Investigation of Differences in Biochemical and Mineral Composition of Urine between Pregnant and Non-Pregnant Crossbred Dairy Cattle

Dairy farmers have been longing for simple and economical methods of early pregnancy diagnosis. Urine based biochemical and mineral assays could be one of those methods, owing to the ease of sample collection and relatively simple and economical assays involved. However, basic information on changes in urinary composition during early pregnancy in cattle is lacking. This study was designed to evaluate the differences in biochemical and mineral composition of urine between pregnant and non-pregnant dairy cattle. Urine samples were obtained from crossbred dairy cows, classified retrospectively as pregnant or non-pregnant (n=12 in each group), based on transrectal palpation and ultrasonography at 60 days post insemination, and assayed for glucose, total protein, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, zinc and copper. Sampling was done every 3 days beginning on the day of insemination (d 0) until d 27. Analysis of data on concentrations of the various variables between pregnant and non-pregnant cows indicated significant (P