Feed Supplement May Help Fall Calves Cope With Summer Heat

JOHN LOVETT

FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS

 Summer heat can be costly for Arkansas cattle producers, slowing cattle growth and potentially reducing meat quality. A new study at the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station aims to help fall-born calves better withstand heat stress during a critical growth phase.

Zena Herrera, an assistant professor of meat science and muscle biology in the department of animal science for the experiment station, said most heat-stress studies have focused on cattle during the finishing stage, the period immediately before slaughter when animals reach their heaviest weights.

Herrera, however, will be looking at heat stress at a much earlier stage. Her study will examine the effects of an anti-inflammatory feed additive administered during the backgrounding phase, the period between weaning and finishing.

“With fall calving systems, cattle are not in the finishing stage during the hottest months of the year,” Herrera said. “Instead, these animals experience summer heat stress while in the backgrounding phase when they continue to grow before entering finishing programs.”

The study, supported by a $20,000 grant from the Arkansas Beef Council, will evaluate whether a commercial feed additive containing omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids can lessen the physiological effects of heat stress during the backgrounding phase and improve meat quality.

Heat stress can reduce animal growth by decreasing feed efficiency and can negatively affect meat quality, Herrera said.

“Heat stress was certainly a problem for Arkansas producers this summer, and a problem we anticipate producers in Arkansas and throughout the country will continue to face,” Herrera said. “I’m excited to be working on a project that could potentially give producers a solution to this problem. I have a great team to work on this project with and am very grateful to the Arkansas Beef Council for their support.”

Herrera is collaborating on the project with animal science professors Beth Kegley and Jeremy Powell, and Derico Setyabrata, an assistant professor of meat science and muscle biology, all in the department of animal science in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas. The experiment station is the research arm of the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture.

The project, which began in June, includes monitoring animal growth and measuring indicators of heat stress and inflammation. Researchers will also analyze beef loin samples for color stability, tenderness and flavor to evaluate overall meat quality.

The research team hypothesizes that cattle receiving the omega-3 supplement throughout the summer will have lower stress and inflammation levels, improved growth performance and better meat quality than cattle that do not receive the supplement.

The study could provide producers with a practical management tool to help cattle cope with increasingly challenging environmental conditions while maintaining productivity and meat quality.   ∆

JOHN LOVETT

UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS