Animals (Oct 2023)

Effects of <i>Olea europaea</i> L. Polyphenols on the Animal Welfare and Milk Quality in Dairy Cows

  • Maria Chiara Di Meo,
  • Antonia Giacco,
  • Armando Zarrelli,
  • Vittorio Maria Mandrone,
  • Livia D’Angelo,
  • Elena Silvestri,
  • Paolo De Girolamo,
  • Ettore Varricchio

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13203225
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13, no. 20
p. 3225

Abstract

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Here, we evaluated the effect of dietary supplementation with an Olea europaea L. extract on the animal welfare and milk quality of dairy cows. Thirty Italian Holstein–Friesian dairy cows in the mid-lactation phase (90 to 210 days) were blocked into experimental groups based on parity class (namely, primiparous (P) (n = 10), secondiparous (S) (n = 10) and pluriparous (PL) (n = 10)) and received, for 60 days, Phenofeed Dry® at 500 mg/cow/day. Milk and blood samples were collected before the start of the treatment (T0), subsequently every 15 days (T1–T4) and at 45 days after the end of treatment (T5). In the serum, glucose and triglycerides, stress, the thyroid, lactation and sex hormones were measured; in the milk, lysozyme content as well as the fatty acid profile were assessed. In the whole animal, the enriched feed helped to maintain hormonal parameters in the physiological range while producing hypoglycemic (T4 vs. T0, for P and PL p p p p p p p O. europaea L. polyphenols in the dairy cow diet may help to improve animal welfare and milk quality.

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