Table 1. Zootechnical data and energy balance of heat-stressed (HS) and pair-fed (PF) cows.
| Period | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Item | Group | P1 1 | P2 1 | P-Value 2 |
| Body weight, kg | HSap | 684.9 [588.5; 881] | 670 [587.5; 864] | 0.016 |
| PFap | 724.2 [606; 796] | 703.7 [604; 773.5] | 0.031 | |
| HSpp | 569.9 [484.5; 716.5] | 528.4 [463.5; 634.5] | 0.031 | |
| PFpp | 584.3 [511; 694] | 530.2 [449; 639.5] | 0.031 | |
| Back fat thickness, mm | HSap | 11.6 [6; 22] | 11.6 [7; 21] | 0.813 |
| PFap | 15.0 [8; 23] | 13.0 [7; 16] | 0.313 | |
| HSpp | 9.8 [6; 19] | 8.3 [5; 14] | 0.313 | |
| PFpp | 8.5 [5; 13] | 8.0 [5; 11] | 0.438 | |
| Energy balance, MJ | HSap | -18.2 [-37.9; -1.2] | -50.3 [-69.3; -31.53] | 0.016 |
| PFap | -16.5 [-24.4; -1.6] | -49.4 [-55.9; -38.0] | 0.031 | |
ap ante partum; pp post-partum; P1 period of thermoneutral conditions (THI = 59.7) with ad libitum feeding; P2 period of either pair feeding at thermoneutral (THI = 60.0) conditions (PF) or during ad libitum feeding under heat exposure (HS, THI = 76.1).
Numbers of animals analyzed per group: HSap n = 7, PFap n = 6, HSpp n = 6, PFpp n = 6.
1Values are given as mean [minimum; maximum].
2P-Values derived from Wilcoxon signed-rank test for paired samples.
There were no group differences between HS and PF at identical reproductive stages and experimental periods.