Behavioural and physiological measures of welfare of pregnant mares fitted with a novel urine collection device

Posted in: Welfare by admin on January 1, 2005 | No Comments

In Australia an alternative procedure for collecting pregnant mare urine (PMU) has been developed. The Australian systems allows the mares to be loose housed in stables or outdoors, where as the current system in Canada and North Dakota requires that the mares be tethered in stalls. The welfare risks associated with this alternate procedure were examined in this study. Twenty-four pregnant mares ranging from three to five months of gestation were used in this study. Twelve of the mares were fitted with the PMU collection device housed in a group on a large paddock during the day. Twelve control mares were housed on a separate paddock. In the evening, the mares were kept in groups of four in six small enclosures. The mares on the experimental treatment continued to where the PMU collection device throughout the evening. There was very little or no difference in the behaviour of the control mares and those fitted with a PMU collection device. The day the mares were fitted with the device, they were observed to frequently lift their leg in the direction of the collection device, however this behaviour subsided the following day. The behaviour patterns of the mares on the two treatments remained similar throughout gestation, except in for the lying behaviour. Mares fitted with a PMU collection device spent significantly less time lying during the evening, as fewer mares were observed to lie down. It remains to be determined how the changes in the lying behaviour affect the welfare of the mares. As the lying behaviour of the mares remained the same after the PMU collection device was removed. The heart rate and cortisol concentrations taken the first two days after the PMU collection device was attached do not indicate that the mares underwent an acute stress response to the attachment of the device. Six to seven weeks after the device was attached, the cortisol concentrations were not indicative of stress. The adrenal cortex did not demonstrate an increased sensitivity of an ACTH challenge six weeks after the mares were fitted with the PMU collection device. The data establishes that mares that wear a PMU collection device 5 days per week for seven weeks, do not undergo an impairment in their welfare.

Influence of individual predisposition, maternal experience and lactation environment on the responses of pigs to weaning at two different ages.

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The effects of predisposition to perform harmful social behaviour, maternal rearing environment, and lactation environment on the responses of pigs to weaning at 3 or 5 weeks of age was assessed during this study. Dams for the study were selected at 7 weeks of age, and were either predisposed or non-predisposed gilts. They were selected based on scores obtained during a ‘tail chew’ test and from performance of other harmful social behaviour towards penmates. Gilts were mated with boars of similar predisposition. Half of the gilts from each predisposition had been raised until farrowing in barren environments, while the other half were raised in enriched environments. Throughout lactation, the gilts and their litters were housed in an environment similar to what the gilt had previously experienced, or in the opposite environment. Litters were early-weaned at 3 weeks of age, or weaned at 5 weeks of age. They were then regrouped and housed in barren slatted pens. Piglets from non-predisposed dams experienced reduced growth during the post-weaning period, and increased belly-nosing behaviour in response to early weaning. Conclusions stated that these effects were not mitigated by maternal experience or lactation environment factors, and so the type of selection used was deemed not commercially viable. Offspring experienced reduced welfare when their dams were raised in barren environments. Evidence of this existed in increased adrenocortical reactivity during the lactation period and in increased belly nosing behaviour seen in response to early weaning. When housed in enriched lactation environments, the effects of barren maternal rearing environment on belly nosing behaviour of offspring was eliminated. Improved growth rates were also found in the post-weaning period when the pigs were raised in enriched lactation environments. It was suggested that the improved growth was due to an improved ability to cope with the weaning process. On the whole, results showed that early environmental factors and genetics both influence the responses of pigs to weaning. Furthermore, the adverse effects of barren maternal rearing environments may be overcome by housing pigs in enriched lactation environments.

Impact of raising swine on bedded floors on the prevalence of Salmonella

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For the swine industry, the control of Salmonella spp. bacteria has become a key element for market development and ensuring food safety of swine products to the consumer. The first objective of this project was to determine if the prevalence of Salmonella was higher in pigs raised on bedding – made of wood chips/sawdust – than in pigs raised on conventional partially slatted concrete floors. It also wanted to define the winning conditions of pig husbandry on bedding. The serological results show that the proportion of herds having a positive Salmonella test was 68% for the herds raised on bedding, versus 55% for the herds raised on partially slatted concrete floors. Moreover, Salmonella in the bedding of 27% of the herds raised on bedding, and in the feces of 24% of the herds raised on partially slatted floors has been observed. Nevertheless, the statistical analysis revealed that these differences were not significant. Generally speaking, many factors differ between those two types of husbandry methods without having a significant impact on the prevalence of Salmonella bacteria.

Clinical herd health, farm management and antimicrobial resistance in Campylobacter coli on finishing pig farms in Switzerland

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Transportation of Early Weaned Piglets: production and welfare aspects

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The industry is adopting early weaning practices. Along with early weaning comes transportation of the piglets, which adds to the stresses already present. While a piglet is being transported it will spend about 75% of its time resting and about 25% of its time being active. As the time of the trip increases so does the resting time of the piglets. This indicates the piglets are becoming fatigued. However, increasing levels of fighting as transport progresses may show that stress is enough at the start to avoid hierarchy fighting and that they become more comfortable with the transport as it progresses. 80% of the time spent after transportation was spent resting. Drinking frequency is the greatest during the first day after transport, and the frequency increases as the transportation time increases. Piglets who have not reached weaning weight by 7 days post-weaning require individual attention to bring their productivity back up. This may be related to the fact that during transport feed is not available so they do not initiate solid feed consumption. During the heat of summer, the hot truck trailers can increase the time to return to weaning weight (there is an increased number of “poor doers”). Piglets transported above 35°C will be exposed to a large degree of thermal stress. When temperatures are too high, piglets will be unable to show their natural thermoregulatory behaviour (meaning huddling when cold or spreading out when too hot). During the winter, there appears to be more fatigue because piglets will lie down for a higher percentage of the time.

The short-term effects of increasing meal frequency on stereotypic behaviour of stabled horses

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The incidence of stereotypic behaviours was investigated when the number of meals of concentrate was increased (while maintaining the same daily intake). Thirty horses that performed stereotypic behaviour were selected for this study. Their behaviour was recorded during their morning and afternoon concentrate feeds. The stereotypic behaviours were more commonly observed in the afternoon than morning, and appeared to be due to the lower availability of high fibre forage during the afternoon meal. In another component of this study, nine horses were fed their normal ration of concentrate divided between two, four and six equally sized meals. Their behaviour was compared with seven control horses, which received two meals per day. The results indicated that as the number of meals increased, there was a decrease in oral stereotypies, but weaving and nodding increased prior to feeding. The control horses increased weaving, nodding and oral stereotypies as their yard-mates received more meals. Overall, both treatment and control horses showed an increase in the incidence of stereotypies as the number of meals increased. The authors concluded that increasing meal frequency by dividing concentrate ration into a number of smaller meals might decrease oral stereotypies, but pre-feeding stereotypies might persist. Also, stereotypic behaviour may increase in horses receiving a lower frequency of meals, but have visual contact with horses that are receiving more meals per day.

Comparisons of molting diets on skeletal quality and eggshell parameters in hens at the end of the second egg-laying cycle

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In order to evaluate skeletal quality and eggshell parameters, a study was conducted on molted hens at the end of the second laying cycle. Sixty hens were allocated to two control and four molting treatments: full-fed control 1 (82 weeks old), full-fed control 2 (122 weeks old), feed withdrawal, 100 % alfalfa, 90 % alfalfa/10 % layer ration, and 70 % alfalfa/30 % layer ration. Hens were euthanized at the end of the second laying cycle by CO2. The femur and tibia were collected. There were no differences in bone parameters among the two control treatment hens, or among the different molting treatment hens. Egg weights were heavier but percentage shell and egg production were lower among ‘full-fed control 2’ birds compared with ‘full-fed control 1’ birds. The ‘feed-withdrawal’ hens and ’90 % alfalfa/10 % layer ration’ hens had heavier shell weights than the ‘100 % alfalfa’ hens. Overall bone parameters were found to be negatively correlated with eggshell parameters. Bone parameters were highly correlated with each other. Shell weight, percentage shell, and shell thickness were positively correlated with each other while egg weight was negatively correlated with percentage shell. Results of the study indicated that the age of the hens and molting dietary treatments influence egg parameters, and eggshell formation is closely related to bone metabolism in laying hens.

Why in earth? Dustbathing in jungle and domestic fowl reviewed from a Tinbergian and animal welfare perspective.

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The dustbathing behaviour of captive birds has been studied extensively. This paper brings together past research on dustbathing in domestic chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) and jungle fowl (Gallus gallus), in order to achieve a more thorough understanding of dustbathing. Research about the development, genetics, function and cause of dustbathing were all examined. Previous research has found that exposure to dustbathing substrates early in life can affect preferences later on, however the development of dustbathing is not reliant on the presence of a dustbathing substance. There is little research available that compares dustbathing in domestic and jungle fowl, which could provide a better understanding about the heritably of dustbathing behaviour. There are also few studies that examined the importance of dustbathing to the survival of the bird. It is known the number of lipids on the feathers is reduced following dustbathing, which increases the insulating ability of the feathers. However, whether dustbathing is also effective at controlling ectoparasites is unknown. The majority of the research about dustbathing focuses on the cause. Dustbathing follows a diurnal rhythm and is typically performed every two days. There is evidence that there is an internal motivation to dustbathe, as illustrated by the fact the birds will dustbathe quite quickly upon the return of litter, after it has been withheld. There also may be external factors, such as social facilitation that cause dustbathing, but recent research has brought doubt upon the external component. Hens demonstrate a preference for certain types of dustbathing substrate, and fine substrates like peat and sand will bring forth more dustbathing behaviours. The question of whether or not hens have the motivation to dustbathe is important, as it relates the hens’ welfare. What is needed to be determined is how sham dustbathing (performed by hens when the appropriate litter is not available) is related to actual dustbathing behaviour.

Bacteriocins of Streptococcus is a therapeutic alternatives to antibiotics for treating infections in swine

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Streptococcus suis is an important pathogen in swine that causes, among other conditions, meningites and endocardites. Antibiotic treatment can be efficient against this pathogenic bacteria when it is administrated soon enough. However, more and more strains of S. suis that are resistant to penicillin and other antibiotics are observed. At the same time, some non-pathogenic strains of S. suis are known to produce antibacterial substances of proteic nature called bacteriocins. This research project explored that antibacterial property in the context of fighting virulent strains of S. suis. The results showed that the non-pathogenic strain of S. suis 90-1330 can produce an antibacterial substance exhibiting the classical characteristics of bacteriocins, that is, low molecular weight, resistance to heat and susceptibility to proteolytic enzymes. This bacteriocin proved to be active against pathogenic isolates of S. suis, as well as other bacteria, both Gram positive and negative. Also, been found that adding yeast extract to the culture medium significantly simulated the producion of this bacteriocin by S. suis 90-1330. A purification procedure permitting to obtain an enriched fraction of bacteriocin 90-1330 have also been developed. Electrophoretic analysis on polyacrylamide gel suggests the molecular weight of bacteriocin 90-1330 to range between 4 and 5kDa. The results support potential utility of the non-pathogenic S. suis strain 90-1330 or its bacteriocin to prevent and fight infections in swine caused by virulent strains of S. suis. However, further research is needed before applying this new therapeutic principle.

Nitric oxide-dependent activation of pig oocytes: Role of calcium

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