Bovine somatotropin dose titration in lactating dairy ewes. 3. Treatment interval.

Seventy-four lactating dairy ewes were injected with recombinant bovine somatotropin (bST; sometribove) in a sustained-release formulation. Ewes received 0, 80, 160, or 240 mg of bST/14 d at the end of 2, 4, and 6 wk postlambing, after which injections were withheld for a 28-d period. Response of milk production to bST presented a positive linear contrast and a negative quadratic contrast. After the final injection of bST (d 0), an increase in daily milk production was observed until d +9. A continuous decrease followed with milk production returned to control levels on d +11, +18, and +20, for 80, 160, and 240 mg of bST/14 d. Milk protein content decreased gradually until d +8 before it returned to control levels on d +12, +14 and +14, for 80, 160, and 240 mg of bST/14 d. Levels of bST and IGF-I in plasma presented positive and highly significant linear contrasts and negative quadratics which were significant only for bST. Relative to the evolution of milk production, the evolution of IGF-I levels in plasma was more similar than that of bST, although the correlation of each measure with milk production was high and highly significant. It was concluded that the period between successive injections should be shorter the lower the dose employed; however, a 14-d period seemed to correspond correctly for the dosages and hormone formulation tested.