“Influence of Rumen Fluid Transfaunation on Milk Quality in Healthy and Acidotic Dairy Goats”

Abstract

Rumen fermentation pattern and rumen ciliates still have mysterious and unknown secrets and implications in ruminants. This investigation was carried out firstly to evaluate the influence of seasons, breeds and their interaction on rumen fermentation pattern, selected serum parameters and milk profile in lactating dairy goats. Secondly, to determine the type, power and degree of correlation between main rumen fermentation parameters and milk fat % surveying different seasons and breeds in a survey study. Thirdly, to study the influence of rumen ciliates transfaunation on physical examination, feed intake, body weight gain, rumen fermentation pattern, serum and milk profiles in apparently healthy previously defaunated lactating dairy goats. Fourthly, to assess the effect of transfaunation of mixed culture of rumen ciliates as a therapeutic aid on physical examination, rumen eco-system, serum and milk profiles in experimentally acidotic lactating dairy goats. For accomplishing these four objectives, a total number of fifty-seven apparently healthy female lactating dairy goats aged 3.5±0.24 years old and weighted 32.45±1.19 kg, was used in this study. Forty-nine of them belonging to private farm in El-Beharah governorate, Egypt, were used in survey study and classified according to breeds into 17 Shami, 14 Mixed Boar and 18 Baladi, and according to seasons, they were classified into 12 Autumn, 13 Winter, 12 Spring and 12 Summer. The remaining 8 goats were classified according to type of transfaunated ciliate culture into two groups each one contained 4 goats; Pure culture (PC) group and Mixed culture (MC) group in transfaunation experiment.