Bovine appeasing pheromone mitigates long-distance transport stress to improve health and growth performance in beef cattle.

Transportation inevitable in modern beef industry disrupts physiological homeostasis and compromises cattle health. This study evaluated bovine appeasing pheromone (BAP) in alleviating transport-induced dysfunctions. Herein, 120 Simmental crossbred bulls (235 ± 5 kg) underwent a 1402-km transport trial with or without BAP treatment (5 mL topically). Data showed BAP decreased (p < 0.01) serum cortisol and haptoglobin levels on day 1 (D1) and D14 post-transport, with cortisol reduced by 32.99% and 47.09%, and haptoglobin by 51.67% and 53.48%, respectively. Concurrently, BAP lowered (p < 0.05) serum IL-1 (by 57.01%) and TNF-α (by 44.12%) on D1, reduced IL-1 (by 22.24%), IL-6 (by 15.18%), and TNF-α (by 23.29%) on D14, and increased (p < 0.01) IgG by 38.58% on D14. Consequently, BAP facilitated metabolic recovery, elevating (p < 0.01) serum glucose and insulin-like growth factor-1 from D14 to D35. Clinically, BAP reduced (p < 0.01) the incidence and duration of respiratory symptoms, increasing (p < 0.05) total feed intake. In summary, BAP protects beef cattle against transport stress-induced health impairment and growth decline by maintaining physiological homeostasis, offering a highly practical intervention to optimize animal welfare in the modern beef industry.