Effects of different sucking systems on milk production, udder health, reproduction, calf growth and some bavioural aspects in high producing dairy cows a

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This article discusses the consequences of different suckling systems in the industrial countries for the milk production, udder health, reproduction and behaviour of high producing dairy cows and the effects on the gain, health and behaviour of the calves. The suckling systems are divided into three different categories depending on the purpose and duration of the suckling period. Long-term suckling with or without additional milking covering the period where the calf has a nutritional need for milk, and short-term suckling, where cow and calf are kept together in the colostrums period only. Long-term suckling without additional milking in early lactation can in some situations stimulate the subsequent milk production to a greater extent than milking alone. No clear or significant differences can be found between restricted and free suckling systems. Most experiments show that suckling decreases the risk of mastitis in the suckling period and in some cases even for some time after the suckling has been terminated. Suckling and milking during the same period is not advantageous in production turns because of a very poor ejection of milk. Long-term suckling can increase the post-partum interval until first heat, in some cases until the end of the suckling period. However, as the cows appear to be more fertile, the net effect on reproduction is small. The suckled calves are usually health with a high daily gain. Short-term suckling have more advantages than disadvantages on production, health and behaviour of both the cow and the calf compared to an immediate separation after birth.

Farm animal welfare in the context of other society issues: Toward sustainable systems

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Animal welfare is difficult to define. Overall, the issue will be driven by public opinion. However, the lack of a definition has not impeded the government from imposing legislation on some animal welfare issues. Measuring animal welfare needs to be a multidisciplinary approach; measures should include: level of productivity, behaviour, physiology, health and immunity, and anatomy. Important societal issues, that affect which production systems are considered acceptable, also need to be taken into account. Some issues include the environmental impact, worker health and safety, consumer economics, public perceptions, community interactions, etc. Sustainable systems tie the most important issues together. The systems that do not negatively impact the environment, the workers, the animals and the community and are efficient and economically competitive, are sustainable. The US and Europe are investing in multidisciplinary approaches to evaluate whole-system impacts. If society demands higher standards of animal welfare or other assurances, the consumer must be willing to pay the added cost. If consumers are not willing to pay, some producers will go out of business. This would also have negative consequences for the community. In the case of international trade, if the domestic product is more expensive because the animals were raised according to higher welfare standards, but consumers can still buy a cheaper product from another country, which was raised with lower welfare standards, then the producers of the domestic product will suffer. In some cases, animal welfare and environmental protection are in conflict. Feeding sows high fiber diets to help them feel full, can increase the effluent. This hinders their ability to meet environmental standards. Another example is with pigs raised outside. To reduce environmental pollution in wet climates, outdoor sows must wear nose rings. The study of animal welfare needs to be a multidisciplinary approach, such that scientists and the public can agree the concept of animal welfare. Also, the effects that higher welfare standards have on other societal issues need to be considered, to ensure the sustainability of animal agriculture.

Reduction in cross-sucking in calves by the use of a modified automatic teat feeder.

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Cross-sucking, the sucking of various body parts of neighbouring calves, is a behavioural problem associated with calves being separated from their mothers early but still being fed milk. This study examined cross-suckling behaviour in calves feed by a typical open feeder stall with an artificial teat versus a modified feeder in which a gate closes behind the calf upon entry. The behaviours were recorded over a 9-week period. It was determined that calves that are provided protection (the gate closing behind them upon entry) would remain in the feeder from longer periods of time after they finished consuming their milk and during this time would suck of the teat even though it provided no milk. In the 15-minute period following milk ingestion, the calves fed via a feeder with a rear gate showed a decreased rate of cross suckling. The remainder of day (following the 15 min period immediately following feeding) there was not a difference in the rate of cross-sucking between the two different feeder groups. Even so by installing a gate that closes upon the calf’s entrance into the feeder, it successfully reduces cross suckling when it is most commonly seen, immediately following the completion of a meal.

Some Intermittent Aeration Kinetics from a Laboratory Study with Pig Slurry

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Cost Methodology Report for Swine and Poultry Sectors

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The Clean Water Act authorizes the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to
develop technology-based effluent limitations guidelines and standards (ELGs) for the control of
pollutant discharges from point source categories. Certain animal feeding operations (AFOs) are
defined as point sources. The existing ELG for the Feedlots Point Source Category (40 CFR Part
412) covers these point sources. Section 301(d) of the Clean Water Act directs EPA to
periodically review existing ELGs and revise them when necessary. As part of the EPA-U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) national unified strategy to minimize the water quality and
public health impacts of AFOs, EPA is reviewing the Feedlots ELG and expects to revise the
existing effluent guidelines covering AFOs. This overview addresses the methodology for
estimating potential compliance costs for the swine and poultry (turkey, laying hen, and broiler)
sectors of AFOs.
The initial steps in the process of estimating potential compliance costs for the swine and poultry
sectors include gathering and analyzing data on swine and poultry AFOs to establish a baseline
picture. The baseline includes the amount of manure and wastewater produced, the pollution
control and management practices in place, current land application practices, and current state
requirements. Based on these data, EPA identifies possible new regulatory requirements that
may be imposed through revision of the ELGs. These new requirements are typically grouped
into several possible regulatory options. These regulatory options sometimes specify a limit on
process wastewater discharges (e.g., zero discharge) and might also require specific best
management practices, or BMPs (e.g., development of a nutrient management plan).

Private Investment in Agricultural Research and International Technology Transfer in Asia

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Negative Air Pressure Cover for Manure Storage Basins

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Offensive odours are the major cause of complaints from swine facilities. The odour released from conventional earten storage basins is related to the surface area exposed to the environment. Currently, options to cover these basins to reduce the exposed surface area are limited to straw, plastic or synethic covers. Straw covers are very popular due to their low cost, however straw must be replced annually, allow precipitation into the basin, and create problems during pump out. Synethic floating covers and low-profile air supported covers are expensive and may be damaged in high winds.

Respiratory Disorders of Hog-Confinement Workers

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Introduction
There is growing concern about the impact on human health of living near large-scale hog confinement facilities. This matter has received a great deal of attention in recent years as the number of hogs raised in such buildings has increased and as the public has become more concerned about environmental issues in general. Whether or not large-scale hog farming is good for the economy has become a subject of heated debate in which economic and social as well as medical questions are raised. As this complex topic is discussed, care must be taken to avoid confusing the neighborhood health concerns with work-related health problems seen in hog confinement workers. There is much more information published about problems caused by working inside hog confinement facilities. Even though the characteristic hog odor is can be quite apparent in the neighborhood as well as in the barns, one cannot assume that the neighborhood exposure is sufficient to cause the same health problems that the workers experience from breathing the air inside the buildings. The effects of working in the hog confinement barn The effects of working in the hog confinement barn have been studied extensively by investigators in Canada, the US and in Europe. It has been known for some time that working in hog confinement facilities causes chronic or intermittent respiratory symptoms in approximately 1/3 of workers. These respiratory symptoms consist of cough (which may or may not be productive of phlegm), chest tightness, wheezing and shortness of breath with heavy exertion. Depending on the group of symptoms displayed, the subject may have chronic bronchitis, an
asthma-like syndrome, or exacerbation of pre-existing asthma. Very rarely, a true allergy to hogs develops that is associated with allergic asthma. The respiratory impairment associated with this work is usually not severe. However, even a small to moderate decrease in lung function can be problematic in workers who perform heavy physical labor. Hog confinement workers who smoke cigarettes are at risk for developing severe, disabling chronic lung disease. Cigarettes alone cause significant chronic respiratory disease (chronic bronchitis and emphysema) in about 20% of smokers. The negative effects of cigarette smoke and work in the hog barn environment are
additive.

Dietary Manipulation to Reduce Aerial Ammonia Concentrations in Nursery Pig Facilities

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Two four week trials and three 5 weeks trials were conducted to determine the effectd of adding Yucca extract or anhydrous calcium chloride to nursery diets on the growth performance of nursery pigs and aerial ammonia concentration. The pigs were weaned between 13-15 days of age and had an initial bodyweight of 3-6 kg. In each trial, pigs were allotted three diets 1) control-containing 23% crude protein, 2) control plus 125ppm of Yucca extract 3) control plus 1.95% anhydrous calcium chloride. Growth performance was recorded weekly. Aerial ammonia concentration was measured using aspiration detector tubes. Manure samples were collected twice during the experimental period to determine ammonia and N concentrations and pH. Plasma urea concentration was determined in blood samples collected from the pigs at the end of each trial. Data were analyzed using split-plot and latin square designs for the preliminary and makor studies. Feed intake was similar among pigs fed all three diets. There was no difference in ADG and ADFI between pigs fed the control diet and pigs fed the Yucca extract diet. In all trials pigs fed the calcium chl;oride deit had lower ADG in grower-finisher than pigs fed all other diets. In the preliminary study, aerial ammonia tended to be greater in rooms with pigs fed Yucca extract> In the major study aerial ammonia increased weekly in all rooms. In the fourth week ammonia concentrations were higher in rooms where pigs were fed the control diet than in rooms where the other two diets were fed. Dietary treatment had no effect on plama urea concentration manure ammonia and N concentrations and manure pH. Although aerial ammonia concentration was relatively low the additionof Yucca and anhydrous calcium chloride to the diet of nursery pigs reduced ammoni concentrations in the nursery rooms.

A Strategy for Reducing Ammonia in Animal Production

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Diet manipulation to fix ammonia in bacterial protein, which excreted in feces, has been shown to reduce urinary nitrogen secretion by as much as 25%. Manipulation of the microbial flora, on the other hand, offers the possibility of establishing semi-permanent ammonia-fixing a