Effect of barn ventilation on
blood gas status and some physiological traits of dairy cows
N. Sabuncuoglu*1, O. Coban1,
E. Lacin1,
A. Yildiz1, O. Akbulut2,
A.V. Yaganoglu3 and Y. Sagsoz1
1Department of Animal Sciences, College
of Veterinary, Ataturk University,
Ilica, Erzurum-25700, Turkey
2Department of Animal Sciences, College
of Agriculture, Ataturk University,
Erzurum-25040, Turkey
3Department of Farm Structures and Irrigation, College of Agriculture,
Ataturk University, Erzurum-25040, Turkey
(Received:
February 01, 2007 ; Revised received: July 13, 2007 ;
Accepted: September 07, 2007)
Abstract: Twenty Holstein
friesian and Brown swiss cows were used to investigate the effect of
insufficient inbarn ventilation on blood gas status
and some physiological traits of the cows. Animals were kept in mechanically
ventilated barn in stall barn (I); and the ventilation funnels of the barn were
closed to simulate traditional habits of the region’s breeders (II); then cows
were transfered open-shed barn (III). For each
experimental of 10 days period, respiration and pulse rates and blood gas of
animals were measured. Temperature, relative humidity, CO2 and NH3
concentrations were recorded in each barns. In
mechanically ventilated barn, climatic and atmospheric gas was in normal ranges
for the cows but in unventilated barn they were at the upper levels. In experiment
II, blood pH was decreased without pCO2
change. The highest blood pO2 and HCO3-
levels were found when the animals were kept in open-shed barn (III). Measured
parameters were not influenced by breed of the cows. Blood pH, pO2, HCO3-, respiration
and pulse rates of the cows were significantly affected by barn types
(p<0.05 and p<0.01). Respiration and pulse rates were higher in
inadequate (II) barn conditions than those of open-shed. Higher levels of
gases, especially carbon dioxide, in the unventilated barn significantly
influenced biological parameters of cows. It is concluded that poor ventilation
caused considerable changes in physiologic parameters of the cows and can
potentially affect animal health and production.
Key words: Dairy
cows, Barn gas, Blood gas, Respiration rates, Pulse rates
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