Table 4.
The effect of prepartum BCS class (HIGH vs. LOW) and exercise (CON vs. STEP) on dry matter intake (DMI), milk yield, fat‐ and protein‐corrected milk (FPCM), milk components (fat, protein, lactose), component yield and calculated net energy for lactation balance (NEL bal) in week 1 to 6 postpartum
| Item | Treatment group | SED | P‐valuea | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low con (n = 7) | Low step (n = 7) | High con (n = 8) | High step (n = 8) | Exerc | BCS | Exerc × BCS | Exerc × week | BCS × week | Exerc × BCS ×week | ||
| DMI (kg/day) | 21.7 | 20.5 | 20.7 | 19.9 | 0.97 | 0.184 | 0.556 | 0.485 | 0.654 | 0.071 | 0.383 |
| Milk yield (kg/day) | 35.7 | 35.2 | 36.3 | 35.2 | 3.03 | 0.905 | 0.905 | 0.831 | 0.195 | 0.773 | 0.150 |
| FPCM (kg/day) | 37.9 | 36.2 | 39.0 | 37.2 | 2.59 | 0.990 | 0.990 | 0.532 | 0.765 | 0.363 | 0.053 |
| Milk fat (g/kg) | 45.3 | 42.8 | 47.3 | 45.6 | 1.94 | 0.045 | 0.548 | 0.745 | 0.175 | <0.001 | 0.735 |
| Milk protein (g/kg) | 36.5 | 34.1 | 34.2 | 34.9 | 1.87 | 0.840 | 0.498 | 0.086 | 0.873 | 0.936 | 0.963 |
| Milk lactose (g/kg) | 46.0 | 46.4 | 45.5 | 46.1 | 0.56 | 0.135 | 0.523 | 0.582 | 0.107 | 0.083 | 0.134 |
| Fat yield (kg/day) | 1.58 | 1.49 | 1.68 | 1.56 | 0.130 | 0.289 | 0.974 | 0.799 | 0.892 | 0.106 | 0.218 |
| Protein yield (kg/day) | 1.27 | 1.17 | 1.22 | 1.20 | 0.101 | 0.954 | 0.892 | 0.252 | 0.282 | 0.451 | 0.033 |
| Lactose yield (kg/day) | 1.64 | 1.63 | 1.66 | 1.64 | 0.128 | 0.775 | 0.850 | 0.721 | 0.154 | 0.744 | 0.238 |
| NEL bal (kJ/kg0.75·day−1) | −161 | −126 | −202 | −209 | 68.2 | 0.885 | 0.672 | 0.656 | 0.380 | 0.154 | 0.925 |
Abbreviations: BCS, body condition score class (LOW vs. HIGH); Exerc, exercise group (CON vs. STEP).
a
The main effect “week” was significant for all parameters reported (p < .001).