Effect of prill fat supplementation on hormones, milk production and energy metabolites during mid lactation in crossbred cows

Aim: To find out the effect of prill fat feeding on milk production and hormonal changes in crossbred cows. Materials and Methods: Crossbred cows in mid lactation (150 days) were selected from the institutes' herd. The observations on dry matter intake (DMI), body weight, body condition score (BCS)were recorded and milk composition, plasma metabolites viz., glucose and Nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA) were measured in control (CON) and experimental prill fat group (PFG) cows. During the experimental period, PFG cows were fed with bypass prill fat @75 gid for a period of 90 days. Results: The DMI and body weight of cows was non-significant (P>0.05) between the groups, but BCS of cows improved in the CON group. Crude protein and Total digestible nutrients (TDN) intake/kg body weight was more (P>0.05) in PFG over the CON. Milk yield, plasma hormones - Growth hormone, triiodothyronine and thyroxine (GH, T-3, T-4) was significantly lower in CON group over the PFG cows (P<0.05). However ghrelin and leptin levels were not affected. Milk fat, protein, lactose and cholesterol were similar in both the groups. Furthermore, plasma NEFA decreased (P<0.05) and glucose varied non significantly between the groups. Conclusion: It was concluded that prill fat supplementation can be used to augment milk production without influencing milk composition and plasma metabolites in crossbred cows.