A lactating 6-year-old, black-white, Holstein cow, weighing about 300 kg, presented for a mass on her carp joint (right forelimb) with severe swelling of the entire carp. The cow had untreated swelling 3 months before. This mass was small initially, but it became larger and harder over time. It was decided to take a tissue sample through fine needle aspiration but this work was not successful because the mass was too hard. Plain radiography showed just abundant soft tissue swelling with no pathology in the carpal joint. Under local anesthesia, the entire mass was removed surgically. Dermatofibroma was diagnosed by histopathologic assessment. This report aimed to describe a unique carpal dermatofibroma in a cow.

The effect of barley grain processing and source of supplemental fat on performance of lactating dairy cows were studied in a replicated 4×4 Latin square design with 21-d periods and a 2×2 factorial arrangement. Eight Holstein cows with mean body weight (BW) of 572±71 kg and 45±10 days in milk were allocated to 4 dietary treatments including 1) ground barley with cottonseed 2) pelleted barley with cottonseed 3) ground barley with canola seed 4) pelleted barley with canola seed. The nitrogen intake and fecal N were higher in cows fed ground barley in comparison with those fed pelleted barley. Source of supplemental fat or barley processing had no effect on milk fat and milk protein contents. Milk SNF yield was higher in cows fed canola as supplemental fat source and ground barley (P<0.05). Milk yield was affected by method of barley grain processing and was 0.64 to 1.9 kg/d higher in cows fed ground barley compared with those fed pelleted barley (P=0.04). Plasma concentrations of glucose, NEFA, BHBA, cholesterol, triglycerides and blood urea nitrogen were similar in all treatments. Dry matter intake was affected by barley grain processing. The cows fed ground barley consuming 1.15 to 2.18 kg/d more DM compared with those fed pelleted barley (P=0.04).Total tract digestibilities of DM, crude fat, ADF, NDF and OM were not affected by the barley grain processing as well as source of oilseed. The results indicated that interactions between barley grain processing and source of supplemental dietary fat can improve the performance of lactating dairy cows, However, more detailed studies are required.

This study investigated the effect of Rumex Sc (commercial product which includes of Saccharomyces cer-visiae, saponin and essential oils) on rumen fermentation, blood glucose, urea, milk yield and milk composition. Animals were offered a basal diet containing alfalfa hay (15.5%), corn silage (24%), beet pulp (7%) and concentrate (53.5%). Additionally, Rumex Sc was included in the experimental diet at a rate of 5 g/day/cow. Sampling of milk, ruminal liquid and blood was conducted for determination of milk composition, fermentation parameters and blood metabolites. Milk yield was significantly increased for the experimental group when compared to the control group (P<0.05), but milk composition was not affected by Rumex Sc. The number of protozoa, ammonia nitrogen concentration and pH in the rumen were decreased in the experimental group (P<0.05). Concentrations of volatile fatty acids in the rumen were affected to some extent by inclusion of Rumex Sc in the diet. Molar proportion of acetate was decreased and propionate was increased with a corresponding decrease in acetate: propionate ratio. In this study, blood glucose was significantly increased and urea decreased with the addition of Rumex Sc (P<0.05). It was concluded that using Rumex Sc can improve the milk yield performance of dairy cows, however further studies are needed.

In order to determine the effects of using macaroni wastes instead of barley on dry matter intake (DMI), milk yield and composition, and nutrient digestibility, eight lactating Holstein cows (4 primiparous and 4 multiparous) in midlactation were used in a 4x4 Latin square design. The experimental periods were 21 d with 16 d for adjustment and 5 d for data collection. Treatments included a control diet (1) and diets 2, 3, and 4 containing 15, 30, and 45% macaroni wastes, respectively, which were fed three times a day as total mixed rations. During the last 5 days of each period, feed and , fecal samples were taken for determination of DMI and apparent digestibilities and milk samples for fat, protein, lactose, and solids no fat (SNF). During the last day of collection period, urine samples were collected 3 and 5 h post feeding for pH determination. The results showed no significant differences among experimental traits in either primiparous or multiparous, and across all cows. Milk yield and efficiency of feed conversion were no significantly higher for diets 2, 3, and 4 compared with control cows. Compared to the control diet, DMI, fat, protein and SNF percentages did not significantly decrease in diets 3 and 4. From the results of this expriment, it may be concluded that replacing barley with macaroni wastes up to 45 percent could increase energy intake without any adverse effects on milk production and composition or on metabolic function in midlactating dairy cows.

Nutritional effects of rumen-protected and unprotected choline on milk yield, milk composition and some blood metabolites of lactating Holstein dairy cow investigated in a balanced change over design with eight dairy cows, four treatments and four periods of 21 days. Experimental treatments include: 1-basal diet or control (without choline), 2-basal diet + 50 g/per day unprotected choline, 3- basal diet + 25 g/per day rumen-protected choline and 4-basal diet + 50 g/per day rumen-protected choline. The cows were fed individually ad lib. Twice daily. Milk and blood samples were taken at the two and last day of each period respectively. Rumen-protected choline (50 g/per day) increased dry matter intake and milk yield. Fat corrected milk and fat yield were significantly higher in rumenprotected choline (50 g/per day) than unprotected choline and control group. The concentration of protein, lactose and solid non fat in milk were not affected by the treatments. Rumen-protected choline significantly increased milk fat percentage compared to unprotected choline. There were no significant differences in blood glucose, cholesterol, triglyceride and blood urea nitrogen concentration between treatments. However some favorable effects of the choline are seen in this experiment, but more investigations are needed for practical advices.

Five herds of Holstein breed of cow were used to evaluate protein nutrition condition based upon measuring milk urea nitrogen (MUN) concentration. Five dairy cows were selected at early lactation, multiparous with days in milk 45±7 from each herd randomly. Feed and milk samples were taken over a period of 6 month between July and December 2006. Samples were collected monthly from individual cows as well as milk bulk. Diet alterations and management practices were recorded over the period of the study. The results of the present research indicated that applied diets in the herds provided the nutrients requirements of cows based on the National Research Council (NRC, 2001) recommendations. The results obtained from the analysis of variance of at milk bulk samples (with repeated measurements) showed that no any statistically significant differences were found among different herds for MUN. However, there was a significant difference of MUN among herds over the times (months) (P<0.05). Milk compositions (percentage of total solid, fat, total protein, NPN and lactose) were found to be not affected significantly by herds and month of recording. The results of analysis of variance of MUN at individual cows revealed that there were significant (P<0.05) differences among different herds and months of recording. There was a positive significant (P<0.05) correlation between MUN of milk bulk and MUN at individual cows. Month of recording had a significant influence on MUN at both levels of tank and individual cows (R2=0.75). According to the results of the present research, it can be concluded that measuring MUN at milk bulk samples could be used as an indicator of protein nutrition at herd level.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of frequency of feeding total mixed ration (TMR) on total-tract digestibility, milk production and composition in lactating cows, using meta-analysis and meta-regression approaches. Data of fourteen experiments having containing 25 comparisons between treatment (higher feeding frequency) and control (lower feeding frequency) groups, defined selection criteria, were used. Data were analyzed using effect size method in STATA/SE. Increasing frequency of feeding decreased dry matter intake (DMI; weighted mean difference (WMD)= ‒0.134 kg/d) but had no effect on milk yield. Forage level of diet and days in milk (DIM) were the source of heterogeneity for standardized mean difference (SMD) of DMI. In this meta-analysis, higher feeding frequency had no effect on milk fat and milk protein content and yield. Increasing feeding frequency improved NDF digestibility (WMD= 5.663%). Results of univariate meta-regression showed that increasing frequency of feeding in diets containing high level of grains improved NDF digestibility, but in high forage diets lowered NDF digestion. In conclusion, delivery of TMR containing equal amounts of forage and concentrate three times vs. one times in a day decreased DMI but did not change milk yield.

Using 24 hours in vitro cultures of rumen microorganisms, this study investigates the effect of buffering capacity of 2 inorganic compounds (M1=119.43 and M2=116.50 meq/L) on the in vitro rumen acidogenic value (AV), medium pH, dry matter disappearance (INVDMD) and methane emission of lactating dairy cow diets containing various forage to concentrate ratios as 40:60 (FC40:60) and 30:70 (FC30:70) in a completely randomized design. Inorganic compounds were included in the experimental diets at the rate of 0.0, 10 or 20 g/kg DM. Diet with higher amount of concentrate caused a decline in medium pH, an increase in both AV and IVDMD. The acidogenic value of FC40:6containing M2 at 20, M1 at 10 and 20 g/kg DM and FC 30:70 plus M1 and M2 at 20 g/kg DM was the lowest. The lowest level of CH 4 emission (mL/0.20 g DM) was observed in FC30:70 plus M1 at the rate of 10 g/kg DM, while the highest level belongs to FC40:60 plus M1 at 10 g/kg DM and FC30:70 containing M1 at 20 and M2 at 10 g/kg DM. It has been concluded that the higher buffering capacity of a lactating diet might reduce the rumen acid load and increased IVDMD, while a diet with higher amount of concentrate causes to decline rumen methane emission.

The purpose of this experiment was to make a comparison of performance of lactating dairy cows fed rations, formulated by Spartan (1) and CNCPS (2). The 16 lactating dairy cows (8 cows in second and 8 cows in third) with DIM=55 ± 33, body weight=622 ± 42Kg, milk yield=31 ± 1/8 Kg/day), assigned in a randomized completely block design in individual pen. The cows fed individually with the formulated rations as TMR for 90 days after 15 days adaptation period. The milk yield of cows that fed ration 1 and 2 were 31.34 and 31.4 Kg/d, milk fat were 3.35% and 3.25% and milk protein were 2.91% and 3.01% respectively, there were no significant difference between two groups as far as mentioned traits (p>0.05). There were not any significant differences for pregnancy rate (P>0/05). The average DMI for rations 1 and 2 were 22.5 and 22.34 Kg/day is considered, respectively (p>0.05). Average daily crude protein intake of the rations while that was 3625 and 3470 g/d respectively, that was significantly different (p<0.05).However the CNCPS predicted a lower requirement of protein than Spartan for lactating dairy cows while that It was enough to support milk production such Spartan ration of this experiment did. The cost of each Kg feed per milk yield for rations 1 and 2 were 1380 and 1250 respectively, (p<0.05). the result showed that the CNCPS formulated a cheaper ration than Spartan that also it can be recommended to dairy farms as far as milk profit considered (p<0.05).