Linseed oil supplementation alters milk fatty acid profile, mitigates heat stress, and improves summer milk yield in grazing dairy cows.

Dietary supplementation of fat can be an important source of energy to compensate for the reduction in dry matter intake in dairy cows during heat stress periods. Studies have reported that supplementing dairy cow diets with linseed oil (LO) can increase milk yield and enhance the levels of beneficial fatty acids, such as omega-3 fatty acids, in the milk. The objective of this research was to evaluate the effect of LO supplementation on milk fatty acids profile, milk yield and composition, and physiological parameters of grazing cows.

Dietary roughage sources affect lactating Holstein x Zebu cows under experimental conditions in Brazil: a meta-analysis.

To reduce costs, lactating cows are often fed a higher proportion of roughage and alternative feeds; however, such protocols may not lead to optimal milk production. Using a meta-analysis, we evaluated the effects of dietary roughage sources on the composition, voluntary intake, and digestibility of diets fed to crossbred Holstein x Zebu cows under experimental feeding conditions in Brazil. Finally, we assessed the effects of dietary roughage sources on milk yield and composition.

Relationship between climatic variables and the variation in bulk tank milk composition using canonical correlation analysis.

A number of studies have addressed the relations between climatic variables and milk composition, but these works used univariate statistical approaches. In our study, we used a multivariate approach (canonical correlation) to study the impact of climatic variables on milk composition, price, and monthly milk production at a dairy farm using bulk tank milk data. Data on milk composition, price, and monthly milk production were obtained from a dairy company that purchased the milk from the farm, while climatic variable data were obtained from the National Institute of Meteorology (INMET).