Abstract
Twenty-two pluriparous single-foetus-bearing Angora goats, housed 3 weeks pre-partum in mid-December, and in transition from pregnancy to lactation were used to test the efficacy of post-partum supplementation (Group S: 11 goats) or not (Group C: 11 goats) with 300 g/head/day of whole field bean seeds (WFBS) to a diet based on mixed hay ad libitum and natural pasture. The goats were maintained with the suckling of their kids for 90 days. Significant decreases in liveweight (LW) and body condition score (BCS), were documented post-parturition in both groups and were then maintained throughout. These suggest a mobilisation in body tissue that was not mitigated by WFBS supplementation. However, the faster growth of the suckled kids and greater elongation of mohair fibre recorded (Group S > Group C), suggested improvement in partition towards production indices of lactation and hair fibre deposition, respectively. Greater concentrations of total thyroid hormones, T3 and T4 in supplemented does were recorded. Overall mean (pre-prandial) plasma insulin concentrations, not different between treatments, decreased (p
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1315-1325 |
Number of pages | 11 |
Journal | Italian journal of Animal Science |
Volume | 21 |
Issue number | 1 |
Early online date | 11 Aug 2022 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 11 Aug 2022 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This research was partially financially supported by grants from the University of Camerino (FAR UNICAM/LT). The authors thank Dr. Gianni Berna and his staff at the Maridiana Farm for the care of the animals. Mr. Gianvincenzo Lebboroni is greatly acknowledged for assistance related to OFDA analyses.
Data Availability Statement
The data associated with this paper are available from the corresponding author [LT] upon reasonable request.Keywords
- Angora goats
- transition
- lactation
- hormones
- mohair