PAST AND PRESENT IN THE CATTLE BREEDING IN ROMANIA

Cattles, as livestock, have been exploited in our country for thousands of years, due to a favourable climate, a year round abundance of food supply and surface salt deposits, spread all over the hilly areas. We are probably the only European country left where animal labor is still being used in agriculture. Along with machine power, animal labor widely contributed to the the best wheat production in the country history, in 1997, or the best post communist era corn production, in 1999. Between Great World Wars, livestock owners were organized in professional guilds, according the the species/breed exploited. These associations were supervized by veterinarians and technicians and were highly effective. There is a tendency to revive this type of associations, which would hopefully lead to the relaunching of catlle bereeding industry. Innovations and optimizations are pursued in the following directions: access to the water supply, mechanical milking, milk preservation and pasteurization, animal stabulation, nutrition, reproduction (artificial insemination, embryo transfer), rest areas, the impact of music on animal performance, the importance of the bond between the animals and their keepers, a.s.o. A correct and complete nutrition highly contributes to reaching performances close to the genetic potential of the animals and a reproduction rate that increases the profitability of the explotation. The boosting of the immunity system shall be primarely based on the addition of enzymes and phyto-chemicals to the usual diet, along with the more traditional parenteral administration of serums, vaccines, growth stimulants, vitamins, minerals. It is hopefully expected that the breeders and the technicians interested and involved in cattle breeding will change their attitude in regard to products that significantly increase cattle resistance to environmental factors and also have a positive effect on reproduction.