Effect of Estrus and Diestrus Urine on Libido of Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) Bulls
Keywords:
Estrus, Diestrus, Urine, Libido, BuffaloAbstract
The present experiment was designed to study the effect of estrus and diestrus urine on libido, reaction time, and occurrence of flehmen in buffalo bulls. Six buffalo bulls (4 to 5 years of age) and one vasectomised teaser bull maintained at the Germ Plasm Centre (Division of Animal Reproduction, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar) were used for this study. Urine samples from six buffalo cows at estrus and during the diestrus stage of the cycle (10 to 14 days post estrus) were used for assaying the bull’s sexual behavior. A male dummy was restrained in a service bail and urine was sprayed at the root of the tail and perineal area of the dummy till it was sufficiently wet and started dripping off the body. Distilled water was used similarly as control. The bull was allowed to investigate the dummy and libido score, reaction time, and frequency of flehmen response, and their duration was recorded over a 10 minutes period. The libido score was significantly higher for the bulls exposed to estrus urine (4.44±0.11) compared to diestrus urine (2.61±0.26) or distilled water (3.60±0.18). Reaction time was minimum with estrus urine (67.08±8.52 sec) which was significantly (p<0.05) less than with diestrus urine (189.32±30.00 sec) or control (160.91±21.73 sec). The frequency of flehmen behavior increased significantly (p<0.05) with estrus urine (3.94 ±0.28) compared to diestrus urine (1.94 ± 0.15) or control (1.66 ± 0.13). We conclude that estrus urine is a strong stimulator of sexual activity in buffalo bulls. Furthermore, specific pheromonal compounds present in estrus urine may be responsible for a higher frequency of flehmen behavior in bulls.
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