Curvas de crecimiento de crías de vacuno levantadas en la Corporación Universitaria Lasallista
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Date
2004
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Abstract
Introduction: One of the problems found in cattle
exploitations is to typify the weighting of calves so
they can be compared. To the moment, the most
common practice in those exploitations is a lineal
interpolation between two consecutive weightings,
method that imposes severe restrictions concerning
the period of time between weightings and determines
the elimination of a great number of registrations.
Objective: To make a graphic representation of the
growth curves of four calves, in order to obtain the
most appropriate equation for a better adjustment.
Materials and methods: Four calves were
monitored during 8 months (two Holstein cow calves,
a Holstein bull calf and a mixed male bull calf, all of
them born in close dates), the growth system used
was bucket-stake. The males consumed milk until
they were 85 days old and the females until they were
70, every day they were given 4 litters of milk-replacer:
Processed cattle food was given to them until their
fifth month, and in this period each animal consumed
12 kg for a daily media rate of 80 gr. When they were
two months old, the bucket-stake system was
changed to a rotatory cattle keeping system on
Pennisetum clandestinum grass (kikuyu). Since their
first month of life, they were given 10 kg of Arachis
pintoi (forage peanut) not dehydrated, coming from
the pruning of the garden keepers from the
Corporación´s facilities. The data collection was made
every week using a bovine metric tape. Results: A
total number of 31 observations was obtained. The
growth speed was higher in the bull calves, fact that
can be explained by the higher consuming of milk
replacer, because they had more access to it. The
daily rate of weight gain was 589gr and 518 for the
males and the females, respectively.
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Bovinos