Abstract
Buffalo and cows play an important role in maintaining a sustainable food production system in Egypt. Animal reproduction and production in Egypt are affected by several factors, including dealing with difficult situations in pregnancy, parturition, and postpartum problems in farm animals especially cattle and buffaloes (Megahed, 2018). The main problems faced by buffalo breeders in general and smallholder system breeders include poor reproductive efficiency and prolonged inter-calving intervals. All reproductive specialists know that there are many challenges to reproduction in farm animals.
Now, there are many challenges affecting animal fertility. Among these challenges are microbial infections that affect the animal during pregnancy, during or after parturition (Megahed, 2020). Under most smallholder production systems, the reproductive efficiency of buffalo is compromised by factors related to climate, management, nutrition, and intervention of the owner for cases of dystocia which lead to postpartum problems. The most important of these factors is how to deal with cases of dystocia in buffalo by the owner before calling to the veterinarian to solve the problem.
Dystocia is one of the most important obstetrical conditions, and requires immediate attention by the veterinarians, for calving difficulty causes severe economic losses to the owners. Regarding the owner’s behavior in the situation, he was not aware of the changes that occur within the animal, whether in the reproductive system, birth canal, or the fetus as it passes into the birth canal that leads to dystocia. If dealing with the condition before or without the presence of the veterinarian leads to harmful consequences that affect the life of the fetus, it also increases the negative aspects of animal health, and sometimes affects the fertility postpartum (Megahed, 2016).
Generally, in the practical field, we notice that the negative behavior of the owner which not go to the veterinary clinic or calling to the veterinarians, unless he fails to deal with the case of dystocia and the animal suffers from health problems due to the owner’s intervention without knowing how to intervene in this case. Megahed (2016) recorded that fetal dystocia was common in buffalo-cow comprising 60.957% of total cases presented, whereas maternal causes constituted 39.043 % of total cases. Also, he mentioned that the attribution of this high rate of fetal mal disposition due to the intervention of the owner’s handling at the beginning of birth (i.e., at the beginning of the stage of opening the cervix). This interference leads to changes in the normal width, the position of the fetus in the position during parturition, which leads to a serious deterioration of the case of dystocia. Atashi, et al., (2012) recorded that dystocia significantly decreased lactation performance, so in any economic evaluation of dystocia, not only the lost calf, veterinary costs, the reduced survival, and the increased days open should be considered, but also the decreased lactation performance.Severe dystocia was associated with the deaths of the fetus and subsequent impact in reproductive performance.
Improving the productivity of buffalo requires an understanding of their potential and limitations under eachbreeding system, development of intervention strategies to improve deficiencies in management, nutrition, and healthcare, followed by the intelligent application of reproductive technologies that are sustainable with the resources available to buffalo breeders.
The present scientific study hypothesizes that when educating the owner about how to deal with dystocia before contacting the veterinarian, this leads to the ability of the veterinarian, to make a correct decision to deal with dystocia and the condition is still fresh, which leads to improving and reducing the damage that she caught the animal after dealing with dystocia.
The main objective of the study is to determine how the intervention of the owner in dystocia cases leads to the reproductive problems which occur during the postpartum period.
Keywords
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