Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-qs9v7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-11T20:20:25.076Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Effects of double suckling at pasture 1. Cow performance

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 September 2010

G. B. Nicoll
G. B. Nicoll
Affiliation:
Agricultural Institute, Grange, Dunsany, Co. Meath, Ireland
Get access

Abstract

Two experiments were conducted to compare the effects of single and double suckling on the performance of Hereford × Friesian and Friesian cows at pasture. Double-suckled cows each fostered a Friesian male calf in addition to their own calf. Cows were housed from calving to turnout for 57 and 35 days in experiments 1 and 2 respectively, with corresponding grazing seasons lasting 152 and 146 days. During the grazing season the two suckling treatments were stocked on a series of adjacent plots of equal area, with the occupancy of each plot pair being reversed daily. Live weights, milk yields, herbage intakes, and daylight grazing times and nursing activities were recorded on three occasions 28 days apart.

Double-suckled cows lost significantly more weight than single-suckled cows from calving to turnout in both experiments (39·5 v. 3·3 kg and 45·7 v. 20·6 kg), gained more weight from turnout to weaning in experiment 1 (58·4 v. 23·3 kg) but gained less in experiment 2 (17·5 v. 32·3 kg). Double-suckled cows produced significantly more milk than single-suckled cows: 10·1 v. 8·3 and 13·5 v. 9 1 kg/day in experiments 1 and 2 respectively. Differences in daily milk yield in experiment 2 were apparent 28 days after calving.

Suckling treatments did not influence herbage intakes or daylight grazing times and nursing frequencies. Mean nursing intensities were 1·0 calves per single-suckled cow, compared with 1·8 calves (experiment 1) and 2·2 calves (experiment 2) per double-suckled cow. Double-suckled cows nursed significantly more ‘foreign’ calves than single-suckled cows. Total calf weight at weaning from double-suckled cows in experiments 1 and 2 was respectively 364·6 and 344·4 kg, which was 1·64 of the corresponding weights weaned by single-suckled cows (221·1 and 209·4 kg).

Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Production , Volume 35 , Issue 3 , December 1982 , pp. 385 - 393
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 1982

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Baker, R. D., Alvarez, F. and Le du, Y. L. P. 1981. The effect of herbage allowance upon the herbage intake and performance of suckler cows and calves. Grass & Forage Sci. 36: 189–199.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Byrne, E. 1979. Chemical Analysis of Agricultural Materials. An Foras Talüntais, Dublin.Google Scholar
Dickerson, G. 1970. Efficiency of animal production— molding the biological components. J. Anim. Sci. 30: 849–859.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Drennan, M. J. 1971. Single-suckled beef production. 1. Influence of stocking rate during the grazing season, creep grazing of the calf and double-suckling on liveweight changes and milk production of the cows. Ir. J. agric. Res. 10: 287–295.Google Scholar
McIntyre, G. A. 1952. A method for unbiased selective sampling, using ranked sets. Aust. J. agric. Res. 3: 385–390.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nicoll, G. B. 1980. Evaluation of the machine washing of herbage samples cut at two heights. Ir. J. agric. Res. 19: 91–97.Google Scholar
Nicoll, G. B. 1982. Effects of double suckling at pasture. 2. Calf performance. Anim. Prod. 35: 395–100.Google Scholar
O'Shea, J. and Wilson, R. K.. 1965. Relationship between in vitro and in vivo dry matter digestibility. Ir. J. agric. Res. 4: 235–237.Google Scholar
Petit, M., Garel, J. P. and Le Neindre, P. 1978. [Suckling of two calves by Salers cows. I.—Compared productions of cows suckling 1 or 2 calves.] Annls Zootech. 37: 533–551.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sokal, R. R. and Rohlf, F. J. 1969. Biometry. Freeman, San Francisco.Google Scholar
Tilley, J. M. A. and Terry, R. A. 1963. A two-stage technique for the in vitro digestion of forage crops. J. Br. Grassld Soc. 18: 104–111.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wyatt, R. D., Gould, M. B. and Totusek, R. 1977. Effects of single vs simulated twin rearing on cow and calf performance. J. Anim. Sci. 45: 1409–1414.CrossRefGoogle Scholar