Effect of gestation housing on behaviour and skin lesions of sows in farrowing crates.

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Group housing systems for pregnant sows are set to become more popular, but there is evidence that this development could influence the welfare of sows in farrowing crates. A study was designed to assess the effect of gestation accommodation on behaviour, welfare and farrowing performance of sows in farrowing crates. Sows were housed either in groups or in individual stalls from one month post breeding. On day 110 of gestation, about 5 days before farrowing, sows were moved to farrowing crates and remained there until 28 days post partum. Behaviour and skin lesions were recorded. On the first day in farrowing crates, the stalled sows made more attempts to lie down per lie down event than the group-housed sows. They also spent more time standing inactive and less time lying laterally. During parturition and on day 10 of lactation, the group-housed sows changed posture more often than the stalled sows. The stalled sows had more forelimb lesions in farrowing crates than the group-housed sows. The results indicated that group housing during gestation improved comfort of sows in the farrowing crate with beneficial implications for skin health. However, group-housed sows were more restless during parturition and in early lactation suggesting that group housing may have a negative influence on sow welfare in farrowing crates at these times.

PMWS-Related but Diet-Induced Colitis – a

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Poor intestinal function is detrimental to grower pigs. With the upcoming antibiotic ban, there needs to be alternate methods to control intestinal disease. Finish floor diarrhea can be a difficult diagnostic challenge. It typically involves environmental factors, feed and water related factors, the piga

Use of cool perches by broiler chickens

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Broilers under commercial conditions might experience relatively high temperatures during summer and leg disorders year round that may be partially alleviated by providing them with access to cooled perches. It is unknown, however, how perch temperature and factors such as height and position of the perch affect perch use. Furthermore little is known regarding gender effects. Eight thousand 1 day old, mixed-sex broilers were used in this experiment. The birds were exposed to three perch treatments to determine preferences for water-cooled perches over ambient temperature perches and preferences for height, location, and temperature section of the perch. The experimental treatments were as follows: 1) three cool perches 15 cm above the floor (Cool 15), 2) three ambient perches 7.5 cm off the floor (Ambient 7.5), 3) three ambient perches 15 cm high (Ambient 15), and 4) control chambers with no perches. Total number of birds perching, their positions, and temperature section within the perch were recorded. The results of this study indicate a strong preference for high perches as birds grow. The cooler sections of the perch were utilized more than warmer sections within the cool treatments. Females showed a stronger tendency to perch than males, particularly within the cool treatment. The higher perch use could be one of the reasons for higher eviscerated body weight found in females with access to cool perches. Differences in mean body weight were not affected. However, potential effects of perch access in final body weights needs to be further investigated.

Responses of dairy cows and calves to each other's vocalisations after early separation.

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A common management practice in commercial dairy herds is to separate the calf from the cow the day after birth. After the cow and her calf have been separated they both vocalize, but what is yet to be determined is if after only being together for one day can the cow and calf recognize each other’s vocalisations and whether they respond to the calls made following the separation. Immediately following birth, 12 Holstein cow-calf pairs were moved into a single pen. Approximately 24h after birth the cow-calf pair was separated, the cow remained in the pen, while the calves were moved into individual pens in another building. The calls made by the cow and calf in the 24h period following the separation were recorded and strung together in a sequence to be played back to the animals 24h after separation. The cows and calves were also played white noise. The cows showed a stronger response to the calf vocalisations when compared the white noise. The heart rate of the cows was elevated after hearing the recording of their calf. The cows also responded by increasing the movement of their ears and heads. The cows could also distinguish between their calf and a strange calf as, they would move their heads less when their calf’s called was played compared to a strange calf’s call. The calves responded to the cows’ vocalisations, in contrast to their response to white noise, with increased head movements and fewer ear flicks. When the calf’s mother’s call was played, the calves responded with an increased heart rate, increased ear movements and decreased head movements, versus the responses to strange cow calls. The general inability of the cows and calves to definitely differentiate between the mother/offspring versus unknown animal calls may be due to the lack of time spent together which would have prevented them from learning one another’s calls. However, past research has shown that cows and their calves are able to identify individuals through auditory clues at a very early age.

Behavior and physiologic response of mares to short term isolation

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The behavioural and physiological responses of horses to six hours of isolation was examined. The horses were removed from established pasture herds. The responses of the isolated mares was compared with mares that were transported and then returned to the herd, or moved to an isolated pasture with a companion. The mares were observed the day before the isolation procedures to determine the alterations in behaviour during isolation. The plasma cortisol, white blood cell count, neutrophil:lymphocyte ratio and hematocrit were measured the morning before isolation and in the morning and afternoon on the day of isolation. The heart rate of the mares was monitored continuously during isolation and the day before isolation. Phyohemagglutinin (PHA) was administered the day of isolation. The intradermal response was measured 18 hours following the injection. Mares that were isolated on a pasture with or without a companion significantly increased the amount of time they spent standing alert, while only the mares isolated with a companion decreased the amount of time they spent grazing. The mares that were isolated urinated, rolled and whinnied more than expected and autogroomed less than expected, while the transported mares urinated, rolled and whinnied less than expected and autogroomed more than expected. Mares that were isolated with a companion defecated less than what was expected, while the mares that were transported or isolated alone defecated more than what was expected. The isolated mares and those with a companion were increasingly agitated the day of isolation. The plasma cortisol concentrations and hematocrit rose in all the treatment groups the day of isolation. The peak cortisol concentration was recorded the morning of isolation. The white blood cell count increased in the mares that were transported, while the neutrophil:lymphocyte ratio increased in the isolated mares the day of isolation. The results illustrated that the mares responded both behavioural and physiologically to the isolation from the herd. However, the effects were minimal and short in duration. There does not appear to be a difference in how the mares respond to isolation when they are alone or with a companion, hence it was not possible to determine if it was isolation, the new environment or separation from the herd that caused the behavioural and physiological changes.

Mask Use in Swine Barns Reduces Health Effects

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Swine producers are exposed to dusts and gases when working in barns. Studies have shown that these workers are at increased risk of developing respiratory symptoms, decreases in lung function levels and increases in airway reactions. Compared to no dust control, canola oil sprinkling can significantly reduce dust levels and resulted in lower health effects on healthy subjects when exposed to this environment (Senthilselvan et al. 1997). While engineering controls are in development in an attempt to reduce the dust and gas levels in this work environment, one method for reducing worker exposure to dusts is by having workers wear a disposable respirator (N-95 mask) during barn work activities. The objective of the study was to evaluate health effects related to wearing a disposable mask in a swine confinement unit. Twenty-one subjects between the ages of 18 and 35 years old were recruited to participate in the study. These subjects were male and pre-screening insured that all subjects were non-smokers, with no asthma or allergies and that they had no previous exposure to a swine barn environment. The subjectsa

Fine Tuning the Breeding Program

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The demands of particular pork products will likely result in specific genotypes, managed in specific production systems, becoming the norm in the industry. Some concerns include genetic lag (time from bringing in the genetics and getting them to the production level) and biosecurity issues. Fine-tuning is needed in order to get the breeding herd to maximize the desired gene. Three important issues in replacement gilts include good genes to deposit proper tissues for a good reproductive life, tissue mass required at breeding, and how to manage the variation in growth performance. With a sound heat detection program, gilts can begin cycling at an early age. Gilts that come into estrus later have a compromised reproductive life so should be culled. Keeping these gilts around will bring about costs of non-productive days and reduced breeding herd productivity. Hormones can also be used to reduce breeding herd variability and induce cycling (such as PG 600). They can also be used to treat non-cyclic gilts if the gilts happen to be absolutely needed. In order for breeding targets to be met, there needs to be a set number of cyclic gilts. A feeding program that includes an oral progesterone hormone can be used to bring a group of gilts into a synchronized heat. Body variation of gilts going into the farrowing rooms should be minimized and feeding should be adequate so that they do not deplete too much of their reserves and further compromise future reproduction. Molecular genetics is being investigated to see how much they can improve this area genetically. Management of the first parity sow must be given a high priority. During lactation, a sow cannot go back into estrus. During this time, the reproductive system reverts back to a fertile stage. The uterus returns to a non-pregnant state and the hormone levels in the brain and the pituitary return to normal. Suckling is the primary block of estrus during lactation (it suppresses an important hormone). Loss of body condition in first parities has very negative effects on future fertility. Feed intake needs to be maximized (in late lactation especially) in order to prevent the breakdown of body reserves (aim for less than 10% breakdown). Weaning to estrus interval is farm-specific (depending what genetics they run) and should be taken into account to reduce non-productive days. Treatment with products such as PG 600 can help to bring these sows back into synchronicity. The selection of AI boars is an area that can be improved which can increase the fertility of AI doses. The most fertile boars are required to reach lower sperm numbers and doses needed. Post-cervical insemination can drastically lower the required amount of sperm per dose, and knowing the time of ovulation in a sow can work together to lower the amount of sperm, doses, and increase the number of breedings per boar. The use of improved extenders and the ability to freeze semen will improve breeding efficiency by leaps and bounds.

Local and Global Impact of Disease Outbreaks

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Foot and mouth disease (FMD) and Classical Swine Fever (CSF) are highly contagious pig diseases and must be reported if an outbreak occurs. FMD affects cloven-hoofed animals and comes in large epidemics. Diagnosis is often difficult because the disease is unfamiliar to farmers and veterinarians if it has been unseen. In 1997, an outbreak in Taiwan led to the entire country being declared FMD infected. Four factors that contributed to the spread include delays before eradication, pig farm density, inability to shut down livestock markets, and lack of vaccinations. This led to loss of exports and cost of $379 million USD in the Taiwan pork market. Korea was able to contain the FMD outbreaks on cattle farms successfully through prompt control measures. It took a re-occurrence in the UK in 2001 about 1.5 years to eradicate. CSF is one of the most economically important diseases. Australia, Canada, New Zealand, USA, and some members of the EU have been successful in eradicating the virus. This disease is a constant threat to wild boar, which makes wild boar a constant threat to domestic pigs. Countries that are CSF-positive control them via vaccination, but this still limits their export capabilities. Before vaccination can be done, depopulation, slaughter, movement restrictions, and other measures must be taken, especially in areas with a dense pig population. In late 1998 and 1999 a disease called the Nipah virus broke out in Malaysia. The symptoms of Nipah are respiratory and neurological syndromes. This disease can be spread to humans. It originated from fruit and insect-eating bats, which most likely carried a similar disease in Australia called the Hendra virus. The mode of transmission was the movement of pigs in a very active pig trade. The neurological aspect of the disease typically affected sows while the respiratory aspect affected growing pigs. All pigs in the area of an outbreak were culled. Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is primarily spread by fecal-oral contact. Ensuring a clean water supply is the best preventative measure.

Porcine somatotropin (pST) administered using a commercial delivery system improves growth performance of rapidly growing, group-housed finisher pigs

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Studies on the use of acid insoluble ash as inert marker in digestibility trials with Mong Cai pigs

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