The impact of high-quality water on the development, feed, water intake, and gastrointestinal microbiota in Holstein calves. Bos taurus

Replacement breeding strategies play an important role in livestock production systems. Newborn calves are susceptible to nutritional deficiencies and infectious diseases. Water is an essential nutrient for all metabolic processes and contributes to the development of the gastrointestinal microbiota. However, the water quality is often overlooked in calves nutrition. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of high-quality water on the development, feed, water intake, ruminal and fecal microbiota of Holstein calves. Both groups received the same diet. The water administered to the control group (G-Ctl) corresponds to water from wells located in the production unit, while the water assigned to the experimental group (G-Exp) received a purification treatment (reverse osmosis). The variables evaluated in the study were weight, height, water consumption and starter feed. To determine the abundance of the gastrointestinal microbiota, samples of rumen fluid and feces were collected. Next-generation sequencing was used to determine gastrointestinal microbiota populations. In the present study, a higher daily weight gain and starter intake were observed in favor of the experimental group as well as a higher bacterial species abundance in the rumen. It is concluded that improve water quality favors calf development and helps to establish conditions for rumen microbiota colonization.

替代繁育策略在畜牧生产体系中发挥着重要作用。新生犊牛易受营养缺乏与传染病的侵害。水是所有代谢过程必需的营养物质，且对胃肠道微生物群的发育具有促进作用。然而，犊牛营养领域常忽视水质问题。本研究旨在评估优质水对荷斯坦犊牛生长发育、饲料与饮水采食量以及瘤胃与粪便微生物群的影响。两组犊牛饲喂相同基础日粮。对照组（G-Ctl）供给的水源为生产单元内的井水，而实验组（G-Exp）的水源经过反渗透（reverse osmosis）净化处理。本研究评估的指标包括体重、体高、饮水量以及开食料采食量。为测定胃肠道微生物群的丰度，研究人员采集了瘤胃液与粪便样本。采用下一代测序（next-generation sequencing）技术分析胃肠道微生物群组成。本研究结果显示，实验组犊牛的日增重与开食料采食量更高，且瘤胃内细菌物种丰度也显著提升。综上，改善水质可促进犊牛生长发育，并有助于构建瘤胃微生物群定植的适宜环境。