Smallholder beef cattle farms in South Africa have had low reproductive performance, which has been associated with management practices. Considering current farm management practices, a multi-stage selection study was conducted to assess reproductive performance as defined by pregnancy rate, fetal and calf losses, calving interval and days open to benchmark reproductive performance. Data were collected twice, in autumn (March–May) for pregnancy diagnosis and in spring (September–November) for monitoring of confirmed pregnancies. Overall, 3694 cow records from 40 smallholder herds were collected during 2018 and 2019 breeding seasons from five provinces. The preferred 25th quartile described target performance and GLIMMIX procedure determined associations between management practices and performance. Smallholder farms on average recorded 50% pregnancy rate and 12% fetal and calf losses with 304 and 608 days open and calving interval, respectively. The derived target benchmarks for pregnancy rate, fetal and calf losses, days open and calving intervals in smallholder farms were 54%, 1.4%, 152 and 425 days, respectively. Reproductive performance was associated with no knowledge of body condition scoring before breeding, culling of old and non-productive cows, record keeping and low bull to cow ratio (p < 0.05). The performance benchmarks implied that industry averages may be improved if sustainable management services are provided through extension and advisory services.

Improving the historically low reproductive performance of beef cattle in smallholder systems is essential for its productivity and profitability. Therefore, identifying and addressing risk factors associated with low performance in this system present an opportunity for improvement. The study aimed to evaluate the effect of animal and management risk factors on pregnancy rate (PR), fetal and calf loss (FC), calving interval (CI) and days open (DO) in smallholder beef cattle farms. A multi-stage selection approach was conducted in five provinces of South Africa. Cow records (3694) collected from 40 smallholder herds over two years (2018–2019) were analysed. Data on animal and herd management factors including body condition score (BCS), cow age class, breed type, lactation status, culling old/non-productive cows, record-keeping, and breeding and calving seasons were recorded. The GLIMMIX procedure was computed to determine risk factors associated with performance indicators (PR, FC, CI and DO). Risk factors highly associated with performance were breed type, BCS, cow-age class and breeding/calving season (P ≤ 0.05). Indicators FC, DO and CI increased with decreased BCS, autumn calving seasons, and in first calvers and aged cows. Whereas, PR increased with increasing odds of BCS and breeding seasons between December-March, November-February and January-March. Optimizing reproductive performance in smallholder beef cattle herds may involve managing cow body condition, breeding with adapted genotypes and synchronizing breeding with favourable seasons. Therefore, record keeping and regular monitoring of herd nutrition, climate and breed performance may be significant in improving reproductive performance in smallholder herds.

| The study aimed to evaluate the effect of high temperature on cattle oocytes matured in vitro at 39, 41, 42, 43˚C and to evaluate apoptosis through Caspase-activity and DNA fragmentation on produced embryos. Cumulus oocyte complexes (COC) were matured at 39, 41, 42 and 43˚C. Two best maturation temperatures were selected for maturation throughout embryo production. Post maturation, matured oocytes were exposed to standard embryonic conditions. Embryos were evaluated at 3 stages: ≥ 2-4 cell, ≥ 8cell and blastocyst to determine Caspase-3 activity and DNA fragmentation. Maturation of oocytes at 41 and 39˚C demonstrated no significant difference (p>0.05) however, higher maturation rate compared to 42 and 43˚C. Matured oocytes at 39 and 41˚C showed no difference (p>0.05) in embryo development. Blastocysts at 39˚C maturation had higher (p<0.05) nuclei cells compared to those at 41˚C. Caspase-3 activity was comparable at ≥ 2-4 cell and ≥ 8cell for both 39 and 41˚C maturation temperatures, however, 41˚C showed high DNA fragmentation compared to 39˚C maturation group. Blastocyst from oocytes matured at 41˚C had higher Caspase-3 activity and DNA fragmentation than those at 39˚C. Embryos derived from 41˚C maturation temperature resulted in evidence of apoptosis compared to 39˚C.

Understanding reproductive performance of replacement heifers is pivotal for sustainable and profitable farming in any cattle production system. The study assessed reproductive performance of smallholder beef cattle heifers focusing on pregnancy rate (PR); and fetal and calf loss (FCL). Additionally, it investigated herd management factors that influence these traits. A total of 538 heifer records were collected from 40 herds representing five provinces between 2018 and 2019. A secondary application of established seasonal pregnancy diagnosis methods was used to measure PR and FCL. Management factors including body condition score (BCS), age at first mating and calving, breed type, heifer selection, record-keeping, frame size, breeding and calving season were recorded. The Kaplan-Meier method analysed reproductive outcomes, while the Cox proportional hazards model assessed management factors influencing PR and FCL. Results indicated an average of 47% PR and 11% FCL with achievable levels of 60% PR and 0.9% FCL. Majority of heifers conceived between ages four and five years. At three years, 96.19% of heifers had not experienced loss, however, the calf survival probability decreased to 68.17% by five years. The median age for first calving was four, by age five, 72.96% of heifers had calved. The results showed significant effects ( P < 0.05) for breed type, breeding season, BCS, frame size and heifer selection on PR and FCL. Optimizing PR and FCL in smallholder heifers may depend on improving management practices including selection practices of heifers prior to breeding, maintaining optimum BCS and breeding during favourable environmental conditions.