Livestock Transport Conference tackles animal care at the front line

Posted in: Welfare by admin on January 1, 2009 | No Comments

A North American focus on achieving humane, safe and effective livestock transport was the centre of discussion at the Livestock Transport Conference, Jan. 29, in Calgary, AB. The conference, themed “Are we there yet?” was hosted by Alberta Farm Animal Care (AFAC) and the National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC). Livestock care is a growing focus of industry and consumers worldwide, and livestock transport is one of the most critical and visible components, AFAC board member Dr. Duane Landals told a packed house of over 120 people including transporters, livestock producers, researchers and other industry leaders. “Today there is increasing focus on animal welfare globally. But the
people in this room have shown we don’t need a global spotlight to force us to take care of the issues. When it comes to livestock care and livestock transport, we do what is right, because it is right.”

Evaluation of bacteriophages for prevention and treatment of diarrhea due to experimental enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli O149 infection of pigs

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The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of selected phages individually and in combination in prevention and treatment of diarrhea due to experimental O149:H10:F4 enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) in weaned pigs. The findings indicate that the selected phages were effective in moderating the course of experimental O149:H10:F4 ETEC diarrhea in weaned pigs when given prophylactically or therapeutically.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/03781135

Effects of dietary cysteamine supplementation on growth performance and whole-body protein turnover in finishing pigs

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Cysteamine (CS; mercaptoethylamine, HS–CH2–CH2–NH2) is biologically derived from cysteine metabolism. It can be used as a feed additive in animal production to stimulate the endocrine system and improve the growth rate of fish, piglets, and finishing pigs. Thus, CS can be a viable alternative in promoting the growth rate of pigs. The objectives of this study are to evaluate the growth promotion effect of dietary CS supplementation in finishing pigs and measure protein turnover in finishing pigs. It was found that the average daily gain and feed intake by CS supplementation
were increased by 19.5% and 15.4%, respectively. However, body weight and feed efficiency were not affected. The nitrogen balance trial indicated that nitrogen retention, nitrogen retention efficiency, and efficiency of digestible N utilization were increased to 62.8%, 54.6%, and 50.6% in CS supplementation group. Nitrogen intake, nitrogen
in feces and urine, and apparent nitrogen digestibility were not affected. CS supplementation affected
the whole-body protein turnover and resulted in a decreased protein breakdown rate (1.61 vs. 1.18 g N/kg W 0.75/d). Net protein gain in nitrogen was increased by 63.5%, however, protein synthesis rate, nitrogen flux, and endogenous urinary nitrogen were not affected. Therefore, dietary CS supplementation may improve growth performance
in finishing pigs.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/livsci

Effect of the duration of commercial journeys between rearing farms and growing–finishing farms on the physiological stress response of weaned piglets

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The aim of this study was to determine the effect of journey duration, in commercial transports from rearing to growing–finishing farms, on the stress levels of piglets using a combination of physiological welfare indicators. According to the results obtained by means of different physiological indicators, commercial transports from rearing farms to growing–finishing farms are generally a stressful event for weaned piglets. Nevertheless, the journey duration did not show a consistent effect on piglets, it therefore being possible that their response to transport differs from that of older, slaughter pigs.

Seroprevalence and risk factors for the presence of ruminant pestiviruses in the Dutch swine population

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In this study, the seroprevalence against bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV) and Border disease virus (BDV) in two categories of swine, sows and finishing pigs was determined. In sows, the seroprevalence against BVDV was 2.5% on the animal level, and 11.0% on herd level. In finishing pigs these prevalences were 0.42% and 3.2%, respectively. Antibodies against BDV were found in three sows only.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/03781135

Genetic analyses of piglet survival and individual birth weight on first generation data of a selection experiment for piglet survival under outdoor conditions

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The first objective of the research was to estimate the heritabilities and genetic correlations of piglet survival and
birth weight of pigs kept under outdoor conditions. The second objective was to examine the influence of considering weights of stillborn piglets on the genetic parameters of survival traits and birth weight. In the third objective, the
influence of litter size on genetic parameters of survival traits and birth weight was studied. The results of the study showed that piglet survival at birth, at day 1 and during the entire nursing period can be attributed to genetic effects of the piglets, which can be efficiently used to improve their survival. These direct genetic effects explained a substantial higher proportion on the phenotypic variation of piglet survival under outdoor conditions than expected based on studies using data from indoor herds. Genetically, peri- and postnatal survival traits seem to be affected by different genes or gene effects, as indicated by correlations of less than or equal to 0.4. Therefore, a multiple trait model treating at least peri- and postnatal survival as different traits is recommended. The substantial direct genetic effects of birth weight are of great interest to be exploited for correlated improvement of piglet survival. The correlations of direct genetic effects of piglet survival traits and birth weight were all favourable but low. However, even low genetic correlations will have a substantial effect on piglet survival because birth weight showed an almost three times higher heritability and can be measured on the continuous scale. Its inclusion will therefore result in considerably more response to selection than the less informative categorical survival traits (Meuwissen et al., 1995). Recording of weights of stillborn piglets is shown to be informative because it increased the favourable correlation among survival traits as well as their correlations with birth weight. Furthermore, the use of birth weight together with survival traits in the multiple trait model provided important information for the estimation of survival traits.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/livsci

A tryptophan-enriched diet improves feed intake and growth performance of susceptible weanling pigs orally challenged with Escherichia coli K88

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We tested the effect of Trp addition to a standard weaning diet and oral challenge with enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli K88 (ETEC) on growth and health of piglets susceptible or nonsusceptible to the intestinal adhesion of ETEC. It was concluded that the need to consider the phenotype for the adhesion of the ETEC in studies with different supply of Trp was clearly evident. When compared with practical weaning standard diets, Trp supplementation allowed susceptible pigs to partially compensate for the effects of ETEC challenge by increasing feed intake and maintaining an adequate BW
growth. This is of practical importance for the formulation of diets for pigs selected for lean growth because of the presence of an association between this trait and the susceptibility to the intestinal adhesion of ETEC.

For more information the full article can be found at http://jas.fass.org/

Characterization of Streptococcus suis isolates from the diseased pigs in China between 2003 and 2007

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The aim of this study was to illustrate the characteristics of 407 strains of Streptococcus suis (S. suis) isolated from diseased pigs in China. The results revealed that S. suis, with 56.6% of the Streptococci isolates, had replaced Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus as the predominant agent.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/03781135

The effect of continuous grouping of pigs in large groups on stress response and haematological parameters

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The aim of this experiment was to study the consequences of an ‘all in-all out’ static group of uniform age vs. a continuously dynamic group with litter introduction and exit every third week for the stress response and aematological (blood) parameters of pigs housed in large groups (60 pigs). The results showed limited differences in stress and haematological parameters between pigs in dynamic groups with a uniform space allowance compared with pigs in the static ‘all in-all-out’ groups. The cortisol response to the stress test was increasing with the duration of the stress test in pigs from the dynamic group while it was decreasing in the static group.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/livsci

Dynamics of virus excretion via different routes in pigs experimentally infected with classical swine fever virus strains of high, moderate or low virulence

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This study provides quantitative data on excretion of CSFV over time from pigs infected with a highly, moderately or low virulent strain. This study highlights the crucial role chronically infected pigs may play in the transmission of CSFV. Furthermore, it demonstrates the importance of discriminating between strains and the clinical appearance of infection when using excretion data for modelling.

For more information the full article can be found at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/03781135