After a period of low feed availability and limited growth rate, fast recovery of lamb bodyweight makes sheep production systems more efficient, sustainable and profitable. Compensatory growth is followed by several adaptations at metabolic and physiological levels, including accelerated protein metabolism, high respiratory rate and high body temperature. After lambs are subjected to moderate feed restriction relative to the maintenance requirements, an efficient compensatory growth response is obtained under feedlot conditions.

With increasing demand for animal products, natural pasture may not meet the requirements for rapid development of husbandry. We found that ensiling wheat straw with perennial ryegrass favourably affected fermentation quality, with optimum ratio 2:3, and that molasses (3–5%) further improved the fermentation quality of mixed ensilages. The work provides practical guidance for expanding forage sources and improving forage utilisation efficiency.

Ensiling is a common method to conserve excess forage; however, high fermentative losses during the ensiling process can reduce the nutritional value. Additives, such as essential oils, may be used to improve the fermentative profile, reduce fibre content and increase the stability of silage after aerobic exposure. In this experiment, we show that adding lemongrass essential oil can reduce gas losses and improve aerobic stability, without significant effects on total losses and nutritional value of silage.

Large-scale national genetic evaluation in Japan, where unique seasonality exists, is promising for efficiently improving sow lifetime productivity. We analysed litter-size traits at birth from a farm in Japan, together with off-farm ambient temperature measured at a nearby weather station, showing that using ambient temperature captured a large part of the phenotypic variability caused by seasonality. The results imply that public meteorological data are useful in developing better operational models for swine genetic evaluation in Japan.

Heat stress drives persistent negative effects on lactation in dairy cattle. The probability of heat stress in South Korea is gradually increasing. This study evaluated the impacts of heat stress on milk quality in South Korea. The findings suggest that Korean dairy farmers should build facilities that provide the optimal low and dry conditions needed for dairy cattle to cope with heat stress and mitigate its impact on milk quality.

Colostrum feeding is vital for protecting against disease in the neonatal calf, and many factors affect colostrum quality. This study aimed to determine the cow-level factors associated with colostrum yield and quality in dairy cows. Overall, body condition score (BCS) change during the dry period and calving BCS had great effects on colostrum production and quality, and future research should focus on the effect of BCS change during the dry period on colostrum yield and quality.