ADAPTIVE ABILITY OF HOLSTEIN CATTLE INTRODUCED INTO NEW HABITAL CONDITIONS

Use of artificial insemination technologies and a purebred animal international trading led to global spreading commercial American and West-European breeds, which possess high productivity potential, but are very demanding to the feed quality, stuff experience and zoohygiene conditions. The highest genetic potential is characteristic of the Holstein cattle from the USA and Canada. Wide use of the Holstein breed in the Russian Federation resulted in rise of dairy productivity and improvement of dairy cattle technological parameters, but some problems of imported animals’ health and adaptation have been revealed. The high dairy productivity inevitably leads to the weakening immunity, decreased fertility and less stress resistance. Disease susceptibility, in its turn, also ultimately decreases the productivity, fertility and the time of farming use in highly-productive cows. Nowadays a great importance is given to breeding for production traits, while the lack of resistance to the external factors as a cause of diseases and reduced performance is still remaining less studied. Our main aim was to study the adaptive abilities of the Holstein cattle of Russian and the US origin which were moved to Kabardino-Balkarian Republic in comparison with Black-motley animals long reared under the local conditions of Kabardino-Balkaria. The investigations were carried out on the farms of a pre-mountain zone (Agro-Concern Golden Kolos LLC, Soyuz-Agro LLC). The heifers were divided into 3 groups, 30 animals per each, with regard to age, physiological state, origin and productivity. The Black-motley heifers were the control group, the Russian Holstein heifers were the group 1, and the American Holstein heifers were the group 2. In the groups we studied blood bactericidal, lysozyme, complement and phagocyte activity. The dairy production was estimated monthly during the first two lactations. Fat and protein levels in milk, and cow weight were recorded, and the milkiness index was calculated. The superiority of Black-motley heifers and first-calf cows in blood bactericidal activity (by 5.7-8.3 %, Р > 0.999, and 5.4-7.5 %, Р > 0.999, respectively), blood lysozyme activity (by 2.2-3.1 %, Р > 0.999, and 1.8-4.5 %, Р > 0.999, respectively), blood complement activity (by 0.4-0.6 %, Р > 0.95-0.99, and 3.2-5.0 %, Р > 0.99-0.999) was found, whereas the Russian and American Holsteins were shown to possess more intensive phagocytosis (i.e., 4.9-7.7 % higher in heifers, Р > 0.99-0.999, and 2.6-3.8 % higher in first-calf cows, Р > 0.95-0.99). There was a true milk yield priority of 2227 kg (Р > 0.999) in the first lactation and 2465 kg (Р > 0.999) in the second lactation in the Holsteins originated from the US when compared to domestic Black-motley cows of the same age. However, the Black-motley cows surpassed the Holstein coevals of foreign origin due to higher milk fat and protein. Note, for the whole observation in all breeds studied the milk fat and protein were higher compared to the breed standards. Though milk quality was higher in the Black-motley cows, the total milk fat and protein yield was higher in the Holsteins, so that during the first lactation the difference in milk fat and protein output between the first-calf cows averaged 47.9-74.8 kg (P > 0.999) and 41.0-63.3 kg (P > 0.999), respectively, and the same trend was found in the second lactation. The maximum milking index was observed in Holstein cows of the US breeding which were superior to Black-motley cows and Russian Holstiens of the same age on average by 366-373 kg (P > 0.999) and 135-141 kg (P > 0.95), respectively. Thus Holstein cows bred in Russia and the US are quite successfully adapted to the conditions of Kabardino-Balkaria.

• ALAGIROVA Zh.T.
• ULIMBASHEV M.B.

• Искусство. Декоративно-прикладное искусство. Фотография. Музыка. Игры. Спорт

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