Evaluation of an indwelling bolus equipped with a triaxial accelerometer for the characterisation of the diurnal pattern of bovine reticuloruminal contractions

Capuzzello, G., Viora, L. , Borelli, E. and Jonsson, N. N. (2023) Evaluation of an indwelling bolus equipped with a triaxial accelerometer for the characterisation of the diurnal pattern of bovine reticuloruminal contractions. Journal of Dairy Research, 90(1), pp. 9-15. (doi: 10.1017/S0022029923000134) (PMID:36803671)

Abstract

This observational study aimed to describe the diurnal pattern of reticuloruminal contraction rate (RRCR) and the proportion of time spent ruminating by cattle, using two commercial devices equipped with triaxial accelerometers: an indwelling bolus (placed in the reticulum) and a neck collar. The three objectives of this study were firstly to determine whether the indwelling bolus provided observations consistent with RRCR as determined by clinical examination using auscultation and ultrasound, secondly to compare estimates of time spent ruminating using the indwelling bolus and a collar-based accelerometer, and finally to describe the diurnal pattern of RRCR using the indwelling bolus data. Six rumen-fistulated, non-lactating Jersey cows were fitted with an indwelling bolus (SmaXtec Animal Care GmbH, Graz, Austria) and a neck collar (Silent Herdsman, Afimilk Ltd. Kibbutz Afikim, Israel), and data were collected over two weeks. Cattle were housed together in a single straw-bedded pen and fed ad libitum hay. To assess the agreement between the indwelling bolus and traditional methods of assessing reticuloruminal contractility in the first week, the RRCR was determined over 10 min, twice a day, by ultrasound and auscultation. Mean inter-contraction intervals (ICI) derived from bolus and ultrasound, and from auscultation were 40.4 ± 4.7, 40.1 ± 4.0 and 38.4 ± 3.3 s. Bland–Altmann plots showed similar performance of the methods with small biases. The Pearson correlation coefficient for the time spent ruminating derived from neck collars and indwelling boluses was 0.72 (highly significant, P < 0.001). The indwelling boluses generated a consistent diurnal pattern for all the cows. In conclusion, a robust relationship was observed between clinical observation and the indwelling boluses for estimation of ICI and, similarly, between the indwelling bolus and neck collar for estimating rumination time. The indwelling boluses showed a clear diurnal pattern for RRCR and time spent ruminating, indicating that they should be useful for assessing reticuloruminal motility.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This project was supported by the University of Glasgow School of Veterinary Medicine residency training programme, which is partly funded by Harbro Limited.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Jonsson, Professor Nicholas and Capuzzello, Giovanni and Borelli, Elena and Viora, Dr Lorenzo

Creator Roles

Capuzzello, G.: Methodology, Investigation, Data curation, Formal analysis, Writing – original draft, Project administration
Viora, L.: Supervision, Resources, Project administration
Borelli, E.: Investigation, Writing – original draft
Jonsson, N. N.: Conceptualization, Data curation, Methodology, Investigation, Formal analysis, Supervision, Writing – review and editing

• Authors: Capuzzello, G., Viora, L., Borelli, E., and Jonsson, N. N.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
• Journal Name: Journal of Dairy Research
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• ISSN: 0022-0299
• ISSN (Online): 1469-7629
• Published Online: 20 February 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2023 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Journal of Dairy Research 90(1):9-15
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher