ANALYSIS OF ABIOTIC STRESSOR VIS-À-VIS STRESS IN FEMALE NON- DESCRIPT INDIGENOUS CATTLE FROM ARID TRACTS OF RAJASTHAN

Bhagat Singh Saini* and Nalini Kataria

ABSTRACT

An exploration was carried out to analyze effect of abiotic stressor on the development of stress in female non-descript indigenous calves, heifers and cows from arid tracts of Rajasthan during extreme environmental temperature periods. Abiotic stressor was appraised on the basis of temperature humidity index and heat load index values. Stress was assessed on the basis of serum cortisol and plasma catalase. Ostensibly healthy animals were monitored during comfortable, extreme hot-dry, extreme hot-humid and extreme cold environmental temperature periods. The overall mean values of serum cortisol and plasma catalase were significantly (p≤0.05) higher during extreme hot-humid, extreme hot-dry and extreme cold environmental temperature periods as compared to respective comfortable mean overall value. During extreme hot-humid, the per cent variation was found to be maximum for serum cortisol and plasma catalase. Based on the findings of serum cortisol, it can be construed that calves were found to be impinged on maximally by the effect of stress followed by heifers and cows. Among calves, calf-yearling transition exhibited higher influence of all the extreme environmental temperature periods. Between heifers, pre-pubertals expressed elevated effect of extreme environmental temperature periods. Amongst cows, non-pregnant milch and primipara divulged higher shove of extreme environmental temperature periods. Changes in plasma catalase exhibited the presence of oxidative stress in all the animals and the impact was maximum during extreme hot-humid. The epitome of the present exploration was that extreme hot-humid period caused the development of higher degree of stress in the cattle with fine-tuning in the physiological gambits to an extent which can establish distress to health of animals. Abiotic stressor produced stress to all the animals from calves to cows in all the three extreme environmental temperature periods with peak outcome in hot-humid. Hot-humid period exhibited maximum values of heat load index and temperature humidity index revealing maximum impact of abiotic stressor. Results of present exploration tended to suggest that animals must be supplemented with ample antioxidants. Additionally, marginal farmers must be encouraged to screen the health of non-descript indigenous cattle on a regular basis.

Keywords: Catalase, cold, cortisol, environmental temperature periods, hot-dry, hot-humid.