Clinical And Laboratory Investigations on Postpartum Period in Cattle

The present work was done on 20 Holstein dairy cows 3 – 7 years old at Sharkia Governorate. These animals are classified into 2 groups:Group-A: with normal birth and normal DROP of placenta and were fed properly on formulated ration 55.93 kg/head/day.Group-B: with normal birth and normal DROP of placenta and were fed a properly on formulated ration 54.13 kg/head/day.All animals in each group were kept under the same management during the period of investigation which lasted for one year starting from October 2003 till October 2004.The animals were examined rectaly 2 times weekly starting from the third day postpartum up to appearance of the first postpartum estrus.Blood samples were collected from all animals one time every week from 7 days prepartum to about 63 days postpartum, and the blood plasma were subjected to estimate each of the following:i- Progesterone as indicator of ovarian activity.ii- Glucose as indicator of energy status.iii- Urea as indicator of protein intake.iv- Glutamic-Oxaloacetic-Transaminase (GOT) as indicator of liver function.First ovulation was detected from estrus signs, rectal palpation and progesterone assay.Number of inseminations were recorded and open days were calculated for all animals.The results of these studies revealed the following:I- Reproductive performance:1- The mean interval from parturition to first ovulation were 27.90±4.41 days and positive significance (P<0.05) correlated with plasma concentration of glucose and progesterone but not correlated with milk yield and plasma concentration of urea and/or GO2- The number of inseminations were 1.90±0.74 and the correlations with other parameters were as follow:i- Negative significant (P<0.05) correlation with plasma concentration of progesterone and glucose.ii- Positive highly significant (P<0.01) correlation with milk yield.iii- No significant correlation with plasma concentration of urea and/or GOT.3- The mean interval from parturition to first estrus was 65.00±12.48 days and ranged from 50 – 90 days.4- The mean interval from parturition to the conception (open days) was 96.40±30.98 days and ranged from 55 – 151 days.II- Statistical analysis:1- The minimum concentration of progesterone in plasma was 0.84±0.09 ng/ml just after calving at 0 – 7 days postpartum afterwards the concentration was gradually increased up to reach maximum level (29 – 35 days) postpartum just at the time of ovulation.Analysis of variance revealed highly significant (P<0.01) difference in plasma progesterone concentration before and after calving.2- The maximum concentration of glucose in plasma was 62.80±17.11 mg/ml before calving and then the concentration was gradually decreased up to minimum level (35.6±5.25 mg/ml) at 29 – 35 days postpartum just at the time of ovulation afterwards the concentAnalysis of variance revealed highly significant (P<0.01) difference in plasma glucose concentration before and after calving.3- The maximum concentration of urea in plasma was 46.70±3.30 mg/dl at 36 – 42 days postpartum, while the minimum concentration was 41.80±3.22 mg/dl just after calving at 0 – 7 days postpartum.Analysis of variance revealed no significant difference in plasma urea concentration before and after calving.4- The maximum concentration of GOT in plasma was 80.40±13.10 u/l at 36 – 42 days postpartum, while the minimum concentration was 66.80 ±9.25 u/l just after calving at 0 – 7 days postpartum.Analysis of variance revealed significant (P<0.05) difference in plasma GOT concentration before and after calving.5- The correlation between postpartum plasma concentration of glucose and progesterone was highly significant (P<0.01).6- The correlation between postpartum plasma concentration of urea and progesterone was not significant.III- Milk yield:The mean milk yield was 10063.00±1262.22 L/season (305 days) for cow and ranged from 8640 – 12850.<br.