Behavioral and physiological responses of horses to initial training: the comparison between pastured versus stalled horses

Posted in: Welfare by admin on January 1, 2002 | No Comments

The performance of normal behaviours is limited when horses are kept in stalls, and behavioural development may be compromised due to inadequate environmental conditions. The response of a horse to training may be affected by housing. Horses were kept on pasture or in individual stalls, and a few from each groups were subjected to a standardized training procedure, carried out by two trainers in a round pen, while the others were introduced to the round pen but not trained. For the stalled horses, total training time was significantly higher than total time for the pastured horses. The stalled group also required more time to adapt to the activities occurring from the start of training to mounting. Unwanted behaviours occurred more often in stalled horses, and pastured horses tended to have a higher basal heart rate on the first day of the study. Physiological data did not identify differences between the two housing groups. However, behavioural data suggest that pasture-kept horses adapt more easily to training than stalled horses.

Broad-spectrum virus reduction in red cell concentrates using INACTINEa

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On farm AI – The Pitfalls

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Over the past 50 years AI has become extremely common, but there are some pitfalls to avoid in order for it to be effective. The key to achieving high levels of performance with AI is to ensure the delivery of “good quality semen into the right place at the right time”. There are many problems that can occur with management and even physiological problems that can only be realized 21 days after.

At the boar stud make sure that there are enough staffed people who are able to run the system in case of an illness or something to that effect. If there are specialized people assigned to different steps of the process, ensure they can all work as a team. Keeping the staff focused and interested will prevent boredom and therefore keep the quality of work up. The size of the boar stud should match the requirements of the operation. Semen wastage cannot be over looked, as it is simple to do. People tend to think that because semen is constantly produced it is not a big deal to waste some. Make sure that everyone understands the costs involved.

Staff should follow a manual or “AI Blueprint”, in which each step is detailed to ensure standardization and consistency. AI supplies should be as clean as possible. Items that come into direct or indirect contact with the ejaculates must be guaranteed “non-spermicidal”. Backup plans should also be made in case of a semen outage, which is a reality in any operation.

Specialized Pigs for Specialized Markets

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The market for pork has led to a variety of products available in food stores to satisfy consumers. Export to Asian countries is very important to Canadian markets, as is producing a carcass that is economically valuable and usable by packers. Pigs produced can be made to target a differentiated market. Genetics, nutrition, slaughter and pre-slaughter conditions can help to manipulate the product to give the packers what they desire. Genetics provides some tools to fulfill different requirements. Some breeds have certain characteristics that are genetically available from the get-go, and through good selection these traits can be enhanced. PIC is one of many companies that offer a wide range of products for domestic or export targets.

Gleaning Information From Mandatory Livestock Price Reporting

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Across-Herd Genetic Evaluation of Swine

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One way to improve performance in a herd is through selection of genetically superior animals, with the selection based on an estimate of the genetic merit of the animals. How well this genetic merit is estimated (accuracy) is important, because accuracy predicts the potential rate of genetic progress. The higher the accuracy, the more genetic progress is possible, assuming that the
genetically superior animals have been selected.
Across-herd genetic evaluation programs are used to predict the genetic merit of animals for specific traits. These programs combine records on the individual with information on relatives in an in-depth analysis, resulting in very accurate estimates of genetic merit. The programs typically express the genetic merit of an individual for a trait as an Expected Progeny Difference (EPD), or half of the animal’s breeding value. Across-herd genetic evaluation is the comparison of sires, dams, and pigs
based on the analysis of performance information collected on pigs of the same breed in different herds at many different times. This may include onfarm records, national breed test information, and progeny test data.
Across-herd evaluations can be used to accurately compare animals in different herds. Across-herd evaluations are used routinely by the dairy and beef industries in the U.S. to identify the very best
genetic material in each breed. Canadian pork producers use an across-herd program to select breeding stock. In the U.S., the STAGES program began using an across-herd evaluation in 1991, and has done nightly across-herd evaluations for Yorkshire, Hampshire, Duroc, and Landrace breeds since 1998. There are separate evaluations for each breed.

Health Issues & Livestock Production

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Neighbours living near a livestock operation may have concerns about how their health might be affected. Questions about the safety of the water supply in the area, the quality of the air and
whether illness can be passed from animals to humans deserve consideration.

Community health risk from properly managed livestock operations is negligible. By strictly following
agricultural guidelines and environmental regulations, livestock producers can minimize potential
impacts on health. Individual personal hygiene is very important when visiting or working in a livestock operation.

Draeger microPac Performance for Hydrogen Sulphide Monitoring in Commercial Swine Operations

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Summary

The swine industry needs reliable and affordable tools to monitor the air quality in the barn to ensure that their workers are fully aware of unsafe conditions. Sixteen Draeger microPac hydrogen sulfide (H2S) monitors were followed over a year to determine the performance of the monitors. The monitors performed consistently under barn conditions with only a small drift in the accuracy.

Introduction

Until recently systematic H2S monitoring was not performed in the swine industry. A few incidents involving the detrimental effects of H2S have increased the awareness of the possible hazards related to H2S and more intensive swine operators want to ensure that their workers are provided with a safe working environment. Monitors in swine buildings are subjected to a harsh environment where dust, humidity and gases may be present. Since workers wear monitors, the monitors may have accidental falls on the concrete or in the manure. As a result, the swine production conditions are likely to challenge the H2S monitor. The objective of this project was to evaluate the performance of the Draeger microPac unit for H2S monitoring in pig barns.

Experimental Procedures

Over the course of a year, four Draeger microPac monitors were used in office conditions, and 12 monitors were used in both the PSCI Floral and Elstow barns. The working conditions for each monitor was similar for all monitors, including power washing, pit pulling and exposure to outdoor conditions, except for the monitors used in the office. Eight of the monitors used in the barns were subjected to extreme tests after four and eight months of use; four monitors were dropped on concrete, and four monitors were dropped in the manure pits. A calibration gas was used to regularly check the accuracy drift of each of the monitors six times during the project.

Results and Discussion

The absolute average drift of all the monitors after 328 days was from 0.6 to 2.0 ppm, with an absolute maximum drift of 2.7 ppm. This maximum drift was much less than the maximum drift Draeger specified, which was 12 ppm after one year. There was a significant difference in the drift of the monitors after the first six months (p<0.05), but after six months, there was no significant drift of the monitor accuracy. There were also no significant differences between the monitors (p>0.05).

Implications

Use of the Draeger microPac monitors with regular calibrations has shown to be an effective tool to ensure worker safety in a swine environment to help prevent exposure to H2S. Any effects of repeated abuse on the monitors is unknown, but the monitors performed consistently under normal swine housing conditions and the accuracy drift of the monitor was acceptable to help ensure safe working conditions in the swine operation.

Utilizing swine effluent for sprinkler-irrigated corn production

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SEEPAGE LOSSES FROM ANIMAL WASTE LAGOONS: A SUMMARY OF A FOURa

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