The Effect of Season on Hematological Blood Parameters and Milk Production in Local Breed (kenana) and Cross Breed (kenana * Holstein Friesian) in Sudan

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine the reference values of Kenana breed and cross breed (Friesian x Kenana) under the Sudan climate, and also to evaluate the effect of seasonal changes and local climatic conditions on the Kenana bloodand cross breed and their milk production. The experiment conducted in two research centers farms, namely the Animal Production Research Center (Kuku in Khartoum), representing the (Friesian x kenana) hybrid, and Animal Production Research Center (Um Beninin Singa). Twenty dairy cows (10 Kenana and 10 crossbred)were used in this experiment. The samples of blood were collected during two seasons (summer and winter). The blood parameters measured RDK-SD, RDW, RDK, RDM, GRT, GRM, HN, MPG, GRAN, LYM, MPG, GRAN and they were analyzed by Automated Hematology Analyzer. Statistical analysis showed that in summer season there were no significant difference between the two groups in all parameters except (RBC), (HGB) and (HCT) as they were high in Kenana breed. On the other side in winter season just (MID%), (MID#) and (RDW-CV) showed a significant increase (p≤ 0.05) between Kenana and the Cross breed, comparedto the Red Blood Cell (RBC), (HGB) and (HCT) which showed a high significant increase (p ≤ 0.01) between Kenana and the cross breeds in winter season and all were in favour of Kenana breed except RDW-CV which was in favour of the cross breed. For milk production there were significant differences (p≤0.05) between the two breeds in milk yield, daily milk and Lactation Length, all in favour of the crossbred. The lack of differences in the environmental variables among the two breeds suggests that the differences found in hematological parameters studied in the two groups were attributable exclusively to the different cattle breed and seasons and adaptive mechanism in response to heat stress. The cross breed proved to be highly adaptable to harsh climatic conditions and resistant to common diseases prevalent in Sudan.