Rumen protected fat sources for dairy cows grazing elephant grass

• Grant number: 12/01916-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): July 01, 2012
• Effective date (End): June 30, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Animal Husbandry - Animal Production
• Principal Investigator: Flávio Augusto Portela Santos
• Grantee: Mateus Mendes Vilanova e Silva
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The study objective is to evaluate the effects of early lactation dairy cows supplementation, grazing tropical pasture, with two rumen-protected fat sources (calcium salts of soybean oil and calcium salts of palm oil), with the inclusion of 400g of the fat into the concentrate. The parameters evaluated will be the following ones: 1)Milk production and composition - fat, protein, lactose, casein, 2)Lactation persistency; 3)Weight and score of corporal condition; 4) Animal behavior; 5) Blood variables - non-esterified fat acid, glucose, and N-ureic 6) morphological and chemical composition; 7)Animal energy efficiency.(AU)