Development and Comparison of Backpropagation and Generalized Regression Neural Network Models to Predict Models to Predict Diurnal and Seasonal Gas and PM10 Concentrations and Emissions From Swine Buildings

Posted in: Environment by admin on January 1, 2008 | No Comments

The purpose of this study was to employ backpropagation neural network (BPNN) and generalized regression neural network (GRNN) techniques to model GPCER generated and emitted from swine deep‐pit finishing buildings as affected by time of day, season, ventilation rates, animal growth cycles, in‐house manure storage levels, and weather conditions. Good results were found which indicated that the artificial neural network (ANN) technologies were capable of accurately modeling source air quality within and from the animal operations. However, it was also found that the process of constructing, training, and simulating the BPNN models was very complex. Thus, the GRNN was characterized as a preferred solution for its use in air quality modeling.

Twenty Three Steps to An Improved Barn Environment

Posted in: Prairie Swine Centre by admin on | No Comments

MANURE MANAGEMENT

1) Repair and replace penning, flooring, etc. which causes spilled water, or manure and urine to lie on floors and alleyways. This raises ammonia and humidity levels in the winter and reduces the room temperature, as it takes energy to evaporate this liquid.
2) Check slats and penning support ledges for locations where manure can build-up. This provides a haven for flies and causes similar problems to 1) above.
3) Never allow manure to build up closer than 12″ to the bottom of the slats. Gas begins to enter the confinement area and effect performance if manure builds up beyond this level.
4) Check for leaks through manure pump out ports, under manure pit dividers, etc. Air entering rooms this way increases gas production from the manure and can cause extreme health problems.
5) Flush manure from gravity flow pits within 15-20 days maximum. Recharge the pits with a few inches of fresh/wash water to absorb ammonia and reduce potential for solids build up.
6) Ensure radiant heat lamps direct heat onto solid pads. Light passing through slats will heat the manure below and increase gas production.

VENTILATION

7) If there is a pit tube/duct ventilation system, be sure to check it periodically for solids/manure build-up.
8) Repair leaking waterers immediately. Keep replacements handy.
9) Verify adequate flow at water nipples to see if there are problems. Check during high flow times. Since 70 % of water is consumed during feeding, morning or late afternoon is best. If some form of water based cooling is used, it will mean the heaviest load occurs during late afternoon; check when the cooling systems is operating.
10) Ensure that the mechanical ventilation system is performing as required. Use a static pressure gauge to adjust air inlets; Set @ 0.04″ in the summer, 0.08″ in the winter.
11) Verify inlet openings are correct with a velocity meter such as the Dwyer High Air Speed Indicator.
12) Ensure inlets are of good quality and properly located to mix fresh air uniformly and reduce drafts.
13) Adjust minimum winter ventilation to achieve a relative humidity (RH)of 50-70% . Too high causes health problems from air-borne pathogens. Too low wastes increase heating costs and can also cause health problems. An inexpensive digital relative humidity instrument is a good device for checking relative humidity as well as temperature.
14) Verify heaters, fans/shutters and controls are all maintained.
15) If air is drawn in from the attic in summer, ensure temperature rise is less than
1.5 0 C. Exterior roof sheathing should be white, or a layer of insulation on the underside of the roof will also help to reduce solar heat gain.
16) Check and maintain insulation levels. It not only reduces heat load on the building, it reduces the thermal environment effects due to reduced radiation (winter) and excessive radiation (summer).
17) Consider some form of cooling appropriate to the type of production room; spray cooling, evaporative cooling pads, stirring fans, tunnel ventilation, earth tube cooling, etc. A 3-7 C 0 cooling benefit with a resulting improved feed consumption is achievable.
18) Monitor temperature with a good quality digital maximum/minimum thermometer in every room. Older style mercury thermometers do not respond quickly enough.

MISCELLANEOUS

19) Ensure pigs receive adequate light for at least 10 h/d (Recommended Code of Practise for the Care and Handling of Farm Animals (Pigs) ). Use fluorescent tube fixtures or high intensity discharge (HID) to achieve this economically. Paint walls and ceilings white. Keep surfaces and lighting fixtures clean to ensure maximum reflectivity.
21) Consider the installation of windows to improve the environment for management. They add very little to heat load and can provide a psychological lift.
22) Install a good quality alarm system. It should be independent of controls, be battery backed up and lightning protected, and managed so that response to alarm is less than 15 minutes. A back up generator or other emergency contingency plan should be well formulated in advance to reduce potential for animal suffering and loss. It should operate off all minimum ventilation fans and hi/low temperature in each room.
23) Conduct a ” Barn Health Audit” on the manure, ventilation, and lighting systems at least every spring and fall. Consider having independent experts out to conduct the audit for you.

Interactive effect of ractopamine and dietary fat source on pork quality characteristics of fresh pork chops during simulated retail display

Posted in: Meat Quality by admin on | No Comments

This study used 216 crossbred pigs to test the effect of ractopamine (RAC) and dietary fat sources on the performance of finishing pigs, pork quality characteristics, and quality of LM chops during a 5 day simulated retail display. It was concluded that neither RAC nor fat source altered LM cooking losses and shear force values. Feeding 10 mg/kg of RAC will improve rate and efficiency of gain, carcass composition, and LM quailty. It was also concluded that performance and carcass composition, as well as quality during the 5 days of retail display, were similar when pigs were fed either diet. (Beef tallow or Soybean oil)

Implementation of Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (MCOOL) in the Pork Industry

Posted in: Economics by admin on | No Comments

The impetus for MCOOL came from northern plains beef producers as far back as the mid–1990s. The stated idea was that U.S. consumers deserve full information about the foods that they purchase and eat—an idea that is difficult to argue with. The underlying concerns, however, were growing imports of beef, pork, cattle and hogs from Canada and their perceived negative impact on U.S. markets. MCOOL is far less onerous for the pork industry than for the beef industry
for several reasons. First, Canada is the only source of imported pigs and market hogs. No hogs are presently
imported from Mexico due to animal disease restrictions. Second, all–in all–out production systems
keep pigs in defined, closed groups from early in life until slaughter in order to prevent the introduction of
disease. There is little or no comingling of animals as there is in the beef industry. This means that the origin
of an individual animal is the same as the origin of its group. Whether U.S. pig production increases
depends on the ultimate reaction of consumers, primarily to the multicountry labels. U.S. consumers
have a very positive view of things Canadian, though, so the negative impact may be small and will almost
certainly be smaller than consumers’ reactions to the presence of other countries such as Mexico, Brazil and
Uruguay on beef labels. If consumer reaction is not negative, Canada will continue to supply weaner and feeder pigs to U.S. feeders depending primarily on the exchange rate between the two countries’ currencies.

Entire male pigs in farrow-to-finish pens—Effects on animal welfare

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

Castration performed without anaesthesia in piglets is a painful operation and it represents a potential animal welfare issue (Prunier et al., 2006). In an attempt to improve animal welfare, the Norwegian Parliament has passed a law banning the castration of piglets from 2009. Cessation of castration will relieve the animals from pain during and after surgery, but the rearing of entire males poses other welfare issues as entire male pigs are more aggressive and sexually active than castrates (Ellis et al., 1983; Giersing, 1998; Cronin et al., 2003). This could result in another animal welfare problem where high rank male pigs badger their pen mates of lower rank with biting, chasing and head knocks. Sexual behaviour (mounting of both gilts and boars) has also been reported as problematic, and can occasionally result in a high frequency of serious leg injuries to pen-mates (Rydhmer et al., 2004). It is important to recognise these problems and to find alternative rearing methods, which might ensure better animal welfare. Mixing of unacquainted pigs is usually followed by fighting (especially during the initial hours) until a new rank order is established in the group (Petherick and Blackshaw, 1987; Moore et al., 1994). The fighting behaviour tends to be more prolonged and serious when the weight differences between pigs are small (Rushen, 1987; Moore et al., 1994; Andersen et al., 2000; Schmolke et al., 2003). Mixing pigs is a very common practice in Norwegian pig production (and in many other countries also) both after weaning and when transferred to the fattening unit. The intention of the mixing is to reduce and balance the weight differences between pigs within the pens and to make the most out of available space. According to previous reports (Fredriksen et al., 2004), this practice can exacerbate sexual maturation of entire male pigs compared to when rearing them in sibling groups, in farrow-to-finish pens. Moreover, aggressive and sexual behaviour increases during puberty while mixing and moving animals. Furthermore reestablishment of the hierarchy among the pigs in the pen provokes aggressive and sexual behaviour. The hypothesis for the present study was that by keeping littermates together in stable groups, this process might be avoided and the onset of puberty delayed, thus resulting in a lower frequency of unwanted behaviour, lower skin lesion scores and consequently improved animal welfare. The frequencies of aggressive and sexual behaviour among finishing pigs were recorded in three different groups in one herd; farrow to finish-group (entires + gilts, siblings), mix-group (entires + gilts, mixed) and castrate-group (castrates + gilts, siblings). Frequencies of skin wounds were recorded in this herd and in an additional herd (only farrow to finish-group and mix-group) shortly before the animals were sent to slaughter. Higher skin lesion scores in the entire male pig groups were in accordance with the behaviour data. Rearing entire male pigs in sibling groups reduces aggressive behaviour, though the frequency of the aggressive behaviour bouts was still higher than it was in the castrate-group. The frequency of skin wounds in the farrow to finish-group was reduced to similar levels as in the castrate-group. The findings suggest that rearing entire males in sibling groups may be an appropriate management strategy for improving animal welfare in entire male pig production.

For more information the full article can be found at http://journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/applan/issues

Social isolation elicits deficits in the ability of newly weaned female piglets to recognise conspecifics

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

The goal of this study was to assess the ability of newly weaned female piglets to recognise familiar non-related
conspecifics and to examine how this was affected by weaning age and/or acute social isolation. It was found that neither weaning age nor social isolation affected the duration of social investigation in piglets exposed to unfamiliar conspecifics. However, when piglets weaned at day 11 were exposed to familiar conspecifics they investigated more than non-isolated pigs weaned on day 11, isolated piglets weaned on day 22 and non isolated pigs weaned at day 22. In conclusion, it may indicate that social recognition can be disrupted by 15 min of social isolation in piglets weaned on Day 11, but not in piglets weaned at Day 22.

For more information the full article can be found at http://journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/applan/issues

Localization of heat shock proteins and histopathological changes in the kidneys of transported pigs

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

To demonstrate the expression of heat shock proteins (Hsps) in the kidney, 5 kinds of Hsps, namely, Hsp70, Hsp72, Hsp86, Hsp90, and Hsp27, were examined in pigs after 6-h-transports by using western blot analysis. All 5 Hsps were detected in the kidneys of both the transported and control pigs. Hsp expression in the control pigs indicated that Hsps have some physiological functions in addition to stress-response functions. With the exception of Hsp27, a significant reduction was observed in all the levels of Hsps in the kidneys of the transport-stressed pigs after 6 h of transport, particularly in the levels of Hsp70 and Hsp72, which belong to the HSP70 family; and Hsp86 and Hsp90, which belong to the HSP90 family. The results indicate that 6-htransports are not only related to renal pathological injury but also to a reduction in most of Hsp levels in the kidney. However, slight Hsp27 induction (Pb0.05) indicates that Hsps that undergo different changes following transportation stress are involved in different physiological functions. Whether the decreased amount of a certain Hsp may indicate damage and/or overuse and whether Hsps actually protect kidney tissue from such overuse remain to be elucidated.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/livsci

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L. cv. Gogu valley) protein as a novel antimicrobial agent in weanling pigs

Posted in: Production by admin on | No Comments

The objections of this study was to investigate the effect of feeding different levels of potato proteins on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, immune response, small intestinal morpholoy, and bacterial populations in feces and large intestine. These results suggest that potatoe protein may be an alternative to medicated feed with antibiotics because it showed antimicrobial activity by effectively reducing the population of coliform bacteria and also improved the performance of weanling pigs.

Effect of litter size and birth weight on growth, carcass and pork quality, and their relationship to postmortem proteolysis

Posted in: Production by admin on | No Comments

The objective of this study was to test if birth weight (BtW) influences growth, carcass characteristics, meat quality and postmortem (pm) proteolysis differently when pigs originate from small or large litters. The results confirm that the known effect of BtW on growth performance, wheras its effect on carcass characteristic and meat quality traits could only be partially demonstrated. Although litter size affected average BtW of the lightest-BtW and average size barrows, its effect on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and meat quality was minor. This study concludes that litter size affects swine growth and carcass and meat quality through its inverse relationship with birthweight.

Effects of sweeteners on individual feed intake characteristics and performance in group-housed weanling pigs

Posted in: Production by admin on | No Comments

To assess the effects of 2 high intensity
sodium saccharine-based sweeteners on individual
feed intake characteristics and performance of grouphoused
weaned pigs, one hundred ninety-eight 26-d-old
weanling pigs were given ad libitum access to 3 dietary
treatments containing: no additional sweetener (control),
150 mg of sweetener (Sucram C-150)/kg, or 150
mg of sweetener (Sucram 3D)/kg. At weaning, piglets
were allocated to 18 pens (11 pigs/pen) based on BW,
sex, and ancestry, and pens were randomly assigned to
3 treatments with 6 pens per treatment. The pens were
equipped with computerized feeding stations. During
the first 12 d, pigs were offered pelleted prestarter diets
that were replaced at once by pelleted starter diets
for the last 7 d of the 19-d experimental period. The
individual feed intake characteristics consisting of latency
time (interval between weaning and first feed
intake), initial feed intake (intake during the first 24
h following the first feed intake), the number of total
visits per day, and the number of visits in which feed
was consumed, together with the time and the feed
intake per visit, were determined for all piglets. Performance
traits and fecal consistency were determined
per pen for d 0 to 5, d 5 to 12, and d 12 to 19, as well
as for the total period (d 0 to 19). The initiation of feed
intake was not affected by the addition of high intensity
sweeteners to the diet. From 12 d postweaning, dietary
sweeteners caused the piglets to focus more on
feed intake and less on exploratory behavior, as shown
by the increased percentage of visits with feed intake
in pigs fed the Sucram 3D diet compared with those
fed the control diet (P = 0.002). The overall daily feed
intake increased with time but was not affected by the
addition of sweeteners. Nevertheless, dietary sweeteners
prevented the depression of feed intake on d 8 and
10 postweaning (d 8, P = 0.013; d 10, P = 0.014), which
seemed to coincide with an improved fecal consistency
score (d 5 to 12, P = 0.11; d 12 to 19, P < 0.001). However, the changes in feed intake characteristics and fecal consistency only resulted in numerical effects on postweaning pig performance (ADFI, P = 0.126; ADG, P = 0.140). The results of the present study indicate that weanling pigs need a certain period of time before clear effects of dietary sweeteners on individual feed intake characteristics and pig performance can be observed.