Vol. 12, Special Issue 12 (2023)

Author(s):
Tsarila ZT Sangtam, N Savino, Sapunii Stephen Hanah, VK Vidyarthi, Mhachuvinuo Catherine Rutsa, Nizamuddin, Razouneinuo Zuyie and Rameshwar

Abstract:
The present study aimed to assess the influence of BCS on the dam body weight and its impact on calf birth weight and growth rate. This is the first study on the impact of body condition score of Mithun which was conducted at ICAR – National Research Centre on Mithun, Nagaland, with 25 Mithun (Bos frontalis) cows in the advanced pregnant stage. The cows were grouped based on their BCS; Group 1: BCS ≤ 3.0, Group 2: BCS > 3.0 to ≤ 4.0, and Group 3: BCS > 4.0. The animals were examined to record BCS and body weight at fortnightly intervals from days 14 (Stage I) and 7 days (Stage II) prepartum, and on days 3 (Stage III), 14 (Stage IV), 28 (Stage V), 42 (Stage VI), and 56 days (Stage VII) postpartum. The birth weight of all the calves was recorded before feeding the colostrum, and their monthly body weight was recorded up to six months of age. The mean BCS at stage I(before calving) were 3.04±0.05, 3.76±0.06 and 4.73±0.12 for 1, 2 and 3 BCS groups showing a significant difference (p<0.05). There was a general trend of decline in body weight from stage III until stage VI, followed by an increase at stage VII. Group 3 animals had significantly (p<0.05) higher body weight than groups 1 and 2. The cows with high BCS at calving lost more body weight than the other two groups of cows. The mean calf birth weight at calving was 20.44±1.18, 19.64±0.45 and 21.50±0.84 for groups 1, 2 and 3 respectively. Group 3 had marginally higher calf birth weight than groups 1 and 2, and their growth rate was higher throughout the six months. However, there was a non-significant difference in calf growth rate among all the BCS groups from the third to the sixth month. In conclusion, cows with higher BCS at calving had a higher body weight but lost more weight than those with lower BCS. Calf birth weight was significantly influenced by the BCS of the dam at calving.