Effect of timing of paddock allocation in tropical grass on performance, nitrogen excretion, and enteric methane emissions from dairy cows

Author(s)

Araujo Batalha, Camila Delveaux ; de Souza Congio, Guilhermo Franklin ; Chiavegato, Marilia Barbosa ; Berndt, Alexandre ; Shiraishi Frighetto, Rosa Toyoko ; Portela Santos, Flavio Augusto ; Da Silva, Sila Carneiro

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: ANIMAL SCIENCE JOURNAL; v. 93, n. 1, p. 9-pg., 2022-01-01.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of timing of paddock allocation (AM or PM) in tropical grass on nutritive value of the herbage, dry matter intake (DMI), milk yield and composition, ruminal fermentation, nitrogen excretion, and enteric CH4 emissions of dairy cows. Twenty cows were grouped in pairs and randomly distributed within pair to one of two treatments. PM herbage had greater contents of dry matter (DM), soluble carbohydrates, starch, and nonfibrous carbohydrate to protein ratio and lower contents of neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber. There was no treatment effect on DMI, N excretion, milk yield, and CH4 emissions. However, milk protein and casein yields tended to be greater for PM than AM, while milk urea nitrogen concentration was lower for PM than AM. The increase in nutritive value of the afternoon relative to the morning herbage within the framework of this study was not large enough to increase DMI and milk yield or to decrease CH4 emission intensity by the dairy cows as hypothesized. The findings indicate that PM treatment can be a simple and useful grazing strategy that results in an herbage harvest with greater nutritional value and in lower excretion of urea N into milk. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 16/22040-2 - Nutritive value, milk yield and greenhouse gas emissions in elephant grass cv. Cameroon subjected to strategies of rotational grazing by dairy cows
• Grantee: Sila Carneiro da Silva
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 14/20182-9 - Grazing management strategies, performance and enteric methane emissions of dairy cows on elephant grass cv. Cameroon
• Grantee: Marilia Barbosa Chiavegato
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral