Strategic Nutritional Intervention During Peripartum Period for Optimum Reproductive Performance in Barbari Goats

Abstract

An unscientific approach to animal feeding during pregnancy may result in reproductive loss due to abortion or neonatal death due to low birth weight caused by malnutrition in pregnant does or dystocia caused by absolute fetal oversize caused by high levels of feeding throughout gestation. Supplemental feeding might be a possible way to overcome the above situation. The objective of the present study was to to see how strategically augmented high nutrient allowance in form of supplementing concentrate feed affected the nutritional consumption, health, and reproductive performance of pregnant goats during peripartum period. The twenty-four pregnant female barbari goat of 30 days pre-partum after properly identified using mating history and ultrasonography were randomly divided in four groups of six goats in each group without (cNN) and with (tNH, tHN and tHH) strategically supplementation of extra concentrate at the rate of 15g/kg metabolic body weight as high plane of nutrition. A control (cNN) group fed with TMR (green: dry: concentrate as 40:20:40) based basal diet without any concentrate supplementation whereas three treatment groups tNH, tHN and tHH were offered concentrate pellet feed strategically together with basal diet during pre-, post- and through out (i.e. both pre- and post partum) period of the feeding trial, respectively, to study the comparative effect on health and its reproductive performance. Results indicated that body weight did not differed significantly among the groups on any fortnightly of study period. However, Pre-partum ADG, post-partum ADG and body weight loss during kidding were found significantly (P<0.05) improvement in dietary supplementation groups. The absolute DMI,g remain non- significantly affected at all the fortnight in different dietary groups. RBC and WBC blood profile reveals no significant difference among the groups and their levels remains in normal range throughout gestation period. Mean serum glucose level and liver function indices (Total protein, Albumin, Globulin, ALT and AST) of gravid does was close to the normal range reported for goats A significantly (p<0.05) improvement in reproductive performance with respect to high birth weight, increase colostrum production, lower reproductive ailment and with improved kid performance were observed in supplementation groups during peripartum period. Based on all finding, it was concluded that the last month of gestation and early month of lactation appears to be the most nutritionally sensitive period both for barbari pregnant does and their new born kids and supplementation of concentrate pellet feed over and above the basal diet during pre- and post partum effectively take care of the nutritional stress observed during the peripartum period and further helps in enhanced health and reproductive potential with minimum reproductive wastage.