Parenteral Cu supplementation of late-gestating and lactating Iberian red deer hinds fed a balanced diet reduces somatic cell count and modifies mineral profile of milk

This article belongs to the Special Issue Small Ruminant Nutrition and Metabolism.This study describes the effects that Cu supplementation of late-gestating and lactating females (hinds) of Iberian red deer fed a balanced diet have on milk production, composition, and somatic cell count (SCC). Experimental hinds (n = 9) were subcutaneously injected every 42 days with Cu (0.83 mg Cu/kg body weight) from day 202 of gestation until the end of lactation (week 18). Control hinds (n = 8) were injected with a physiological saline solution with the same volume and at the same frequency as the experimental group. Copper supplementation decreased the SCC from 1.64 to 1.36 log 10/mL (p = 0.003) and modified the milk mineral profile. In particular, milk from hinds supplemented with Cu had more Ca (p = 0.02), Mg (p = 0.06), and K (p = 0.03) than milk from control hinds. However, Cu supplementation did not influence the Cu content of milk. Therefore, it can be concluded that Cu supplementation of hinds fed a balanced diet from late-gestation to the end of lactation could be a good strategy to reduce SCC and modify the mineral profile of milk increasing its Ca content.The Spanish Ministry of Economy (Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad) supported this work within the Estate program of Research, Innovation and Development oriented towards Challenges of Society, within the Framework Plan of Scientific, Technical Research and Innovation 2013–2016 and co-funded by the European Union (grant number RTC-2016-5327-2).Peer reviewe