Influência do escore de condição corporal sobre o balanço energético negativo de vacas leiteiras

Abstract

Negative energy balance is a condition that occurs at the beginning of the lactation period, when high production animals are not able to consume enough to meet their nutritional requirements, due to the high utilization of nutrients for lactogenesis. The accumulation of body fat has an influence on metabolism in the period of initiation of lactation, reducing the impacts of diet deficiency. However, animals with a high body condition score tend to suffer more from negative energy balance, resulting in exacerbated catabolic processes, in addition to reproductive dysfunction. The increase in non-esterified fatty acids in the circulation, resulting from lipolysis, leads to an increase in circulating ketone bodies, characterizing a condition of ketosis.