Estrous behavior following prostaglandin F2α injection in Zebu cattle under continuous observation

THERIOGENOLOGY

ESTROUS BEHAVIOR FOLLOWING PROSTAGLANDIN ZEBU CATTLE UNDER CONTINUOUS OBSERVATION A. OrihuelaI,

C. GalinaI,

J.

Escobar*

1 Departamento de Reproducci6n, Veterinaria y Zootecnia Universidad National Autonoma 04510 Mexico, D.F.

and

Facultad

F2oc INJECTION E. Riquelme* de Medicina

de Mexico

2 Colegio de Posgraduados, Universidad Aut6noma 56230 Estado de Mexico, Mexico. Chapingo,

Received

for

IN

de

publication: October 29,1982 Accepted: March 31, 1983

ABSTRACT A study was conducted to improve understanding of the behavioral aspects of Zebu cattle in estrus in the tropics. Sixteen of 26 cows in group A and 21 of 34 in group B were found to have a corpus luteum and were injected with 30 mg of prostaglandin F~,x. In group B, a bull of proven libido was placed with the cows. Animals not injected were considered to be in proestrus and therefore left in the Recorded sexual activity included licking and groups. smelling the genital area, butting, following, and mounting or attemping to mount, both actively and passively. Animals were observed continuously for 100 hs. following injection. Only 56% of the injected animals in Group A and 62% in group B were found in estrus. The average number of mounts observed was 15.9 per cow during the estrous period which lasted 14.4 h. + 5.1 (mean + SD) for 12 cows in group A. In 13.9 Times each in a period of group B, cows mounted 12.6 h. + 5.5 (mean + SD) for 17 animals. In both groups, the 3-hour period during which most mounting activity was recorded was from 0600 to 0900 (25% and 33% for groups A However, 63% of all mounts were and B, respectively). observed at night (1800 to 0600 hrs) in group A as were 53% was observed for any cow in group B. No sexual activity during the first 40 h. of observation. Activity started with constant butting that preceded mountinq behavior. This pattern was better defined in group A than in group B where the bull was present. Although all activities were observed at some stage during the observation period, no clear relationship between mounting and other activities could be established.

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

795

THERIOGENOLOCY INTRODUCTION Fertility trials following an induced estrus in Zebu cattle and their crosses have seldom shown promising results since conception rates as low as 30% have been frequently found (11. This poor fertility could be associated with the application of heat detection criteria from'Bos taurus that do not necessarily apply in Bos indicus, espec!?iTlysince Zebu-type cows tend to have shorter estrous periods (2,3,4), thereby limiting the possibility of detecting animals in estrus. In dairy cattle, a highly significant difference in the number of animals detected in estrus after parturition was obtained when the cows were continuously monitored on closed circuit television, as op osed to routine observation by an experienced herdsman if the detection of estrus was a major problem (57. Thus in dairy gattle with intense management unless observed continuously, poor efficiency in spotting animals in estrus was to be expected in Zebu cattle where neither artificial insemination nor heat detection techniques are widely used. the use of prostaglandin F2amay increase the However, number of animals in heat in a short period of time. This favours the chances- of detecting animals in estrus since mounting behaviour increases if two or more cows are in estrus at the same time (.6,7]. In a study where the efficacy of heat detection was compared between pure Charolais and Zebu x Charolais cattle that the Zebu-Charolais cross did not (81, we observed normally show a well-defined estrus, as expressed by mounting behaviour, which averaged only 1.6 mounts per hour in estrus compared to 2.8 mounts by pure Charolais. as many as 40% of the mounts observed in the Furthermore, Zebu x Charolais group were given by the pure Charolais cows. This is in contrast to the Charolais qroup, where only 8% of the mounts were given to Charolais by the Zebu the presence of Charolais in the cross. In other words, experimental group led to the detection of estrus in some of the Zebu x Charolais cows. The objetive of the present work was to study the behavioural characteristics of Zebu cows after prostaglandin injection and to compare the accuracy of heat detection in a group consisting entirely of cows with another group where a bull was present. The overall aim was to establish hehavioural patterns that allow insemination to be carried out at the most appropiate time.

796

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

MATERIAL

AND

METHODS

This study was divided into two experiments which were carried out simultaneously on two farms in the State of Mexico with climate AWI, according to Koppen's Veracruz, scale modified by Garcia (9). Twenty-six mature Zebu cows in group A and 34 Zebu cows in Group B were palpated for the presence of a corpus luteum (CL), follicular development, or both. The animals with CL(n=16, Group A and n=21, Group 6) were injected with 30 rag of p~staglandin animals (n=IG, Group A and n=13, F20(*, The remaining Group B) were left in the experimental group since they were thought be in proestrus and could come in estrus during the continuous observation period after the application of PGFPX Blood samples were drawn from the injected animals for progesterone (P4) assay, to ensure that these animals had a functional CL at the moment of injection. Furthermore, a second blood sample was taken 11 days later because high blood proqesterone levels would indicate retrospectively that the cows were in heat during the observation period. Progesterone was assayed according to a previously described method (10). All animals were identified with large numbers or letters(injected and non-injected animals,respectively) so they could be observed at a distance. In (Group R), a bull of proven libido was placed with the cows to compare the accuracy of heat detection in the two groups. The animals were located in two separate fenced fields of approximately three hectares each and were continuously observed for 100 hours by at least two veterinary students of 3 hours. Sexual activity was at a time, for periods recorded for each animal and was characterized as either active or passive. These two categories were further subdivided into the following activities: licking and smelling the genital area, butting, following, and mounting, or attempting to mount. The results were analyzed by "t" test and analysis of variance according to Student's methods previously described (11). RESULTS Tables 1 and 2 show the number of animals in the non-injected (letters) and injected (numbers) groups that demostrated signs of estrus. Only two of the non-injected animals showed estrus out of the range of 50 to 60 hs. following the start of the observation period. Moreover, there were fewer mounts compared with the induced cows, although the difference was not significant. Only 56% (Group A) and 62% (Group B) of the injected animals were seen in estrus. Errors of palpation could n‘ot account for this discrepancy since * (Tham

JUNE

Salt,

Lutalyse,

1983VOL.19NO.6

The

Upjohn

Co.)

TABLE DURATION

AND

INTENSITY OF OF HEAT

ANIMALS

1

ESTRUS IN COWS SHOUING IN EXPERIMENT 1.

INJECTED UNTS

WITH

PGF;

RECEIVED

t IOURS IW ESTRUS HOUR O=TIME OF

I~~F&T~ON

55 _ 69

2 23

57

31

56 - 69

34

60

56

56 - 71

75

68 - 85

78

55 - 74 54

106

- 68 - 74

-

57.4

(a)

SIGNS

Values within colum

67 5 4.0

(a)

with different superscript differ ~~~~ificen~I~ (PeO.05)

ID. = Identification S.D.= Standard deviation

798

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

THERIOGENOLOGY only two animals in each group were injected with PGF2c* when their progesterone values were low. The two animals in Group B showed estrus whereas two in Group A did not. TABLE OURATION

AN0

ANIMALS CO”

1

NOT

ESTRUS

HOURS IN

IO.

2

INTENSITY OF ESTRUS IN cow* SHOWING OF HEAT IN EXPERIMENT 2.

,

INJECTED

MOUNTS

WITH

PGF,w

RECEIVED

I

HOURS (HOUR

IN ESTRUS O=TIME OF

I

15

7

54

-

69

5

13 i's

8

58

-

71

6

11

86

-

89

H

3

55

14

29

80

-

N

6

7

45

-

5 4.6

(b)

10.8

+ 8.4

(a)

I

b.“.

ANIMALS HOURS

IN

ESTRUS

** &

92

-

100

62

K

9.8

INJECTION)

I

1’

AYERAGE + ^_

67.1

94 56 t 16.9

(b)

I

NOT

INJECTEO

IOUNTS

WITH

I

I

PGF,* ‘

RECEIVED

HOURS IHOUR

8

IN ESTRUS O=TlME OF 63

I-

-

7

60

20

73

- 92

3

87

- 93

27

80

- 97

30

59

- 77

10

86

- 98

10

87

98

28

74

- 88

17.2

+

10

INJECTION

75

63 - 84

29

(a)

SIGNS

(a)

- 80

73.2

+ 0.8

(b)

/

(b) = Values with{" column with different superscript differ significantly (PdO.05) l

+*

=

hjected

with PGF2&

= Split estrus.

but with no functional CL (levels of Pqc0.2nglml).

S.D. = Standard deviation

Table 3 lists all the average activities recorded of cows that showed estrus or did not. Notice the relative absence of activity i‘n the animals that did not show estrus (in parentheses) which indicated little participation in the sexually active group. The 6~11 registered far more sexual activity than.any other animal, especially with regard to attempting to mount (17.1 times), following other cows (134 times) and butting (125 times). He accomplished 79 mounts, and from the passive standpoint was mounted twice and attempted nine ti,mes. From frequency responses of animals that showed estrus, w observed a more homogeneous response in Group A, in which only 10 hs. were needed for all animals to show estrus (from 50 to 60 hs. after injection); whereas, in (.from 50 to 82 hs. after Group 8 32 hs. were necessary injection). JUNE

1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

799

THERIOGENOLOGY Figure 1 and 2 show the behavioural tendencies of the whole herd. In Group A, mounting behaviour was confined to a short period and only attempts to mount and butting followed a similar pattern. Furthermore, butting behaviour preceded mounting in the experiment in which only cows were present. The pattern was not so clear in the presence of the bull (Figure 2), although the tendencies were similar for attempts to mount and butting. Mounting behaviour lasted for almost the entire length of the experiment. In both experiments, no activity was observed before 40 hs. when marked butting was initiated. These behavioural tendencies were also apparent when the activities recorded were divided into three-hourly observation periods. As can be seen in figure 3 and 4, the patterns of attempts to mount, mounts and butting behaviour were very similar (Figures 3 and 4) especially at night, whereas the other activities did not seem to be closely related to mounting behaviour. Figure 5 illustrates the behavioural patterns of the bull as he searched for cows in estrus. As expected, he followed most of the cows and sniffed their genital area, But did not neccesari'ly mount them afterwards. Wowever,the other three signs, especially licking the genital area, seemed a sure sign that preceded mounting behaviour. The presence of a bull. in a heat detection programme could indeed help detect more cows in estrus for the occasional observer. Notice in Tables 4 and 5 that homosexual mounting hehaviour occurred mostly at night, w.h.ereas the bull accomplished mounts throughout both day and night.

800

JUNE

1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

THERIOCENOLOCY FIGURE PERCENTAGE

OF

THE

1

SEXUAL ACTIVITIES RECORDED THE OBSERVATION PERIOD

AT

DIFFERENT

TIMES

DURING

GROUP

A

NO GULL PASTURE

Time

of

observation

IIGURE PERCENTAGE

OF

SEXUAL

ACTIVITIES

after

PGF2cinjectian

(in

hours).

2

RECORDED

AT

DIFFERENT

TIMES

DURING

THE GROUP

30

IN

GULL

MOUNTS

B WITH

20

30

.

FOLLOWING

SMELLING

20

lo 1 40

60

1DD

80 Time

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

of

observation

deYvh?h 40 after

60 PGFzYojection

GO (in

100

hours)

801

THERIOGENOLOCY

FIGURE

PERCENTAGE

OF

SEXUAL

ACTIVITIES OBSERVATION

3

REGISTERED

IN

EACH

THREE-HOUR

PERIOD

MOUNTS

O-3h

1%Zlh

c]=

29.56%

FOLLOWING

SMELLING 12-15h

^ ^_

15-18h 6-9hn 3-6h O-3h 8-21h

21-24h ,8-21h

2.1 2.1

9-12h

15-l8h

802

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

THERIOGENOLOGY

FIGURE

PERCENTAGE

OF

SEXUAL

ACTIVITIES OBSERVATION

4

REGISTERED

IN

EACH

THREE-HOUR

PERIOD group

B:

Bull

with

cows

LICKING

MOUNTS

6-5%

-12h

12-15h

,5-18h

12-15h

pJj=

2o.3*%

n=

79.6%

,5-18h

9-12h 9-l

2h

@&q=

37.5%

n=

62.5%

15-18h

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

803

FIGURE ANALYSIS TO THE

OF SEXUAL ACTIVITIES

5 BY THE

COURTING STUDIED

BULL

PRECEEDED

THAT

IN RELATION MOUNTING

BEHAVIOUR

1604 83.3 72.2

PERCENTAGI OF TOTAL

I

61.6

HERD

52 7

r

t

0

PERCENTAGE OF ANIMALS RECEIVING ATTENTION FROM BULL.

BPERCENTAGE

804

0~ ANIMALS ACTUALLY MOUNTED.

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

TABLE PROBABILITY

OF

I;OURS IN COWS

* Positive

DETECTING

SHOWING

19:OO

-

8:00

18:OO

-

8:00

20:oo

-

7:oo

19:oo

-

8:OO

19:OO

- 1o:oo

7:oo

- 19:oo

sign

f+)

means

HEAT

4 SIGNS IN

probability

OF

ESTRUS

EXPERIMENT

of

AT

DIFFERENT

1.

observing

estrus

at

that

time,

I.D.= Identification.

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

805

THERIOGENOLOGY

TABLE PROBABILITY HOURS

COW

I.D.

OF

IN COWS

DURATION

DETECTING SHOWING

OF

5

ESTRUS

SIGNS

HEAT

OF

ESTRUS

IN EXPERIMENT

17:oo 21:oo

5 B

I:00

-

4:oo

H

18:00

-

1:00

19:D0

K

12:OD

-

OF

DETECTION* 18:OO

24:00

t

- 22:oo - IO:00

DIFFERENT

II.

TIME

(hrs) 6:.00

1

AT

/ 7:00-15:oo

+

t

-

+

+ t

t

9:00

t

N

8:00

- 19:00

2

2:00

- 14:D0

+

+

- 23:00

+

+

+

- 19:OO

t

+

t

t

7:D0

t

t

t

t

2:00

4 6

23:OD 12:00'-

8

2:00 19:oo

14

8:00

t

- 12:oo

t

+

t

- 16:00

t

t

t

-

16

22:00

17

l:oo

-

2:oo

- 13:oo

13:oo

PERCENTAGE OF IN ESTRUS ACCORDING TO THE TIME OF THE

*

Positive

I.D.=

806

sign

(t)

means

probability

of

observing

estrus

at

that

time

Identification.

JUNE 1983VOL. 19 NO. 6

THERIOGENOLOGY DISCUSSION Undoubtedly, detectipn of animal in estrus is a considerable prohlem (5,6,7). Furthermore, sQme Zebu cows will not express estrus at all. Even after observing animals day and night, only 56% (Group Al and 62% (Group contrasting 8) of the animals were detected in estrus, with experiments not carried out under continuous observation where at least 75% of dairy cows were observed in estrus after prostaglandin injection (121. Tentative evidence that the injected animals could had been in estrus and ovulated during the observation period was obtained from the progesterone assay. In the present study, we failed to detect a corpus luteum by rectal palpation in only two cows in each experiment. However, of the animals that showed estrus, this period proved to be short and well defined, i.e., the same most of the animals showed estrus at relatively time as reported in dairy cattle. Nevertheless, a high percentage of animals did not come into estrus. This may have been due to the absence of selection for reproductive efficiency in Zebu cattle. We have previously reported that Zebu cows did not let themselves be repeatedly mounted in a short time period (8). This Qhservation has been confirmed by the present work since cows averaged only 1.3 mounts per hour in estrus in Group A and only 0.9 mounts per hour when a Bull was present. The synchrony of the non-injected animals with the injected ones suggests that either the behaviour of the estrus induced cows stimulated non-cycling animals to express estrus, or that animals already in proestrus tended to show betiavioural estrus only when a sexually active grQup was present, as already reported (13). In any case, had the Qbjetive of this report been a fertility cows would have had an equal trial, the non-injected Opportunity to get pregnant as the injected cows, even if in the fertility trial we had contemplated insemination at a predetermined ti.me. The number of hours in estrus agreed with that previously reported for Zebu cattle (3,4) and, based on the infOrmation on the cumulative frequency response test Qf the animals that showed‘estrus, a suitable time for inseminatign in Zebu cattle was probably 70 hours, by which time more than 6c1% of the animals would have been in estrus.

JUNE 1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

807

THERIOGENOLOGY More tests should he performed on the role of the maie in::bsat detecti.on of Zebu cattle, Under the cQnditionS of th.ese experiments Ccontfnuous ohseryat'ionj there. Was n.o advnntage in using the hull to detect estrus because he spent more time buttitng other cogs to establish hierarc'hy than. he dfd inspecting and mounting COWS in estr.us. Eased on this information, We belfeve that fertility trials -iInZebu cattle should 6e carried out by inseminating animals .a$ soon as estrus 7:s detected, In those animals not shoui‘ng heat,inaemlaation should be carried out BetWeen 6Q to 7Q hs, after PGFZorand ferti‘lity compared between the two groups. REFERENCES 1.

Hardin, D.R.$ @arnZck, A.C., Rise, T.H., Schultz,R.H., and Fields, M.J. Arttfi‘ci:a'linseminatCon of subtropical commercial beef cattle following synchronization with cloprostenal CrCI 8Q9961. I. Ferti:li‘ty. Theriogenology 14:249-258 (198ClI. -

2, Anderson,

J. The perindfcity and duration of oestrus i:n Zebu and grade cnttl'e. J. Agric. Sci. (Camb.1 -34:57-67 (39441.

3. Baker, A.A. The pattern of oestrous behaviour in SUhiWal Shorthorn heifers in south eastern Queensland. Aust. Yet. J. 43:14Q-147 (19671. 4. Plasse, D., larni‘ck, A.C., and Koger, M. Reproductive behavior of Bos i‘n'dicus female in a subtropical enrironment.7.m of estrous cycle, duration fertilization of embryo of estrus, time of OvulatTon, survIva1 i'n grade Brahman heifers. J. Anim. Sci. (197Ql. -3Q:63-72 5.

Hurnik, J.'F., Ki:ng, G.J., and Robertson, H.A. Estrous and related behaviour in ost partum Kolstei‘n cows. Appl. Ani'm. Ethel. _:55-6 1 (19751.

6. Esslemont, R.J., and Bryant, 'M.J. Qestrus behavior (19761. herd of dairy COWS.. Yet. Rec. %:472-476

in

7. kIilli.amson, N.R., Morrfs, R.S., Blood, D.C., and Cannan, C.M. A study of oestrus behaviour and oestrus detection methods in a large commercial dairy herd. 1) The relative effi‘ciency of methods of detection. Vet. Rec. -.91.:FiQ.-580972);.

808

JUNE

1983 VOL. 19 NO. 6

THERIOGENOLOGY 8.

Galina, C.S., McCloskey, M., and Calderbn, A. Detecti‘on of signs of estrus in the Charolais cow and its Brahman cross under continuous observatfon. Thertogenology 17:485-495 (_lSSZY.

al sistema de 9. Garcia, E. Veracruz, modificaciones clasificacf6n climdtica de Koppen, Universidad Naci‘onal Autonoma de Me(i:co, Xnstituto de Geografia, Mexico, D.F. (19731, cap. 15 IQ.Fehres, F., Scaglia, El., Lioker, R., Espinosa, J., Morado, T., Shkurorich, M., Perez Palaci'os, G. Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Gonadal function in patients with Myotonic Dystrophy. J. Cl-in. Endocr. -and Metab. (1975]. -41:833-839 ll.;;;de;;r, . .,

G.N., and Cochran, W.G. Statistical Academic Press, Ames, rowa. (1974).

methods, p.5

12.Lauderdale, J.‘W. Estrus detection and synchronization of dairy cattle in large herds. J. Dairy Sci. 57~348-354 [1974X. 13.J'dchle, W., and Lamond, 'D.R. The effects of environment i'n reproductPon in: control of reproductive function in domestic animals. Vol. 7 Martinus Nijhooff PubliIrhers, The Kague, (:198Q1.

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