Evaluation of the effect of prepartum extra supplementation with vitamin E-selenium on the occurance of postpartum reproductine diseases in dairy cattle

Objectives: In this study, the effect of two injection of vitamin E-selenium supplement in prepartum period on the occurrence of postpartum reproductive diseases including; retained placenta, postpartum metritis, endometritis, pyometra, ovarian cysts and mastitis was investigated. Material and methods: Two hundred and fifty one Holstein dairy cows were selected for this study between March and May 2014. The cows were divided into two groups, control and treatment, randomly. Control group (including 47 primiparous and 77 multiparous cows) received one injection of E-selenium supplement around day 250 of pregnancy. Treatment group (including 47 primiparous and 80 multiparous cows) received this injection plus an extra injection on days 268-270 of pregnancy. The occurrence of postpartum reproductive diseases was compared between groups after parturition. Results Conclusion: Our results showed that occurrence of postpartum metritis and retained placenta was significantly decreased in treatment group vs. control (2.5% vs. 6.4% and 6.2% vs. 7.8%). Other diseases including endometritis, pyometra, ovarian cysts and mastitis were not showed any significant difference between groups. Considering the economic importance of postpartum reproductive diseases, and the role of vitamin E and selenium in immune function, more supplementation with these two elements may lead to the better immune function and decrease in postpartum reproductive diseases in dairy cattle.