Nitrogen mass balance in fields irrigated with liquid swine waste

Posted in: Environment by admin on January 1, 2007 | No Comments

Effect of cereal type and exogenous enzyme supplementation in pig diets on odour and ammonia emissions

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Natural crusting of slurry storage as an abatement measure for ammonia emissions on dairy farms

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Observations provided information on the impact of a range of factors on the potential for crust
formation. The most important factors were slurry solids content (crusting increasing with
dry matter (DM) content), volume:surface area ratio of the storage (influencing nature of
the crust and rate of formation), livestock diet (crusting more likely with grass silage),
slurry management (agitation). Of particular importance, were weather conditions with
evaporation increasing crusts and rainfall having the opposite effect.

Benchmarking Energy Costs in Swine Barns

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

To assess current energy consumption patterns in swine operations, a survey followed by energy audits were conducted in diff erent types of swine barns in Saskatchewan. Benchmark information showed high variability in the use of energy even among the same type of barns, indicating wide opportunities to improve energy use practices. The next step would be to use computer simulation to evaluate diff erent energy saving measures and to quantify the reduction in energy costs that can be achieved from implementation of these strategies.

Feeding extruded flaxseed to produce omega-3 enriched pork

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Omega-3 fatty acids are well recognized for their human health benefits. The amount of omega-3 fatty acids present in the meat and meat products is low due to extensive use of feed ingredients deficient in omega-3 fatty acids. Flaxseed, a rich plant source of alpha linolenic acid (ALA, an omega-3 fatty acid), has recently gained attention as a source of ALA for growing pigs. Eighty pigs (initial body weight 31±3 kg) were fed diets supplemented with 5, 10 or 15% extruded flaxseed for either 4, 8 or 12 weeks prior to market. Up to 15% extruded flaxseed can be included in the grower and finisher pig diet without any adverse effect on the performance. Feeding extruded flaxseed to pigs results in ALA enrichment of the subcutaneous fat. The consistency of the enrichment improves with the length of time the flaxseed is included in the diet.

ODEURS

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Comment les humains perçoivent-ils les odeurs?
Le sens de l’odorat joue un rôle important dans la sensation de bien être des humains. L’odorat est unique
à chaque humain et varie dans le temps selon la condition physique de l’individu, les conditions
d’émission d’odeur et la mémoire olfactive et le vécu de l’individu. La réponse olfactive est le résultat de
stimuli créés au niveau du bulbe olfactif (situé dans la partie supérieure de la cavité nasale) qui vient en
contact avec des molécules d’odeur. Des signaux sont envoyés au centre olfactif du cerveau par des
fibres nerveuses où une impression d’odeur est créée et comparée avec celles déjà emmagasinées dans la
mémoire olfactive personnelle qui est elle constituée de perceptions individuelles et de valeurs sociales
(Berglung et al. 1988). Comme l’odeur a un caractère très personnel, certaines personnes ont un bon nez
(très sensible) et certaines autres ont un mauvais nez (moins sensible ou insensible) (Hermia, 1997).
Berglund et al. (1988) mentionne aussi que l’odorat est très utile car il considère ou évalue l’odeur comme
un tout même si celle -ci est composée de plusieurs mélanges de gaz complexes plutôt que d’analyser les
différents composés chimiques séparément.
Quelles peuvent être les réactions humaines possibles aux mauvaises odeurs?
Les réactions aux odeurs reliées à la production porcine peuvent apparaître très subjectives pour certaines
personnes et elles sont susceptibles d’être différentes d’une communauté à une autre. Une anecdote
populaire en Iowa porte sur une personne résidant à proximité d’un bâtiment d’élevage porcin vide et qui
se plaignait des mauvaises odeurs qui, selon elle, en émanaient. Toujours en Iowa, on rapporte le calvaire
subi par une famille agricole aux prises avec les odeurs qui proviennent d’un élevage porcin situé à
environ un kilomètre de leur ferme (Thu, 1996).
Selon cet auteur, la problématique globale des odeurs associées aux élevages repose généralement sur un
problème plus profond de frustration des personnes affectées. Celles-ci auraient souvent l’impression de
ne pas avoir accès aux canaux de communication qui pourraient permettre la résolution des problèmes
interreliés découlant du développement et de l’intensification de la production porcine. Schiffman et al.
(1995) ont découvert que de tels sentiments de perte de contrôle, par rapport à la problématique des
odeurs par exemple, peuvent constituer un élément déclencheur important dans le développement de
problèmes psychologiques pour les personnes affectées. Les résultats qu’ils ont obtenus à la suite d’une
étude portant sur les effets d’un voisinage rapproché à de grands établissements de production porcine ont
démontré que l’attitude générale des voisins de ces établissements était grandement affectée par les
odeurs qui pouvaient en émaner. Des problèmes accrus de tension, de dépression, de colère,
d’épuisement et de confusion de même qu’une vitalité réduite des personnes ainsi affectées ont été
rapportés par Schiffman et al. (1995).
Les réactions ne sont pas dues à la seule intensité des odeurs; elles dépendent également de la fréquence
d’exposition des personnes, de la durée de ces expositions et du caractère hédonique des odeurs. Il
importe donc de pouvoir quantifier certaines de ces caractéristiques si l’on veut s’attaquer efficacement à
la résolution des problèmes associés aux odeurs (Sweeten, 1997; Nicell et Tsakaloayannis, 1997).

The Transformation of Spain’s Pork Sector: Can It Continue?

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Unless otherwise stated, the term EU refers to the 15 member countries prior to the 2004 enlargement. Also, it is worth pointing out, that in general the pigmeat processing sector in the EU is much less concentrated than in the United States. One notable exception is in Ireland, where the sector is dominated by two firms. The largest exporters of pigmeat in the EU are Denmark and the Netherlands, whereas the largest importers are Germany and Italy. In 2002, pigmeat exports by Denmark and the Netherlands were almost three and two times larger, respectively, than Spain’s pigmeat exports, and pigmeat imports by Italy and Germany were about ten and eight times greater, respectively, than Spain’s pigmeat imports. Spain has achieved enviable success in modernizing and expanding its pork sector, but its producers and processors will need to continue along the path of rapid transformation to remain competitive.

A concrete slatted floor system for separation of faeces and urine in pig houses

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In the experiments, four concrete slatted floors with one of two slat profiles and one of two gap
widths, and a steel wire slatted floor were studied to estimate their manure separation
performance under practical conditions. It was found that a slope gradient of 201 with a surface coated with fine cement performed best and is recommended for the slope bottom design in the concrete slatted floor system.

The effect of pre-weaning housing on the play and agonistic behaviour of domestic pigs

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In intensive pig husbandry, young pigs are typically housed in an extremely barren environment. Such an impoverished environment may have immediate negative effects on pig welfare (De Jonge et al., 1996; O’Connell and Beattie, 1999). It has been demonstrated that piglets in barren environments engage in more manipulative behaviour, such as biting, nosing and massaging of their pen mates compared to piglets in larger pens with straw bedding (Lammers and Schouten, 1985; Beattie et al., 2000; De Jong et al., 1998; O’Connell and Beattie, 1999). Furthermore, poor rearing conditions may disturb the development of important social skills, as it has been shown that piglets housed in such an environment behave more aggressively than pigs housed in an enriched environment (De Jonge et al., 1996; O’Connell and Beattie, 1999). Most of the researchers who have compared the influence of housing systems have focused on the period after weaning or during fattening (Beattie et al., 2000; De Jong et al., 2000; De Jonge et al., 1996; O’Connell et al., 2004; Olsson et al., 1999). Very few researchers have assessed the influence of pre-weaning housing on the behaviour of the piglets. Pre-weaning housing systems may not only affect the aggression that occurs immediately following the mixing of litters at weaning, but also the agonistic behaviour that occurs in the long term. If the social skills necessary for conflict resolution are underdeveloped in piglets from a poor environment, this will probably result in more intense aggression in certain situations, such as competition for food. The aim of this study was to assess whether three housing systems during the suckling period influence three aspects of piglets’ social behaviour: (i) the play behaviour of piglets before weaning, (ii) the agonistic behaviour caused by mixing of litters after weaning and (iii) the food related agonistic behaviour of pigs during the fattening period. Three pre-weaning housing systems were compared: poor crate (standard farrowing crate without straw), enriched crate (crate with straw, 20% larger), and, as a control, a farrowing pen (pen with straw, 60% larger than the poor crate). At the age of 1, 2 and 4 weeks, play behaviour (locomotor and social play) was recorded for 3h. Four weeks postpartum, piglets were weaned and two litters from the same housing system were mixed in a new pen, with the stocking density corresponding to density in the pre-weaning poor crate. During mixing, the frequency of agonistic behaviour and the proportion of abnormally ended fights (chasing and biting to the hindquarters of the opponent) were recorded for 3h, and after 6h, the number of wounds was counted. Four focal pigs from each litter were chosen (two female and two male) and their agonistic interactions were measured during a food competition test at the age of 3 and 6 months. Our results suggest that the enrichment of the pre-weaning environment through straw and enlarged space probably stimulate pre-weaning play behaviour and substantially reduces the tendency of pigs to behave aggressively during food competition later in life. However, aggression during post-weaning mixing of piglets does not seem to be affected by pre-weaning enrichment.

Feed Intake and Weight Loss Before and After Weaning and the Effect on Reproductive Performance

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Feed restriction during late lactation in primiparous sows results in increased catabolism and has traditionally resulted in reduced litter gains, a marginal increase in the weaning-to-estrus interval (WEI), and reduced embryonic survival and development to day 30 of gestation in the subsequent litter. However, in recent studies even these detrimental effects have not been consistently observed. Even when sows are induced to lose large amounts of body weight during late lactation, the resulting WEI and embryonic survival rates are comparable to sows that lose marginal amounts of body weight. An established experimental design was used to study the effect of feed restriction during the last week of lactation in primiparous sows on litter growth, WEI and embryonic growth and development. As an extension of these investigations, the effect of feed restriction during late lactation on feed intake and sow metabolic state between weaning and breeding was also examined. Control (CON) sows were fed their predicted voluntary feed intake from day 15 to day 21 of lactation, restrict (RES) sows were fed 50% of their predicted voluntary feed intake over the same period. As expected, 50% feed restriction between day 15 and day 21 (weaning) of lactation resulted in greater body weight and backfat loss, and compromised litter gains in RES compared to CON sows. However, between weaning and breeding RES sows consumed more feed and gained more weight and backfat depth than CON sows, resulting in no significant differences in weight or backfat depth at breeding. There were no significant effects of treatment on sow reproductive parameters as measured by WEI, ovulation rate, embryo number and survival, or embryo characteristics. It was concluded that under good management practices, acceptable production performance is achievable even in first parity sows that are catabolic after weaning. 93% of sows returned to estrus within 10 days, 100% of sows were bred, and 89% conception rate was achieved. Maximizing feed intake of first parity sows after weaning may negate short-term detrimental effects of lactational catabolism.