One feature of the pH probe is that the measured values (pH and temperature) are stored in the probe and can be read out from outside the rumen. This rumen pH measurement system transmits the results wirelessly. The receiving unit is directly connected to a laptop, where the results can be immediately read, displayed graphically, and interpreted.
The current specification of the rumen pH probe includes user-selectable measurement intervals (from 1 second to hourly intervals) and, due to its design, can also be administered orally to an adult, non-rumen-fisted bovine. Since the probe's power supply is currently the limiting factor regarding measurement duration, the probe will initially only be used in rumen-fisted cattle.
The measuring probe will be used in feeding trials at the LFZ Raumberg-Gumpenstein and at the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, and will provide data that has not been possible worldwide until now, as the probes represent an absolute technical novelty.
Development of subclinical and clinical rumen acidosis:
Rumen acidosis is primarily caused by an overabundance of rapidly fermentable carbohydrates (starch, sugars). A usually concurrent deficiency of structural carbohydrates (generally referred to as crude fiber) leads to reduced rumination with decreased saliva production and consequently lower buffering capacity in the rumen.
The problems in practice are based on the following circumstances:
- Rumen acidosis usually occurs subclinically and therefore often goes undetected and untreated for a long time
- The currently existing direct detection methods (rumen fluid collection via esophageal tube or ruminocentesis) are insufficiently established in practice, not without controversy, and prone to error
- Indirect methods for detecting rumen acidosis (milk fat content, fat/protein ratio) are retrospective, meaning that the disease must have already occurred or been present for some time before it is recognized as such.
The project aims to precisely define rumen acidosis using the test system (how long below which pH threshold) and to ensure that this condition can be detected immediately ("online") and not only after the fact, when symptoms have already appeared or secondary diseases are likely. These conditions can then be compared with and correlated to the respective underlying feeding regime. Within the framework of various feeding trials, the pH profile in the rumen and the duration of specific pH drops will be documented, statistically analyzed, and interpreted.
