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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:
Influence of prior exposure to wood shavings on feather pecking, dustbathing and foraging in adult laying hens.
Posted in: Welfare by admin on January 1, 2001 | No Comments
It is believed that there is a period of high sensitivity in a chick’s life when they develop a preference for specific substrates. If there is not an appropriate substrate available during this sensitive time, the chicks may seek out alternative substrates that may not be appropriate. This study examined whether the preferences developed by chicks during the sensitive period continue into adulthood and affect the behaviour of laying hens. The duration of substrate exposure, changes in substrate, age at exposure and time lapse since exposure were examined. At various ages and lengths of time, the wire flooring was replaced with solid flooring covered with wood shavings, which resulted in 12 different treatment combinations. The adult hens that had never had exposure to wood shavings performed significantly more feather pecking than those from any other treatment combination. The minimal exposure length of 10 days was, therefore effective at reducing feather pecking. The flooring substrate was still important well into adulthood, as hens that were housed on wood shavings, ground pecked significantly more and feather pecked significantly less than hens that were housed on wire regardless of exposure during the rearing period. Subsequently the hens were provided with either wood shavings or straw, and once again previous experience did not affect their foraging behaviour, as the hens foraged on both. Dustbathing however, was performed the majority of the time on wood shavings and at age at which the hens had been introduced to wood shaving also affected this behaviour. The preference to dustbath on wood shavings as the hens had increasing exposure to straw may indicate a stable preference to dustbathe on wood shavings. In conclusion, the behaviour of the adult laying hens was quite flexible, however, the behavioural expression is dependent on the type of substrate available.
Quantifying aspects of young horses' temperament: consistency of behavioural variables
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Behavioural variation and physical ability will influence the performance of horses. All 41 horses in this study, of the same breed and age, were reared in the same housing and management conditions. Two behavioural tests were used to assess each horse’s temperament at 9, 10, 21, and 22 months of age. The tests included a novel object test and handling test. During the novel object test, an open umbrella was lowered from the ceiling. The handling test involved the horses being led across a bridge. The following data was collected during each test: locomotor activity, latency times, postural expressions, and vocalizations. There were positive correlations found among all variables collected during the handling tests and among all but two of the variables collected during the novel object test. A principal component analysis indicated that two possible temperamental traits were extracted from the data collected during the novel object test, which included ‘flightiness’ and ‘sensitiveness’; and two traits were extracted from data collected during the handling test, which included ‘patience’ and ‘willingness to perform’. There was some consistency found over time. The behavioural tests were useful in identifying individual variation and temperamental traits in young horses. However, consistency over time was not found for all the variables.
Strategic Positioning Under Agricultural Structural Change: A Critique of Long Jump Co-operative Ventures
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Structural change is a disruptive process. Whether you are in the steel industry in the 1970’s or production agriculture in the 1990’s the effects are extremely unsettling (Rose and Thomas, 2000; CP, 2000). Producers are being forced to either exit the industry or adopt new business models, but to accomplish this they are faced with the difficult task of strategically repositioning themselves. Just in the state of Illinois, for example, there are currently forty value added processing business plans in development (Saputo, 2000). These long jump ventures into processing are risky through and raise important fundamental questions about how producers select appropriate strategies; the subject of this manuscript.
Specifically, this manuscript addresses three aspects of the strategy process. The first is whether long jump type ventures such as hog slaughter or ethanol production are strategically sound. The second aspect is a discussion of how firms develop sound strategy. Third, using this understanding of strategy, the paper offers relationship management and service innovation as an alternative to long jump brick and mortar investments for creating value. Finally, a case study of the Wairarapa Lamb Cooperative demonstrates an application of relationship management.
An approach to ensiling conditions for preservation of cassava foliage in Cambodia
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Succssul Siting of New and Expanding Intensive Livestock Operations – The Alberta Experience
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In 1998-98 Alberta had 471 livestock applications. 446 (94.7%) of these were approved. This is a significant statistic, however, in spite of this approval rate, there are significant issues facing ILO development in the province. In 2000 there were several large development applications which received substantial community oppostiion and genrated a lot of media coverage. This wave of oppoistion continues to effect development applications, to varying degrees across the provincce and reflects and increasing trend of the countryside being regarded as a common resource with public increasingly a say in how it is managed.
Nutrient and Heavy Netal Content of Soil Nutrient Status and Surface Water Quality
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It is well-known that the application of hog manure to land is an economical and environmentally sustainable method for the utilization of the nutrients and other components in the manure. Manure application can increase soil quality and productivity, at least in the short term, on most soils. However, soil quality and productivity can severely reduced in the long-term unless precautions are taken with respect to the loadings and frequency of application of manures. Sustaining the hog industry, through good manure management, is one method to ensure the continued growth of the hog industry in the province. Excessive accumulations of phosphorus, metals such as copper and zinc, sodium and other soluble salts can reduce soil quality and productivity. The loading rates and period of time a soil or parcel of land can be used for manure application depends on soil properties and the concentration of various constituents in the manure. Manures vary in the concentrations of metals (such as opper and zinc), depending on the type of hog operation (feeder, sow, nursery or farrow to finish barns) because of the varying concentrations of these minerals used in the feed. Soils with pH values of less than 6.5 are sensitive to metal loadings of copper and zinc, and crop yield and quality may be reduced if metal applications are high. sodium and other soluble salts found in the manures, also depend on the mineral supplements in the feed, as well as the source of water used to operate the hog facility. any soils in Manitoba are highly sensitive to sodium and salt applications. Another concern is the ratio of nitrogen to phosphorus in the manures. If the nitrogen to phosphorus ratio in the manure is much less than the ratio of nitrogen to phosphorus removed by crops, and the application rate of the manures was based only on available itrogen, phosphorus will accumulate in the soil. The build-up of phosphorus in the long-term can result in phosphorus runoff to surface waters (a decrease in water quality) and may cause yield reductions.
This investigation was an exploratory study to determine whether or not decreases in soil quality
and productivity were likely to occur due to the long-term applications of manure to Manitoba
soils. Several types of hog manures produced by various hog operations in Manitoba were
examined, and the effects of these manures on soil quality and productivity were assessed.
Influence of Hog Manure Application on Surface Runoff Water Quality
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This paper describes some preliminary results from a field-scale study of the effect of field application of hog manure by injection on surface runoff water quality. In the study, manure injection at rates of 7,000 and 10,000 gal ac-1 are compared to an inorganically fertilized control at a site near the Bear Hills Pork Producers barn at Perdue, SK. Surface runoff water quality is assessed during snowmelt and by rainfall simulation. Analysis of the preliminary data indicates that concentrations of total and ortho P and NH3 in snowmelt runoff from the basin receiving 10,000 gal ac-1 of hog manure the previous fall increased relative to background measurements and the control basin. Concentrations of NH3 also appeared to increase in snowmelt runoff from the basin receiving 7,000 gal ac-1 of hog manure. Elevated P concentrations were also measured in runoff from the manured plots the following year. Although the rainfall simulation data were less conclusive, nutrient concentrations in runoff from the plots receiving hog manure appeared to increase relative to the control. There was no indication that hog manure application led to increased coliform counts in runoff water.
Introduction
Hog manure is a valuable source of nutrients and its application to fields as fertilizer is an environmentally-sustainable solution to a waste disposal problem. However, with
increasingly large amounts of manure produced in a single location and prohibitively high transportation costs, manure applications to fields close to hog operations may exceed environmentally sustainable rates. If nutrients are applied in excess of crop requirements they may be transported to surface water through runoff or to groundwater through leaching. While the organic C and micro-organisms in manure can be beneficial to soil, dissolved organic C, bacteria and parasites may pollute water resources. Research is required to confirm that hog manure can be applied to agricultural fields without negatively impacting the environment and to establish sustainable rates of manure application. We have undertaken a field-scale study that is designed to assess the impact of hog manure application on soil and water quality by comparing two rates of manure application with an inorganically fertilized control and by comparing two methods of manure injection. This Health Issues and Water Quality paper describes the methodology for the surface water quality component of the study and presents some preliminary results.
N-Management and Crop Rotation Effects on Yield and Residual Soil Nitrate Levels
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