthatdecreasedlevelsoffoodintake during lactation are usually associated withdecreasedproteincontent.

Conclusions

BasedonanalysisofmicroclimaticconditionsinstablesinclimacticregionsofCroatiaandevaluationoftheeffectoftemperature-humidityindexvaluesonthedailyproductionofdairycattlefollowingcon-clusionscouldbeemphasised:

Thehighestmonthlyaveragesofambienttem-peratureduringanalysedperiodweredeterminedinMediterraneanregion,thehighestmonthlyaveragesofrelativehumidityduringanalysedperiodwereob-servedinCentralregion,whilethehighestmonthlymeanvaluesoftemperature-humidityindex(THI)weredeterminedinMediterraneanregion.

Heatstressconditionsindicatedwithmeandai-lyvaluesofTHI>72weredeterminedduringspringand summer season in all analysed regions. ThehighestincidenceofexceededTHIwasobservedinMediterraneanregion(15daysinspringand38daysin summer period). Absence of heat stress condi-tionsduringautumnandwinterseasoncharacterisedallthreeregions.

Highly significant (P<0.01) decrease of dailymilk yield due to enhanced THI was observed inallcowsregardless theparityclassand inall threeclimaticregions.RegardingtheeffectofTHIvalueabovecriticalondailyfatandproteincontent,high-lysignificant(P<0.01)decreasewasobservedinallcowsand inall analysed regions.Furthermore, themostdeteriorateeffectofheatstresswasobservedinEast region.Duringheat stressperiod,with theaimofminimizationoftheeffectsofheatstress,itisnecessarytoregulatemanagementstrategiesinthedairyherd.There aremany tools available tohelp

62 V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011)

the dairy farmer combat heat stress. For instance,environmentalcoolingcanmaintainfeedintakeandnutrientdensityoffeedcanoptimizenutrientintaketomaintainmilkproduction.

Utjecaj vrijednosti temperaturno-humidnog indeksa

na dnevnu proizvodnju mliječnih goveda

Sažetak

Ciljevi su provedenoga istraživanja bili utvrdi-timikroklimatske uvjete u proizvodnim objektimau tri klimatske regije Hrvatske (istočna, medite-ranskatecentralna)teevaluiratiutjecajvrijednostitemperatutno-humidnog indeksa (THI) na dnevnuproizvodnjumliječnihgoveda.Utomjeciljuizbazepodataka HPA (Hrvatske poljoprivredne agencije)ekstrahirano1675686dnevnihzapisaprikupljenihurazdoblju od siječnja 2005. do travnja 2010. godi-ne.ZaprocjenuutjecajaTHInadnevnuproizvodnjumliječnihgovedakorištenjemodelfiksnihutjecajaukojemsuuvaženiutjecajistadijalaktacije,pasmine,sezone telenja, sezonemjerenja, teTHI grupe (T1-THI≤72;T2-THI>72).Modeljeapliciranzaseb-noporazredimaredoslijedalaktacije(P1,P2,P3,P4iP5)teregije.Tijekomanaliziranograzdoblja,najvišeprosječne mjesečne vrijednosti ambijentalne tem-peratureutvrđenesuumediteranskoj,najvišepro-sječnemjesečnevrijednostirelativnevlageutvrđenesuu centralnoj,dok sunajvišeprosječnemjesečnevrijednosti temperaturno-humidnog indeksa (THI)utvrđene u mediteranskoj regiji. Toplinsko stresniuvjeti indicirani prosječnom dnevnom vrijednošćuTHI>72utvrđeni su tijekomproljetne i ljetne se-zoneusvimanaliziranimregijama.Odsustvotoplin-skostresnihuvjetatijekomjesenskeizimskesezonekarakteriziralojesvetriregije.Visokosignifikantan(P<0.01) pad dnevne količinemlijeka te dnevnogsadržajamliječnemastiibjelančevinauzrokovanpo-višenomvrijednošćuTHIutvrđenjeusvihgrlane-ovisnooredoslijedu laktacije teusvimklimatskimregijama.Nadalje,najizraženijinegativniutjecaj to-plinskogstresautvrđenjeuistočnojregiji.Tijekomrazdoblja toplinskog stresa, s ciljemminimalizacijeutjecajaistog,neophodnajeprilagodbamanagemen-taustadumliječnihgrla.Uzgajivačimasunaraspola-ganjurazličitialatizaborbuprotivtoplinskogstresa.Naprimjer,hlađenjeokolišaomogućujeunosdostat-

nekoličinekrmivadokprikladansastavobrokaosi-guravadostatanunoshranjiva.Navedenoomogućavaodržavanjeoptimalneproizvodnjemlijeka.

Ključne riječi: mliječnagoveda;dnevnaproizvodnja;temperaturno-humidniindeks

References

1. Ali,T.E.,Schaeffer,L.R.(1987):Accountingforcovari-ancesamongtestdaymilkyieldsindairycows.Can. J. Anim. Sci. 67,637-644.

2. Armstrong, D.V. (1994): Heat stress interaction withshadeandcooling.J. Dairy Sci. 7,2044-2050.

3. Berman,A.(1968):Nychthemeralandseasonalpatternsof thermoregulation in cattle.Aust. J. Agric. Res. 19,181-189.

4. Berman,A.,Folman,Y.,Kaim,M.,Mamen,M.,Herz,Z.,Wolfenson,D.,Arieli,A.,Graber,Y.(1985):Uppercrit-icaltemperaturesandforcedventilationeffectsforhighyieldingdairycowsinasubtropicalclimate.J. Dairy Sci. 68,1488-1495.

5. Bianca,W.(1965):Reviewsoftheprogressofdairysci-ence.SectionA.Physiology.Cattleinahotenvironment.J. Dairy Res. 32,291-345.

6. Bouraoui, R., Lahmar,M.,Majdoub, A., Djemali, M.,Belyea, R. (2002): The relationship of temperature-humidityindexwithmilkproductionofdairycowsinaMediterraneanclimate.Anim. Res. 51,479-491.

7. DuPreez,J.H.,Giesecke,W.H.,Hattingh,P.J.(1990a):Heat stress in dairy cattle and other livestock underSouthern African conditions. I. Temperature-humidityindexmeanvaluesduringthefourmainseasons.Onder-stepoort J. Vet. Res. 57,77-86.

8. DuPreez,J.H.,Hatting,P.J.,Giesecke,W.H.,Eisenberg,B.E.(1990b):Heatstressindairycattleandotherlive-stockunderSouthernAfrican conditions. III.Monthlytemperature-humidityindexmeanvaluesandtheirsig-nificance intheperformanceofdairycattle.Onderste-poort J. Vet. Res. 57,243-248.

9. EmeryR.S.(1978):Feedingforincreasedmilkprotein.J. Dairy Sci. 61,825-828.

10. Gantner, V. (2008): Točnost procjene dnevne količinei sastavamlijeka krava po alternativnoj shemi kontrolemliječnosti,Ph.D.Diss.,UniversityofJ.J.Strossmayer,Osijek,Croatia.

11. Holter,J.B.,West,J.W.,Mcgilliard,M.L.,(1997).Pre-dicting ad libitumdrymatter intake andyieldofHol-steincows.J. Dairy Sci. 80,2188-2199.

12. Holter, J.B., West, J.W., Mcgilliard, M.L., Pell, A.N.(1996): Predicting ad libitum dry matter intake andyieldsofJerseycows.J. Dairy Sci. 79,912-921.

13. Ingraham R.H., Stanley, R.W., Wagner, W.C. (1979):Seasonaleffectofthetropicalclimateonshadedandnonshadedcowsasmeasuredbyrectaltemperature,adrenalcortex hormones, thyroid hormone, andmilk produc-tion.Am. J. Vet. Res. 40,1792-1797.

V. GANTNER et al.: Daily production of dairy cattle, Mljekarstvo 61 (1), 56-63 (2011) 63

14. ICAR-InternationalCommitteeforAnimalRecording(2003).GuidelinesapprovedbytheGeneralAssemblyheldinInterlaken,Switzerland,on30May2002,Roma,19-39.

15. Johnson,H.D. (1980): Environmentalmanagement ofcattletominimizethestressofclimatechanges.Int. J. Biometeor. 24(Suppl.7,Part2),65-78.

16. Johnson,H.D.(1987):Bioclimatesandlivestock.Biocli-matologyandtheAdaptationofLivestock.WorldAni-malScience.(H.D.Johnson,ed.)ElsevierSciencePubl.Co.,NewYork.

17. Johnson, H.D., Ragsdale, A.C., Berry, I.L., Shanklin,M.D. (1962): Effect of various temperature humiditycombinationsonmilkproductionofHolsteincattle.Res.Bull.MissouriAgric.Exp.Station,791.

18. Johnson, H.D., Ragsdale, A.C., Berry, I.L., Shanklin,M.D. (1963): Temperature-humidity effects includinginfluenceofacclimationinfeedandwaterconsumptionofHolsteincattle.MissouriAgr.Exp.Sta.Res.Bul.846.

19. Kibler, H.H. (1964): Environmental physiology andshelter engineering. LXVII.Thermal effects of varioustemperature-humidity combinations onHolstein cattleasmeasuredbyeightphysiologicalresponses.Res.Bull.MissouriAgric.Exp.Station.862.

20. Knapp,D.M.,Grummer,R.R.(1991):Responseoflac-tating dairy cows to fat supplementation during heatstress.J. Dairy Sci. 74,2573-2579.

21. Lefebvre,D.,Plamondon,P.(2003):LeProducteurDeLaitQuébécois,Juin2003.

22. Mcdowell, L.R. (1976): Mineral deficienties and tox-icitiesandtheireffectonbeefproductionindevelopingcountries,Symposium:Beefcattleproductionindevel-opingcountries,UniversityofEdinburgh,Scotland216-241.

23. Rodriguez, L.W.,Mekonnen,G.,Wilcox,C.J.,Martin,F.G.,Krienk,W.A.(1985):Effectsofrelativehumidity,maximum and minimum temperature, pregnancy andstageoflactationonmilkcompositionandyield.J. Dairy Sci. 68,973-978.

24. SAS/STATUser’sGuide(2000):Version8.Cary,NC,SASInstituteInc.

25. Schneider,P.L.,Beede,D.K.,Wilcox,C.J.(1988):Nyc-terohemeralpatternsofacid-basestatus,mineralcncen-trationsanddigestivefunctionoflactatingcowsinnatu-ral or chamberheat stress environments. J. Anim. Sci. 66,112-125.

26. Umphrey, J.E., Moss, B.R., Wilcox, C.J., Van Horn,H.H.(2001):InterrelationshipsinlactatingHolsteinsofrectal and skin temperatures,milk yield and composi-tion,drymatterintake,bodyweight,andfeedefficiencyinsummerinAlabama.J. Dairy Sci. 84,2680-2685.