Contrasting the metabolic endocrine responses of beef steers under moderate thermal challenge with pair fed thermoneutral counterparts

摘要

One of the most obvious impacts of increased heat load in cattle is a reduction of feed intake and as a consequence reduced productivity. This phenomenon has confounded attempts to elucidate the metabolic and endocrine responses unique to animals coping with high heat load. Progress has been made by using a model whereby control animals are maintained in thermoneutral conditions but are feed restricted or pair fed in correspondence with the reduced feed intake of their thermally challenged counterparts. Here we examined beef steers exposed to a moderate heat challenge.