UW Supplementing Fat to the Cow Herd Bret W. Hess Beef Cattle Nutritionist

UW Levels of Consideration

UW Animal Factors Affecting Profitability Reproductive diseases and conditions cost $441,000,000 to $502,000,000 /year (Bellows et al., 2002)

UW The Beef Cow’s Annual Life Cycle 1st 85% of pregnancy Last 15% of pregnancy 1st 30% of lactation 245 days 40 days 60 days Time to rebreed (~20 days)

UW Postpartum Cows Prepartum Cows Neonatal/Suckling Calves Supplemental Fat Throughout The Beef Cow’s Lifecycle

UW Review of the Cow’s Estrous Cycle

UW Positive Responses to Supplemental Fat Enhanced ovarian follicular growth and function Increased growth and development of cells destine to form the corpus luteum

UW Postpartum Interval (P = 0.47)(P = 0.25)

UW Detection of Estrus 129 Cows 212 Cows (P = 0.49)

UW Detection of Estrus 99 Cows 143 Cows (P = 0.53)

UW First Service Conception Rates 140 Cows 194 Cows (P = 0.60)

UW First Service Conception Rates 146 Cows 173 Cows (P = 0.22)

UW First Service Conception Rates Literature 110 Cows 114 Cows (P = 0.54)

UW First Service Conception Rates Burns et al. (2002) 42 Cows (P = 0.12)~56 g/day

UW First Service Conception Rates UW Cows 36 Cows 59 Cows (P = 0.04)

UW BCS 6.0  0.3BCS 4.2  0.3 CONLINOLECONLINOLE UW Study Design Lake et al. (2003) ~420 g fat/day

UW Doudenal Flow of Linoleic Acid Scholljegerdes et al. (2001) (P < 0.001)

UW COOH C H3H3 Linoleic Acid COOH C H3H3 Arachidonic Acid CH 3 COOH OH PGF 2  CH 3 COOH O OH PGFM Desaturases and Elongases COX Prostaglandin dehydrogenase and  13 -reductase

UW Serum PGFM in Cows Grant et al. (2002) (P = 0.01)

UW Overall Pregnancy Rates 219 Cows 247 Cows (P = 0.94)

UW Overall Pregnancy Rates 197 Cows 281 Cows (P = 0.05)

UW Alexander et al. (2002) Plasma 18:2 of Cows Fed Lipids Prepartum

UW Overall Pregnancy Rates UW Herd 79 Cows 76 Cows (P = 0.96)

UW Calf Responses to Cow’s Diet

UW Birth Weights (P = 0.84)

UW Newborn Calves Exposed to 0°C (P < 0.01) Lammoglia et al. (1999)

UW (P = 0.48) Vigor Scores of Newborn Calves

UW (P < 0.05) Small et al. Immune Response of Calves

UW (P < 0.05) Small et al. Plasma Linoleic Acid of Newborn Calves

UW Relationship Between Milk 18:2 and Calf Adipose Tissue 18:2 Lake et al. (2003)

UW Summary of Responses for Cows Fed Fat Postpartum Increases Ovarian Follicular Growth and Development Enhances Luteal Activity Does NOT Affect Postpartum Interval May Reduce First Service Conception Rates Does NOT Improve Reproduction

UW Summary of Responses for Cows Fed Fat Prepartum Does NOT Appear to Affect Postpartum Interval Does NOT Appear to Affect First Service Conception Rates May Improve Overall Pregnancy Rates Increases the Cow’s Linoleic Acid Status

UW Summary of Responses for Cows Fed Fat Prepartum Does NOT Appear to Affect Calf Birth Weight May Increase the Calf’s Cold Tolerance May Bolster the Calf’s Immune Response Improves the Calf’s Linoleic Acid Status

UW Acknowledgments Sponsors: USDA-NRICGP, ADM, and UW Collaborators: Dan Rule, Doug Hixon, Gary Moss, Paul Ludden, Steve Paisley, Lee Beldon, Dennis Hallford, Rick Funston, Danny Simms, and Steve Bartle Research Associates: Venerand Nayigihugu, Brenda Alexander, Chuck Murrieta, Lisa Balstad, and Ed Van Kirk Graduate Students: Eric Scholljegerdes, Scott Lake, Wade Small, Becky Atkinson, Mark Grant, Bridget Johnson, Lisa Brokaw, Jeff Bottger, Jared Gould, Ben Garrett, and Rick Landeis

UW THANK YOU