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Prairie Swine Centre is an affiliate of the University of Saskatchewan
Prairie Swine Centre is grateful for the assistance of the George Morris Centre in developing the economics portion of Pork Insight.
Financial support for the Enterprise Model Project and Pork Insight has been provided by:
Nutritional value of corn and wheat distillers grain and growth performance
Posted in: Prairie Swine Centre by admin on January 1, 2004 | No Comments
Nutritional value of corn, wheat + corn (4:1) and wheat distiller’s grains with solubles (DDGS) for grower-finisher pigs was evaluated. Corn DDGS had the highest digestible energy (DE) and ileal digestible lysine contents but the digestible phosphorus (P) content was similar among DDGS samples. Following characterization of its digestible nutrient profile, DDGS still resulted in reductions in growth performance, suggestion that either the reduced average daily feed intake (ADFI) or other nutritional factors for DDGS deserve further investigation to ensure a successful implementation of DDGS in swine diets.
The Delicate Nursery Environment
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The optimal nursery environment encompasses temperature, physical, and social components. Big Sky Farms are worried about temperature control (they go from 29.0 to 19.0 degrees C) and ventilation (pigs start off with 1.5 to 1.7 cubic feet per minute up to 1.7 to 2.0 cfm). Day one is important for the piglets due to the weaning stress. To minimize this stress, it is ensured that temperatures are comfortable for the piglets, piglets are sorted by size for equal competition, they are creep fed adequately, feeders are set correctly, and provide a night light. Nursery pigs are to not be stocked at less than 2.8 square feet per pig from 5 to 24 kg, and no less than 3.2 square feet per pig from 25 to 32 kg. High standards of hygiene (washing and disinfection) are enforced to avoid a build-up of pathogenic bacteria. The piglets are fed 4 different rations throughout the nursery phase in order to increase the piglet quality that is coming out of the nursery.
Assessing dominance in sheep in a competitive situation: level of motivation and test duration
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The dominance structure in an established group of sheep is often difficult to determine in the field, because of the low frequency of agonistic interactions. One solution to this problem is to test each pair separately in a competitive situation. The most frequently used test involves competition for food after a specific period of food deprivation, but to date, there is no agreement as to the optimum length of time the animals should go without food. The present experiment compared competitive behaviour of sheep at different lengths of time after a meal. The experimental animals were a group of 10 1- year old female Scottish Blackface sheep (45 dyads). The animals had access to dry grass daily, from 07:00 to 08:00 h and from 19:00 to 20:00 h. They were tested in pairs for 5 minutes immediately after and 2, 4, 6 and 8 h after the end of the morning meal. In the test arena a feed hopper provided access to feed to only one sheep at a time. Aggressive interactions such as blocking, threats and butts, as well as non-aggressive interactions (nudges), the time spent at the feeder, and the number and type of displacements (aggressive or non-aggressive) were recorded. The number of displacements was also recorded in the home pens during ten 45-minute periods of group feedings. Blocking behaviour showed the clearest difference between the two sheep in a pair and was therefore, used as the main indicator of dominance. Its occurrence increased as the time since the morning meal was increased and decreased in the course of the 5 minute tests. Consistency between pair-tests and group observations was greatest in the test 8 h after the previous meal, but the difference in consistency between the 2 and 8 h tests was small. This experiment suggest that a period of at least 2 h of food withdrawal is necessary to generate sufficient motivation for a competition test and to mask differences in feeding motivation between individuals. While the performance of dominance-relevant behaviour increased with time since the last meal, a period of 4 h may be sufficient to provide high-quality data. We also suggest that the test duration can be reduced to 2 minutes.
The effect of early colour preference and of a colour exposing procedure on the choice of nest colours in laying hens.
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Hens at the start of lay prefer nests in the corners and at the ends of rows, which leads to overcrowding in the nest and more aggression as a result. Increased aggression leads to cracked and mislaid eggs. The current study was designed to verify whether nest colour could be used to increase their attractiveness in order to counter-balance the aforementioned positional effects. Tests were also conducted to determine whether early colour preference could be demonstrated, whether early colour preference could affect nest colour preference, and whether exposing chicks to specific colours at an early age could influence nest colour preference later on. In the first group, chicks were exposed to one of four colours (blue, green, yellow and red) during the first 12 days of life. In two additional groups, individuals showing high preference for these colours were identified. 50.5 % of chicks chose yellow most often, 32.1 % chose red, but only 7.1 and 2.2 % chose green and blue, respectively. 8.1 % of chicks did not show a preference for a single colour, but showed preference for two or three colours equally. As adult hens, they were tested for their choice of nest colour at the start of lay (weeks 19-22) from the following eight categories: those that had been exposed to blue, green, yellow or red during the first 12 days of life, those that had been selected at the same age for their preference of yellow, red, or yellow and red, and those that had been selected because they had shown no preference to any particular colour during the first 12 days of life. There were not enough birds showing a preference for blue or green at an early age to be tested later on as hens. Groups of four were created, and each bird of a group originated from a different category. Each group had a choice of four double nests, with each nest painted in one of the four colours. Hens that were exposed to blue, green or red at an early age did not prefer corresponding nest colours when in lay. The same was true for hens showing preference for red or red and yellow at an early age. All hens showed a significant preference for yellow nests when in lay, and were indifferent to blue, green, and red nests. However, birds selected for their preference of the colour yellow at an early age, as well as those exposed to yellow at that age, did not show this general preference of yellow nests. Instead, they were indifferent to all four nest colours offered. So, in systems where nests are arranged in rows, it should be possible to distribute hens more evenly among available nests, and thus avoid overcrowding, by painting the mid-third of nest rows yellow. The nests should be painted in a way as to reduce aggression between the hens and decrease the number of cracked and mislaid eggs at the start of lay.
Factors influencing bruises and mortality of broilers during catching, transport, and lairage
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The risk factors associated with mortality and bruises occurring between catching and slaughter were identified and quantified using a multilevel analysis. Some the data collected indicated that the mean percentage of dead on arrival was 0.46. After correcting the percentage of bruises for economic value, the percentage of bruises was 2.20. Bruises were associated with season, moment of transport, and ambient temperature. Factors associated with the percentage of dead on arrival were ambient temperature, moment of transport, catching company, breed, flock size, mean body weight, lairage time, and the interaction term transport time x ambient temperature. Stocking density, transport time, and lairage time were the most important factors associated with deads on arrival. These factors can be improved relatively easily and therefore increase animal welfare and profitability.
Behavior and reproductive performance by stalled breeding females on a commercial farm.
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Stereotypic behavior is an indicator of bad welfare. Gestating pigs housed in individual stalls show more stereotypic behavior than those housed in groups. However, there is not comparison in stereotypies among the gestating pigs housed in stalls. This study investigated postural behavior, stereotypic behavior in stalled gestating females on a commercial farm, and assessed the relationship between behavior and reproduction performance. A total of 609 gestating females were observed 25 times (instantaneous sampling at 15 min intervals) after feeding during 6 hr of observation period. Postural behavior (lying, standing, and sitting) and stereotypic behavior (vacuum chewing, drinker playing, and bar biting) were recorded. Reproduction data, including farrowing rate and total piglets born, piglets born alive, piglets born dead, birth litter weights, piglets weaned, and adjusted 21-d litter weights were collected. The results indicated that females showing a high frequency of vacuum chewing during gestation produced fewer total piglets born than those showing no vacuum chewing. No relationships were found between vacuum chewing and other measures of reproduction. Neither postural behavior nor the other stereotypies were related to reproductive performance. This study suggested that a subpopulation of females existed on commercial farms that frequently exhibited vacuum chewing and gave birth to fewer total pigs. High frequency of vacuum chewing in those females may be indicative of their suboptimal reproductive performance.
The Role of Genetics in Traceability and Quality
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Aside from simple hog improvement, genetics is now being used for DNA traceability. Traceability is important for tracking drug residue, food safety, and marking our pork worldwide as Canadian. The goal of traceability is to trace meat through retail, distribution, processing, slaughter, production, breeding and genetics. DNA tracking could be useful for the slaughter and processing, where tags and tattoos fail to be effective. There is research going on to identify efficient methods of DNA tracing with the goal to make it cost effective and reduce error.
To put this method into practice, replacement gilts will be blood sampled and the sample placed in a bar coded tube. The gilts ID is written next to the bar code and sent to a lab. Although this system is aimed towards quality control and proof of origin, this system can also be used for genetic improvement of the pigs because the carcasses of course will be examined at slaughter.
Boar Nutrition for Optimum Sperm Production
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When evaluating nutritional effects on boars, one should consider libido, quality and quantity of sperm, fertility, welfare, and environmental impacts. Age of boar, genetics, environment, and collection frequency must be considered when evaluating. Sever under nutrition of either protein or energy will affect sperm production. Optimum sperm production occurs when boars are gaining weight, but too much weight gain could compromise the longevity of the boar in the breeding herd. The feed intake level and desired rate of gain in the boar will be dependent on the turnover rate for genetic progress within a stud. Most diets are over formulated and boars are over-fed. Cost per dose of semen depends on several factors, including how many inactive or untrained boars are in the stud, how many rejected collections occur each week, cost of the diets, disease, and other environmental factors. All of these factors can impact the number of doses per week, which will change the cost of nutrition in the end. Basics need to be taken care of when formulating diets for boars. Nutrients should not be over-supplied beyond maintenance and moderate growth (for the achievement of an improvement of sperm production or quality). Other feed additives should be evaluated on either changes in output or changes in fertility to ensure a financial payback. New research will increase the understanding of the impacts that physical factors have on the diet and the implications on reproductive performance. Predicting the true dietary requirements for boars will become more specific and accurate, as new techniques are developed to assess semen, which have a greater correlation to fertility.