A comparison of behavioral and biochemical changes associated with pain between primiparous and multiparous goats around parturition

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the physiological, biochemical, and behavioral responses of primiparous and multiparous goats during peripartum, as well as their relationship with the discomfort caused by parturition. Eleven primiparous and 10 multiparous dairy goats maintained under intensive conditions were used in this study. Goat behavior was monitored immediately before and during expulsion phase. The behavior of the mother and kid was recorded during the first 2 h postpartum. In the three stages of parturition, the intensity of maternal vocalizations, changes in facial Grimace scale, and blood samples to determine the cortisol, estradiol, and protein concentrations were determined. The weight of the kids and litter size were also considered. Primiparous goats took longer to expel the kid than did multiparous goats (P = 0.04). A negative correlation was found between cortisol concentration and maternal motivation score at 12 and 8 days prepartum (P ? 0.06), as well as at 24 and 48 h postpartum (P ? 0.05). Cortisol concentrations at 4 h postpartum were negatively correlated with the latency of the first lick to the kid (P = 0.01). The latency to suckle was shorter in twin births than in single births kids (P = 0.02). Single birth kids weighed more than twin births kids (P = 0.004). The duration of the first grooming of the kid was shorter in the heavier than in the lighter kids (P = 0.028). The intensity of the vocalizations emitted by the mother in the pre-birth period was greater in the births of heavy offsprings than in those of light offsprings (P = 0.032). The expulsion phase was affected only in primiparous goats. Regardless of parity, cortisol and estradiol concentrations were elevated during parturition; the facial Grimace score and the intensity of vocalizations were greater in the expulsive and postpartum phases.