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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Effects of flushing and hormonal treatment on reproductive
performance of Iranian Markhoz goats
H. Daghigh Kia
1
, W. Mohamadi Chapdareh
1
, A. Hossein Khani
1
, G. Moghaddam
1
, A. Rashidi
2
, H. Sadri
3
and S. Alijani
1
1 Department of Animal Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran,
2 Department of Animal Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Kurdistan, Sanandaj, Iran, and
3 Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
Introduction
Reproduction efficiency plays a critical role in deter-
mining profit potential for livestock production sys-
tems. Iranian Markhoz goats are a multipurpose
breed for production of milk, meat and mainly for
mohair and have many phenotypic similarities with
Angora goat (Rashidi et al., 2008). It has been
shown that increasing feeding levels affect hypotha-
lamic pituitary gonadal axis, and thereby, influences
on gonadotropin, progesterone, oestrogen, insulin
and growth hormone secretions, as well as ovulation
rate and oocyte quality (Scaramuzzi et al., 2006).
Flushing prior to the beginning of the breeding sea-
son positively affects body condition score (BCS) and
improves reproductive performance of goats (Walk-
den-Brown and Bocouier, 2000). Using different
sources of fat in dairy cows ration have been
improved reproductive performance of dairy cow
(Charles et al., 2007). Supplemental fats improve
ovarian follicle development and corpus luteum
activity and are important precursors for the synthe-
sis of reproductive hormones such as steroids and
prostaglandins (Fouladi-nashta et al., 2009 and
Ricardo et al. 2000). Akifcam and Kuran (2004)
reported that use of GnRH and hCG improves preg-
nancy rates in goats. Injection of GnRH at oestrus,
increases plasma progesterone concentrations and
improves fertility (Ishida et al., 1999; Zare Shahneh
et al., 2008a). Fonseca et al. (2005) and Karacaa
Keywords
GnRH, equine chorionic gonadotropin,
flushing, kidding rate, Markhoz goat
Correspondence
H. Daghigh Kia, Department of Animal
Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, University of
Tabriz, 5166614766 Tabriz, Iran. Tel:
+98 411 3392062; Fax: +98 411 3356004;
E-mail: daghighkia@tabrizu.ac.ir
Received: 17 June 2011;
accepted: 17 August 2011
Summary
Forty-eight Iranian Markhoz goats were allocated to six groups (n = 8)
to study the effect of flushing and hormonal treatments on reproductive
performance. Treatments were divided into two categories including,
hormonal treatments and flushing. The goats in each group were fed
the same basal ration and received one of the following treatments:
Groups A and B – injection of GnRH and equine chorionic gonadotropin
(eCG) respectively; Groups C, D and E – a supplement of barley grain,
soybean oil and sunflower oil in flushing diets, respectively, were
offered and Group F – control (only received basal diet). In the flushing
treatments, only the source of energy was different between rations.
Both hormonal treatments and flushing treatments improved fertility
and kidding rates. Treatment B with 16 and control with seven kids rep-
resented the highest and the lowest number of progeny respectively.
Among flushing treatments, group C resulted in the highest number of
kids being 15. Oestrogen levels in follicular phase increased with the
injection of eCG and consumption of barley grain. GnRH injection and
consumption of oil sources in the diet increased blood progesterone lev-
els during ovulation and post-ovulation periods. Under current market
conditions, using hormone or flushing can be profitable for Markhoz
goats farmers.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0396.2011.01234.x
Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition 96 (2012) 1157–1164 ª2011 Blackwell Verlag GmbH 1157
et al. (2008) reported that applying equine chorionic
gonadotropin (eCG) is effective in improving preg-
nancy rates and reproductive performance of goats.
Injection of 600 units eCG during the reproductive
season has increased fertility rate of Irannian Nadoo-
shan goats (Zare Shahneh et al., 2008b). Because of
decreasing Markhoz goats population in recent years
(Jafari, 2008), the strategies which can improve pop-
ulation of these animals can be profitable for farmers
and conserving this animals. Therefore, the main
objective of this study was evaluation of hormonal
treatments and nutritional flushing on kidding rate
of Markhoz goats. The secondary objective was com-
paring different feedstuff as energy source in the
flushing diets on reproductive performance.
Materials and methods
Animals, experimental design and sampling
This study was conducted in Sanandaj Animal Hus-
bandry Research Station at 1373 m altitude with a
mean annual temperature of 13.1 C. Forty-eight
Iranian Markhoz goats (44 ± 1.2 kg), 3.5 years old,
were used. Animals allocated in six groups including
eight doe in each group. Treatments were divided
into two categories including hormonal treatment
and flushing. The goats in each group were fed the
same basal diet and received one of the following
treatments: group A – injection of 5 ml GnRH in
oestrus time (each ml of GnRH contains 5 lg) (Cin-
naRelin; CinnaGen Biopharma Co, Tehran, Iran);
group B – injection of 600 IU of eCG after Controlled
Internal Drug Release Dispenser (CIDR) removal
(folligon; Intervet International B.V., Boxmeer, Hol-
land); group C – 400 g of barley grain; group D –
soybean oil [5% of dietary dry matter (DM)]; group
E – sunflower oil (5% of dietary DM) and group F –
control (basal diet). In the nutritional flushing treat-
ments, only the source of energy was different
between diets; however, they were isoenergetic and
isonitrogenous. Goats were fed total mixed ration
(Table 1), according to NRC (1996) recommenda-
tions, three times daily and had free access to water.
Sterile water was injected to nutritional flushing and
control treatments as placebo. Flushing period
started 4 weeks before artificial insemination and
continued 2 weeks later. At the beginning of the
experiment, all goats had average BCS of 2.5 and
reached to 3 at the time of artificial insemination.
Oestrus was synchronized using CIDR (EAZI-BREED;
Table 1 Ingredient and nutrient composition
(dry matter basis) of experimental diets
Treatment C Treatment D Treatment E Basal diet
Ingredient
Alfalfa hay (%) 28 28 28 28
Barley straw (%) 29 29 29 29
Pelleted concentrate*
(14% crude protein)
25 25 25 25
Barley (%) 15 15 15 15
Wheat bran (%) 3 3 3 3
Soybean oil(g) – 88 – –
Hydrogenised sunflower oilà(g) – – 94 –
Barley grain (for flushing treat) (g) 400 – – –
Alfalfa hay (for flushing treat) (g) 15 335 335 –
Chemical component
Digestible energy (Mcal/kg) 4.29 4.29 4.29 2.8
Total digestible nutrients (%) 98.6 98.6 98.6 64
Crude protein (%) 16.4 16.4 16.4 11.4
Calcium (%) 3.62 3.62 3.62 3.2
Phosphorus (%) 2.77 2.77 2.77 2.05
*Pelleted concentrate contained the following components: barley grain 25%, corn grain 32%,
soybean meal 15%, cottonseed meal 15%, beet sugar pulp 5%, molasses 5%, vitamin (A, D) and
mineral supplements, 3%.
Treatment D, liquid soybean oil, Nazgol (Agro-industry Mahydasht Kermanshah, Kermanshah,
Iran) Nutritional value per 100 g oil: Energy = 900 kcal, total saturated fatty acids = 12–17 g, Li-
noleic acid = 52–58 g, Linolenic acid = 2–11 g.
àTreatment E, Hydrogenised sunflower oil, Nazgol (Agro-industry Mahydasht Kermanshah) Nutri-
tional value per 100 g oil: 900 kcal energy, total maximum of saturated fatty acids = 25%, Lino-
leic acid = 7%, Linolenic acid = maximum 2%, trans fatty acids up to 20%.
Flushing and hormonal treatment in Markhoz goats H. Daghigh Kia et al.
1158 Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition. ª2011 Blackwell Verlag GmbH
Pfizer New Zealand Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand),
which inserted in vagina for 18 days. The goats were
inseminated with fresh semen of the same breeds
with the experience of single birth 48 h after CIDR
removal. Pregnancy rate, non-return rate, number of
kids born, kidding rate and viability of kids born
were recorded.
Blood samples collected 2, 48 and 92 h after CIDR
removal and 20 days after artificial insemination.
Serum separated by centrifugation at 1700 gfor
15 min and stored at )20 C until analysis. Commer-
cially available kits were used for measuring serum
glucose (017-500-1; Pars Azmun Laboratory, Tehran,
Iran), total protein and blood urea nitrogen (BUN)
(Darman kav, Isfahan, Iran), beta-hydoxybutyrate
(BHBA) (RB-1007; Randox, Antrim, UK). Oestrogen
and progesterone levels were determined by ELISA
(Awareness model, WA, USA), using kit No.
ELA-2693 (DRG, Marburg, Germany) and kit No.
ELA-1561 (DRG) respectively.
Statistical analysis
The present experiment was laid out in a completely
randomized design. The pregnancy rate and other
reproductive traits were analysed applying FREQ,
LOGESTIC procedures; oestrogen and progesterone
levels and blood metabolites were analysed using
GLM and MIXED procedures of SAS software (SAS,
2003). In the Mixed procedure, minimum Bayesian
Information Criterion was selected in a variety of
variance-covariance structures and comparison of
means was performed applying the same procedures
within the squares separately for each trait. Statisti-
cal models included as the followings:
Model 1: Y
ij
=l+ Treat
i
+b(Weight
ij
)Weight...) + e
ij
Model 2: Y
ijk
=l+ Treat
i
+ Animal
j
(Treat
i
)
+ Time
k
+ (Treat*Time)
ik
+e
ijk
In which, Y
ijk
equals animal performance,
l= population mean, Treat
i
=itreatment effect, b
(Weight
ij
)Weight...) = effect of weight as a covari-
ate, Animal
j
(Treat
i
) = effect of j animal in itreat-
ment, Time
k
= effect of ktime, (Treat*Time)
ik
= treatment by time interaction and e
ijk
= residual
or error.
Results and discussion
Number of progeny, fertility and kidding rate, and
twins’ birth rate are shown in Table 2. Experimental
treatments improved reproductive traits and had sig-
nificant effects on the kidding rate (v
2
= 360,
p < 0.0001). Equine chorionic gonadotropin injec-
tion in hormonal treatments and grain consumption
between flushing diets presented the best perfor-
mance in relation to other treatments.
Over 87.5% of goats became pregnant with the
first service (Table 2). In agreement with Allison and
Robert Hagevoort (2009), goats with BCS of 3 repre-
sented the best response to artificial insemination
after oestrus synchronization.
Progesterone levels in pregnant goats were higher
than non-pregnant goats 20 days after artificial
insemination (20.8 vs. 1.02 ng/ml; p < 0.01). Feed
intake levels were the same between treatments;
therefore its effect was ignored from the model. Only
after removal of CIDR and during oestrus, dry mater
intake reduced; however, it was similar among all
the treatments. There were significant differences
between flushing (C, D and E) and hormonal treat-
ments, and control groups in mean live weight gain
during experimental period (Table 3). Average
weight of the goats showed no significant differences
between treatments at the end of the fourth week
(Table 3). The BCS of goats was 3 during artificial
insemination. Initial weight of goats was taken as a
Table 2 Effects of flushing and hormonal
treatment on offspring frequency and fertility
rate in goats Treatment
Total
offspring Fertility (%)
Kidding
rates (%) Twining (%)
Multiple
birth %
A 11 87.5 157.14 57.14 0
B 16 100 200 50 25
C 15 100 178.5 62.5 12.5
D 11 87.5 157.14 28.57 14.28
E 12 87.5 171.42 42.85 14.28
F 7 75 116.66 16.66 0
M* 8 87.5 114.28 16.66 0
A, GnRH; B, equine chorionic gonadotropin; C, barley grain; D, soybean oil; E, sunflower oil; F,
control group.
*Tested at eight goats and selected in randomly flock farms, without applying any experimental
treatment, were taking the record. Goats have a natural mating.
H. Daghigh Kia et al. Flushing and hormonal treatment in Markhoz goats
Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition. ª2011 Blackwell Verlag GmbH 1159
covariate at the beginning of flushing and it was sig-
nificant (p < 0.01). Treatment by time interaction on
the body weight gain was significant as well
(p < 0.01). Goats in flushing treatments group had
almost 5 kg weight gains during 4 weeks of experi-
ment and their BCS improved from 2.5 to 3.
Changes in the level of nutrition from low to high
levels in flushing treatments and before mating,
increased body weight which was associated with an
increased positive energy balance, kidding rate and
fertility (Tables 2 and 3). These results are similar to
the findings of Walkden-Brown and Bocouier (2000)
and Scaramuzzi et al. (2006).
Serum hormones and metabolites
Blood metabolites and hormones levels changed sig-
nificantly during reproductive cycle of goats
(p < 0.05; Table 4). Comparing to the other groups,
flushing treatments had considerable fluctuation in
blood protein, BUN, BHBA and oestrogen (Table 4).
These changes in certain metabolites and hormones
concentrations are associated with improved fertility
performance (Chilliard et al., 1998; Scaramuzzi
et al., 2006; Ricardo et al. 2000). Figure 1 shows dif-
ferences in oestrogen levels of experimental groups
during oestrus (p < 0.01). Treatment B (eCG) with
65.62 pg/ml, had the highest oestrogen level at oes-
trus among treatments, resulting in increased num-
ber of offspring (Table 2). Several studies have
shown that injection of eCG improves growth and
development of follicles and thereby increases oes-
trogen concentration and ovulation rate, resulting in
the highest kidding rates (Fonseca et al., 2005; Kara-
caa et al., 2008; Zare Shahneh et al., 2008b). B and
C groups had similar patterns in blood oestrogen
fluctuation and number of progeny as well (Fig. 1).
Medan et al. (2004) showed that goat immunized
against Inhibin had higher oestrogen levels com-
pared with control group (95.6 vs. 51.3 ng/ml)
which was associated with significantly increased
ovulation rate (14.4 vs. 2.2). Number of offspring
produced by each treatment was highly correlated
with the concentration of oestrogen in proestrus and
Table 4 Fvalue of serum concentrations of hormones and metabolites during reproductive cycle
Measuring
times (h) Estradiol Progesterone Glucose
Serum
protein Phosphorus BUN BHBA
2 1.07
ns
12.39** 0.70
ns
11.57** 1.12
ns
2.82* 4.5**
48 5.09** 0.073
ns
1.48
ns
8.63** 6.48** 11.89** 8.59**
92 3.61** 2.27
ns
6.78** 1.67
ns
2.06
ns
10.45** 1.77
ns
ns, non-significant; BHBA, beta-hydoxybutyrate; BUN, blood urea nitrogen.
*p < 0.05; **p < 0.01.
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
0
020 40 60 80 100
Estradiol-17β (pg/ml)
Time/hourse
A
B
C
D
E
F
Fig. 1 Variations of blood serum estradiol-17bconcentrations at
three times after removal CIDR. A, GnRH; B, equine chorionic gonado-
tropin (eCG); C, barley grain; D, soybean oil; E, sunflower oil; F, control
group.
Table 3 Effects of flushing and hormonal
treatment on live weight gain changes in
goats
Treatment Initial weight First week Second week Third week Fourth week
A 43.5
a
43.9
a
44.5
a
45.1
a
44.9
a
B 43.5
a
43.7
a
44.2
a
44.8
a
45.3
a
C 36.1
b
37.8
b
40.4
b
41.8
ab
42.8
a
D 38.1
b
39.8
b
41.7
ab
42.9
ab
43.4
a
E 36.7
b
38.0
b
40.0
b
41.0
b
42.0
a
F 43.3
a
43.6
a
44.2
a
44.9
a
45.2
a
SEM 1.19 1.24 1.23 1.24 1.23
CV 8.37 8.58 8.19 8.19 7.96
A, GnRH; B, equine chorionic gonadotropin; C, barley grain; D, soybean oil; E, sunflower oil; F,
control group; CV, coefficient of variation.
Numbers or values within column with different superscripts are different (p < 0.05).
Flushing and hormonal treatment in Markhoz goats H. Daghigh Kia et al.
1160 Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition. ª2011 Blackwell Verlag GmbH
oestrus phases (r= +0.60, p < 0.01; Fig. 1 and
Table 2). Increasing GnRH/FSH pulses resulted in
more development of follicles, higher levels of oes-
trogen, increasing ovulation, fertilization and kidding
rate (Medan et al., 2004; Sasaki et al., 2006; Rah-
man et al., 2008). Treatment by time interaction on
reproductive cycle, influenced the levels of oestrogen
concentrations (p < 0.05), representing the effect of
experimental treatments on the concentration of
oestrogen in oestrus cycle. Hightshoe et al. (1991)
reported that consumption of long-chain fatty acids
in Simmental cows rations led to a decrease in mean
serum concentration of oestrogen (1.64–1.41 pg/ml).
In addition, Ryan et al. (1992) found a reduction in
concentration of estradiol 17-bin follicular fluid by
using soybean oil (5.4% of DM intake) in beef cattle.
Our observation in the present study is in agree-
ment, as there was a reduction in estradiol-17blev-
els in goats fed the diets supplemented with fat
compared with goats fed the diet supplemented with
barley grain (Fig. 1). In contrast, Staples et al.
(1998) reported that plasma concentrations of estra-
diol were not affected by consumption of fat sources.
Figure 2 shows alteration of progesterone concentra-
tion in serum. Two hours after withdrawal of CIDR,
the concentrations of progesterone in flushing treat-
ments were lower than others. Ninety-two hours
after removal of CIDR, its level elevated. As
expected, progesterone levels in fat consuming
groups were higher than grain supplemented group.
Our results are similar with some previous reports
(Ishida et al., 1999; Zare Shahneh et al., 2008a).
Injection of GnRH in present study increased con-
centration of progesterone during and following
ovulation and its concentration had the highest level
in relation to other treatments and thereby improved
fertility rates (Table 2). GnRH can increase LH levels
and it leads to higher levels of progesterone (Zare
Shahneh et al., 2008a) which is considered to be a
very important factor during ovulation and embryo
implantation in early pregnancy (Akifcam and
Kuran, 2004). Unexpectedly, progesterone concen-
trations in flushing treatments were lower at the
beginning of the reproductive cycle (CIDR removal
time); however, it showed an increase during and
after ovulation (92 h after CIDR removal) (p < 0.05;
Fig. 2). A possible reason for low concentration of
serum progesterone in flushing group at the begin-
ning of the reproductive cycle could be the higher
proportional concentration of other serum metabo-
lites (i.e. protein, BUN and BHBA) (Tables 3–5).
Therefore, the treatment by time interaction on
blood progesterone was significant (p < 0.01) and
may represent the influence of treatments on blood
progesterone concentration. Some researchers
reported that dietary fat increases progesterone con-
centrations (Ricardo et al. 2000, Clair Wathes et al.,
2007; Staples et al. 1998). However, Titi and Awad
(2007) did not find any relationship between fat
intake and blood progesterone concentrations.
Energy statue as a major factor playing important
role on reproductive processes. Glucose concentra-
tion 92 h after CIDR removal showed significant dif-
ferences among treatments (p < 0.05; Table 5).
Reduction of glucose concentration 92 h after CIDR
removal may be owing to more activity of animals,
reduced feed intake and consequently increased
amount of serum BHBA during oestrus. Staples et al.
(1998) found a relationship between consumption of
fat and reduction of blood glucose. In contrast, Chil-
liard (1993) reported no alteration in blood glucose
concentration using dietary fat. Low concentration
of glucose in treatment D (soybean oil) resulted in
an increased amount of BHBA and blood fats as
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
0
020 40 60 80 100 120
Progesterone (ng/ml)
Time/hourse
A
B
C
D
E
F
Fig. 2 Variations of blood serum progesterone concentrations at
three times after removal CIDR. A, GnRH; B, equine chorionic gonado-
tropin (eCG); C, barley grain; D, soybean oil; E, sunflower oil; F, control
group.
Table 5 Effects of flushing and hormonal treatment on serum glucose
concentrations (mg/dl) at three times after removal of CIDR in goats
Treatment 2 h 48 h 92 h
Total
glucose
A 55.7
a
52.7
a
55.3
a
54.3
a
B 56.6
a
56.7
b
50.1
b
54.5
a
C 57.0
a
56.7
b
49.8
b
54.5
a
D 53.0
a
55.2
ab
42.2
c
50.1
b
E 56.3
a
57.2
b
50.3
b
54.6
a
F 54.9
a
55.4
b
47.5
b
52.6
a
SEM 1.75 1.75 1.64 0.95
CV 8.9 7.99 9.46
A, GnRH; B, equine chorionic gonadotropin; C, barley grain; D, soy-
bean oil; E, sunflower oil; F, control group; CV, coefficient of variation.
Numbers or values within column with different superscripts are differ-
ent (p < 0.05).
H. Daghigh Kia et al. Flushing and hormonal treatment in Markhoz goats
Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition. ª2011 Blackwell Verlag GmbH 1161
energy sources, probably owing to a higher amount
of acetate and butyrate absorption comparing propi-
onate (Tables 5 and 8). Higher levels of glucose dur-
ing proestrus and oestrus resulted in higher numbers
of the offspring (Tables 2 and 5).
Serum proteins level changes in reproductive per-
iod are reported in Table 6. Treatment C represented
the highest level of serum protein and the most
number of offspring (p < 0.05). Flushing groups
showed higher levels of serum protein, probably
owing to higher protein intake. A positive correla-
tion between protein and oestrogen concentrations
was observed (r= +0.48; p < 0.05) and consequently
the number of offspring (Fig. 1; Tables 2 and 6).
Similarly, Hoon et al. (2000)reported a positive effect
of dietary protein on fertility rates and suggested
that high protein intake increases FSH pulses and
improves fertility rate. Treatment C showed the highest amount of BUN
(Table 7) and had positive correlation with serum
protein (r= +0.48; p < 0.01; Table 6). High BUN has
adverse effect on fertility, because it can reduce pH
of uterus which leads to releasing PGF2a(Lucy
et al., 1992; Butler, 1998); however, we found no
reduced fertility with high level of BUN (Table 2),
maybe owing to its narrow deviation from normal
range (17–23.5 mg/dl) of BUN in goat (Wolfensohn
and LIoyd, 2003).
High fluctuations of serum BHBA were observed
in reproductive cycle (different hours after CIDR
removal) (p < 0.01; Tables 2 and 8). Fat-supple-
mented groups (D and E) expressed the highest
concentration of BHBA 2 h after CIDR removal
(p < 0.05). According to some reports, the increase
of BHBA concentrations results in the reduction of
LH and a lower concentration of progesterone
(Godden et al., 2001) which may lead to reduction
in fertility (Bauman and Currie, 1980). In the pres-
ent study, although fat-supplemented rations had
higher serum BHBA, progesterone concentration
reached to a higher level, resulting in an improved
fertilization (Tables 2 and 8, Fig. 2). Sadeghi Panah
et al. (2006) reported that using saturated and
unsaturated fats (as a bypass form) in Zandi sheep
rations had positive effects on reproductive perfor-
mance.
Conclusions
The present study indicates that both nutritional
flushing and hormonal treatments improved repro-
ductive efficiency particularly fertility and kidding
rate in Markhoz goats. Results revealed that using
GnRH during oestrus and eCG following the CIDR
Table 6 Effects of flushing and hormonal treatment on serum protein
concentration (g/dl) at three times after removal of CIDR in goats
Treatment 2 h 48 h 92 h
Total serum
protein
A 7.42
b
8.03
b
7.91
a
7.78
a
B 7.41
b
8.89
a
8.36
ab
8.22
b
C 8.65
a
8.90
a
8.51
bc
8.68
c
D 8.15
a
8.67
a
8.20
ac
8.34
b
E 8.36
a
8.79
a
8.41
ac
8.52
bc
F 7.49
b
7.97
b
7.91
a
7.79
a
SEM 0.16 0.14 0.2 0.12
CV 5.69 4.82 6.83
A, GnRH; B, equine chorionic gonadotropin; C, barley grain; D, soy-
bean oil; E, sunflower oil; F, control group; CV, coefficient of variation.
Numbers or values within column with different superscripts are
different (p < 0.05).
Table 7 Effects of flushing and hormonal treatment on serum BUN
concentrations (mg/dl) at three times after removal of CIDR in goats
Treatment 2 h 48 h 92 h Total BUN
A 20.6
a
17.5
a
16.7
b
18.2
a
B 20.8
ac
20.8
b
18.2
b
19.9
ac
C 23.9
b
26.1
c
24.2
a
24.7
b
D 23.6
bd
21.0
b
17.4
b
20.6
c
E 23.1
bc
22.4
b
17.6
b
21.1
c
F 21.0
acd
21.2
b
19.1
b
20.4
c
SEM 0.93 0.8 0.83 0.69
CV 11.96 10.6 12.55
A, GnRH; B, equine chorionic gonadotropin; C, barley grain; D, soy-
bean oil; E, sunflower oil; F, control group; CV, coefficient of variation;
BUN, blood urea nitrogen.
Numbers or values within column with different superscripts are differ-
ent (p < 0.05).
Table 8 Effects of flushing and hormonal treatment on serum BHBA
concentrations (mg/dl) at three times after removal of CIDR in goats
Treatment 2 h 48 h 92 h Total BHBA
A 7.40
a
13.5
acd
9.72
ab
10.2
ab
B 7.32
a
10.7
de
8.75
ab
8.93
ac
C 8.65
ab
14.3
acd
8.77
ab
10.6
ab
D 10.6
b
15.9
c
10.53
a
12.3
d
E 11.6
b
13.2
ad
9.43
ab
11.4
bd
F 7.40
a
8.15
be
8.24
b
7.92
c
SEM 0.87 1.27 0.83 0.59
CV 19.87 20.31 18.87
A, GnRH; B, equine chorionic gonadotropin; C, barley grain; D, soy-
bean oil; E, sunflower oil; F, control group; CV, coefficient of variation;
BHBA, beta-hydoxybutyrate.
Numbers or values within column with different superscripts are differ-
ent (p < 0.05).
Flushing and hormonal treatment in Markhoz goats H. Daghigh Kia et al.
1162 Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition. ª2011 Blackwell Verlag GmbH
removal, feeding flushing rations before mating and
consequent increase in BCS, improved fertility and
other reproductive traits. Equine chorionic gonado-
tropin injection increased FSH pulses and oestrogen
concentration, resulted in the greatest number of
offspring. Barley grain consumption not only
affected animal live weight gain and BCS but also
increased oestrogen concentrations, as well as serum
protein and glucose concentrations, resulting in
improved fertility. Consumption of fat improved fer-
tility through increasing BCS and progesterone lev-
els. Therefore, the source of supplemental fat during
flushing is effective in improving fertility. Because of
the positive energy balance and weight gain,
increased BUN and BHBA metabolites among the
nutritional flushing treatments had no negative
effects on fertility.
Acknowledgement
The authors express their appreciation to Sannandaj
Markhoz goats research station for their help.
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