Mitigating Cold Stress in Livestock by Nutritional Interventions: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract

Climate change has been the major threat to livestock systems sustainability globally. This climate change has provoked many stressors, for instance, cold, heat, humidity, rain, ice and wind, that can directly or indirectly exert influence on the endocrine system and impact the performance of an animal including their production potential, reproductive system and regular estrous cycle. Also, the environmental stressors can contribute to the amenability of animals to infections; it is therefore, vital to understand how stressors alter the animal’s adaptive capacity and efficient methods in coping stress. This review aims at the scientific evidences regarding challenges due to cold stress and its potential mitigation by nutritional interventions. The cold is amongst the most potential environmental stressors which can adversely affect production potential as well as the growth of animals. Under cold stress the animals’ dietary intake increases, but the production capacity declines, furthermore, it can also culminate in physiological fluctuations, behavioral shift, tissue and intestinal impairment and soaring death rate. Maintenance of animal in its thermoneutral zone is important, otherwise any deviation from it proves life threatening. So, to cut back on the economic losses timely course of action must be taken to prevent the damages ascribed to the stressor. To maintain the production performance along with profitability, it is thus recommended to adapt scientific feeding regimens and also incorporate feed supplements (especially vitamins and minerals) to combat the devastating effects of cold stress.