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Two hundred 10-d-old broiler chickens were used to study the effects of different dried olive pulp (DOP) inclusion rates on growth performance and meat quality. Broiler chickens were assigned to 4 experimental treatments (5 replicates of 10 broiler chickens each) for 32 d. The broiler chickens of each treatment were offered a different combination of grower (d 11 to 22; grower phase) and finisher (d 23 to 42; finisher phase) diets in terms of DOP content. The experimental treatments were: control (C), grower and finisher diets with no DOP; treatment 1 (T1), grower and finisher diets with 25 and 50 g DOP/kg, respectively; treatment 2 (T2), grower and finisher diets with 50 g DOP/kg; and treatment 3 (T3), grower and finisher diets with 50 and 80 g DOP/kg, respectively. Feed intake and body weight were recorded to calculate weight gain and feed conversion ratio (FCR). Fatty acid (FA) composition, oxidative stability, pH at 24 h post-mortem (pH24), color properties, cooking loss, and tenderness (as shear force) were determined in the breast muscle obtained from 2 broiler chickens/replicate pen of each treatment at d 42. The FCR was greater in T2 and T3 compared to C (P = 0.013) during the grower phase. During the finisher phase, FCR was greater in T3 when compared to C (P = 0.014), and to T1 and T2 (P = 0.031). The addition of DOP increased 18:1n-9 and total monounsaturated FA (P

Effects of partial substitution of barley with maize and beet pulp (BP) on animal performance, rumen fermentation and rumen microbial populations were evaluated in thirty-nine newly weaned calves transitioned from a milk and pasture regime to a high-concentrate ration. Diets were: a barley-based growing diet (C); and two diets in which barley was partially replaced with maize and 10% BP (BP10) or 22% BP (BP22) on as fed basis. Wheat straw was offered ad libitum in all cases. Three adaptation protocols were followed: in Protocol 1 animals were abruptly shifted to the C diet, whereas calves in Protocols 2 and 3 were gradually adapted and received diets BP10 and BP22, respectively, for 10d; thereafter a 50:50 mixture of their diet and diet C until day 14, and finally, from day 15, diet C. All animals were slaughtered at a target live weight (LW) of ca. 500 kg. The experiment had then three phases (Ph): Ph1 (0-10d), Ph2 (11-14d) and Ph3 (15d-slaughter). Concentrate intake and proportion of straw in the diet were affected (P 0.05) among adaptation protocols. Daily rumen pH, and concentrations of lactate and volatile fatty acids were not affected by protocol. At the end of the trial, protozoa persisted in the rumen of all calves with an average concentration of 5.89 log cells/mL. Diversity dropped throughout the study; most protozoa belonged to genera Entodinium (97.5%) and Isotricha (1.7%), with minor presence of Dasytricha (0.05%), Epidinium (0.43%) and Subfamily Diplodiniinae (0.23%). Adaptation protocol had no effect on rumen bacterial population or diversity; however, both were affected by day of sampling indicating a shift in bacterial community in response to the concentrate inclusion. Although diversity dropped with concentrate inclusion, there was an increase after d10. In conclusion, the application of different protocols to adapt beef cattle to high-concentrate diets had no effect on animal performance and rumen fermentation which were not negatively affected by the abrupt transition to the high-concentrate diet. This suggests that calves might cope with those feeding conditions probably due to the microbial adaptions to a new rumen environment.

There is an increasing interest in on-farm testing of a variety of materials, from soils to materials produced or utilized on the farm, including manure. Among the issues to consider are selection of constituents of interest, e.g., fiber and protein in forages versus inorganic-and organic-N and P in manures; the nature of the testing, e.g., conventionally based assays using solutions or test strips versus portable instruments; the potential advantages or disadvantages of on-farm versus conventional laboratory testing, such as speed, timeliness, waste generation, and cost. The availability of on-farm testing methods varies greatly with both the media in question and the analyte of interest. For example, for manures several quick tests exist for the determination of total ammoniacal N (TAN) which can be quite accurate ( R 2 of .9 or better versus laboratory determinations), fast and reasonably inexpensive, while no such methods exist for the determination of organic-N in the same samples. No quick test has been found satisfactory for the determination of P or K in dairy or poultry manures, although excellent results have been obtained for swine manure. Similarly, soil test kits have existed for years for determining N, P and K, but no such test exists for determining soil C content (organic or inorganic), and no inexpensive method exists for forage quality determinations (fiber, protein, digestibility). Spectroscopic methods such as near-and mid-infrared spectroscopy have found increasing use in the laboratory for the rapid analysis of a wide variety of products including feeds, manures and soils and offer great potential for on-farm determinations. This paper discusses the present state, and future potential, of methods suitable for on-farm testing of the wide variety of materials from soils to those materials utilized or produced on a farm, with emphasis on manures and soils and spectroscopic methods.

A total of 144 piglets (7.6 ± 1.7 kg) were distributed after weaning into two dietary treatments based (60%) on rice (R) or barley (B), with 18 replicates of 4 animals per treatment. On day 14 after weaning, 96 animals (48 from each diet) were reallocated in 32 pens, and assigned to a diet of the same cereal (R or B), either containing (high fibre, HF) or not (low fibre, LF) 4% of wheat bran (WB) and 2% of sugarbeet pulp (SBP), in a 2 × 2 factorial design until day 35 after weaning. No significant differences were observed on the productive performance between experimental treatments in the first period. In the second period, the piglets fed on R diet ate more (785 vs. 677 g/day, P = 0.03) and tended (P = 0.067) to have a higher final body weight (19.6 vs. 18.5 kg) compared to animals fed on diet B. Fibre supplementation did not affect performance. Both, B and HF diets reduced (P

Sixteen West African dwarf goats weighing 5.0–5.6 kg were used in an experiment that lasted 112 days to investigate the utilization of citrus pulp based diets and E. cyclocarpum . A control diet which contained 88.5% dried brewers' grains (DBG) and other three experimental diets in which DBG was replaced with dried citrus pulp (DCP) at 25, 50 and 75% levels, respectively constituted the four treatments. The goats were divided into four groups of four animals each to balance for variation in live weight before they were assigned to the four different experimental diets. Significant differences ( P P P P P IU/L ) at 75% level of citrus pulp. Therefore, the efficient utilization of citrus pulp and E. cyclocarpum by WAD goats was attained at the 50% level of inclusion in the diets.

The aim of this work was to evaluate the influence of a coarse ground cereal and two fibrous ingredients incorporated in the diet on the physicochemical properties of digesta and productive parameters of pigs during the first stage of the growing period. A total of 96 pigs (initial body weight, BW, 15 kg) were distributed into four experimental treatments: the control diet (CT) consisted of corn, barley and soybean meal milled to pass through a 2.5 mm screen; the coarse corn diet (CC) was prepared by milling the corn to a coarser particle size (4.0 mm screen); the sugar beet pulp diet (SBP) and the wheat bran diet (WB) were prepared by replacing some of the corn for sugar beet pulp (80 g/kg) or wheat bran (100 g/kg) respectively, in order to contain a higher amount of non-starch polysaccharides (NSP). Three experimental periods were considered (7, 21 and 42 days) during which body weight (BW) and voluntary feed intake were assessed. At the end of each period eight animals per diet were slaughtered. Weight of the gastrointestinal tract and its compartments (full and empty) was recorded and the contents were sampled. Digesta samples were analysed for water concentration, water retention capacity (WRC), ammonia and short-chain fatty acids concentration (SCFA). Histological study of the proximal colon tissues was also performed. In general, the different parameters evaluated showed differences between the experimental periods, but few interactions were recorded. Animals fed CC, SBP and WB diets presented a lower feed intake (P ≤ 0.009) compared to CT fed animals. Compared to the control diet, coarse grinding of corn provoked an increase in the colonic digesta content (P = 0.032). Similarly, animals fed the SBP diet compared to CT animals, showed an increase in the contents (P = 0.009) of hindgut, and in the concentration of water in the digesta (P ≤ 0.011). Compared to CT diet the SBP diet lowered the ammonia concentration in the hindgut contents (P ≤ 0.045) and increased the concentration of SCFA in the distal colon (P ≤ 0.025). Animals fed the SBP diet also showed a lower number of lymphoid nodes in the colonic mucosa compared to the other diets (P ≤ 0.043). Minor modifications were observed associated with the incorporation of wheat bran in the diet, but colonic water from WB fed animals showed a tendency to increase cytolytic capacity. The results confirm major changes in the voluntary intake and physicochemical properties of digesta as affected by the incorporation in the diet of a fibrous ingredient or coarse grinding of cereals.

At all times prior to arrival at the slaughter plant, pigs may experience stress from a range of on-farm handling practices. The quality of the design of the loading facilities and of the handling procedures plays a key role in determining the effects of the farm on pig response to preslaughter stress, as it may contribute to improve to reduce the load time, the staff workload and stress in pigs. Poor handling management will impair pigs' movement during loading, leading to rougher handling and stressful experiences, and ultimately reduced welfare. Thus, this paper overviews the effects of on-farm handling management factors during loading that may influence the response of pigs to pre-slaughter stress. In addition, this paper provides recommendations on how to sort and move pigs to the loading dock and into the truck. Handling practices (tools, group size, use of shipping pens, mixing) and physical features of the barn, such as light and sound, and alley and exit design (length, width and shape) will be examined. The design of the loading dock will also be discussed, in regards to the ramp design (bedding, cleat spacing and angle) and its alternatives.

Livestock genomics has gone through a paradigm shift since the advent of genome sequencing that includes Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS), Whole Genome Predictions (WGP) and Genomic Selection (GS). Beginning with a brief review of current progress and challenges in livestock GWAS, WGP and GS, opportunities for next generation methods are introduced that unravel the underlying systems genetics of complex traits and provide biologically meaningful and accurate predictions. Genome-Wide Epistasis Association (GWEA) and Weighted Interaction SNP Hub (WISH) network methods are introduced here to unravel complex trait genetics. These methods effectively address the problems of GWAS that have no ability to model and analyze genome-wide genetic interactions and thus do not capture any epistatic variance that could explain part of the missing heritability. Further, the Systems genomic BLUP (sgBLUP) prediction method is introduced in this paper as a next generation WGP or GS tool that can account for and differentiate SNPs with known biological roles in the phenotypic or disease outcomes and potentially increase the accuracy of prediction. It is emphasized that tools that link genetic variants to their functions, pathways and other biological roles will become even more important in the future. These tools include FunctSNP, Postgwas and NCBI2R which are briefly discussed. Genome-Wide Gene Expression (Transcriptomics) analyses using RNAseq technology are briefly discussed with some examples including results from our own pig experiments. In the last part of this review, systems genetics and systems biology approaches are introduced that involve joint modeling and analyses of multi-omics data types from genomics through transcriptomics (microarray and RNAseq), metabolomics to proteomics. It is shown using published studies that these systems approaches are valuable and powerful compared to stand-alone genomic methods in identifying key causal and highly predictive genetic variants for complex traits as well as in building up complex genetic regulatory networks. In all sections, some applications of next generation/-omics methods in livestock species (e.g. feed efficiency, growth, weight gain, fertility and disease resistance in cattle, pigs and sheep) are provided with references to relevant software and tools. In conclusion, this paper reviewed the current progress, lessons and challenges in livestock genomics and its ongoing transition to and opportunities for integrative systems genetics and systems biology in animal and veterinary sciences. Most of these integrative systems genetics and systems biology tools and methods presented here are equally applicable to plant and human genetics and systems biology.

This paper reviews the use of information from animal-based monitoring systems, management information systems (MIS) and decision support systems (DSS) in pig production. As technology evolves, more and new types of data can be automatically collected. This increases the pace at which new systems are being developed. The collected data are processed into information, which should be used at the herd level. As these systems are being developed, there is a need to evaluate the value of the information provided to the user. In this review, the concepts of data and information are first described as well as the factors influencing the value of information, e.g. measuring devices and data/information processing. Then, after presenting the technologies and recordings for obtaining data used in the studies included in this paper, the value of information of the systems is reviewed according to their expected benefits in terms of production and management, animal health and welfare, and economical impact. The aim and value of DSS and other MIS are thereafter reviewed. Few studies have evaluated the economical benefits of using technologies to obtain new information, in terms of the number of piglets or the economical value. To quantify the value of information, it is suggested to develop a model frame with a detailed level of information, which allows one to estimate the value of including or excluding one piece of information. A more precise quantification of the value, and benefits, of information can in the future assist the development of more focused systems, in which implementation may be facilitated by reducing the uncertainty of the payback period.

Lameness in both dairy and beef cattle is a major welfare and economic problem. It results in milk yield reduction, reduced feed intake, weight loss, reduced fertility, and premature culling of affected animals. There is a wide range of infectious agents that are associated with lameness problems in cattle. Both systemic as well as localized infections may cause animals to have problems to move in a natural way. In particular, digital dermatitis (DD) is currently considered a leading cause of severe epidemic lameness in dairy herds, giving rise to major economic losses. This disease was first described in the seventies in Italy after which it has been recorded in different parts of the world with a large variation in prevalence. Surprisingly, despite the huge number of papers that are published regarding this disease, its pathogenesis is still not fully elucidated. Many studies have shown that Treponema spp. play a decisive role in the establishment of the disease, although it is not yet fully clear how exactly an infection with these germs leads to the very typical skin lesions. Some papers emphasized that similar complex microbial communities can be isolated from DD lesions in cows and periodontitis lesions in humans, giving rise to speculations about similarities in the typical inflammatory reaction provoked by an infection by these bacteria. Moreover, DD is considered a multifactorial disease, with besides infectious, also environmental, managerial and individual-animal factors likely playing a decisive role in its pathogenesis. These different contributing factors will be critically discussed in the present paper mainly aiming to come a step closer towards the full elucidation of the pathogenesis of this stubborn infectious disease.

Pastoralism is not only a livestock-based livelihood strategy but also a way of life with socio-cultural norms and values, and indigenous knowledge revolving around livestock. Pastoral systems in Africa are facing demographic, economic, socio-political and climatic pressures which are driving many pastoralists into non-livestock based livelihood strategies. The changing contexts in which pastoralists operate raise the issue of the sustainability of pastoral systems in dryland Africa. The specific objectives of this paper are: (i) to identify the challenges of assessing the sustainability of pastoral systems with focus on East and West Africa; (ii) to propose criteria and indicators for sustainability assessment of pastoral systems; and (iii) to demonstrate the diversity of pastoral systems by elaborating on features in East and West Africa with case studies from pastoral communities in both regions, namely Samburu in Kenya and Fakara in Niger. All these objectives are to contribute to the debates on the sustainability of pastoralism. Assessing sustainability of pastoral systems is challenging and complex in view of different aspects that should be addressed over time and at different scales. The main challenges addressed in this paper include purpose and interpretation of sustainability, time dimension and scale, diversity of pastoral systems, inter-relatedness of assessment criteria, comprehensiveness and measurability of indicators. To illustrate the challenges, we proposed a number of criteria based on key systems' components of production, stability, efficiency and resilience. For each criterion, a number of indicators were proposed. The criteria we suggested are inter-related and should not be considered in isolation bearing in mind that sustainability is a composite attribute that integrates several variables. In terms of sustainability of pastoral systems in East and West Africa, the key issues are mobility, livestock diversity, livelihood diversification options, and preservation of pastoral tradition and indigenous knowledge. The degree with which these issues are constraining pastoral production and economy will largely shape the trajectory of sustainability of different pastoral systems in both regions.

Livestock plays an important role in the livelihoods of millions of poor smallholders within developing countries. Although it has been recognized that smallholders could benefit from genetic improvement strategies (breeding programmes), the challenges associated with establishing genetic improvement strategies for smallholder systems are considerable, resulting in limited successes to date. This paper considers the potential role of marker-based selection to genetic improvement strategies for smallholder production systems, taking into account the socio-economic, infrastructural and institutional issues. The paper stresses that no genetic improvement strategy, with or without the use of markers, is likely to succeed unless a systems approach is applied and other system constraints are met. The marker-based selection technologies discussed in this paper include marker- and gene-assisted selection, marker-assisted introgression and genomic selection. The issues addressed include the priorities of marker-based selection against other genetic improvement strategies, the potential benefits of these technologies to smallholder producers, and conditions under which marker-based selection will most likely succeed in smallholder production systems. We suggest that, of these marker-based selection technologies, marker-assisted introgression and the emerging technology of genomic selection appear to offer the most promise to smallholders, although this is yet to be clearly demonstrated. In relation to genomic selection, developing countries should maintain a ‘watching brief’ on this technology, but simultaneously act now so that they can capitalize on this technology if and when it becomes applicable in the future.

Based on individual cow live weight gain, feeding strategies were designed for individual feeding of dairy cows in loose-housing systems, and examined in a four-year production trial including 115 Danish Red (DR), 91 Danish Holstein (DH), and 93 Danish Jersey (DJ). The objective of the present paper was to examine the milk yield obtained in response to three feeding strategies. The interrelationship between feed intake and live weight changes is presented in a companion paper. Cows were stalled in a loose-housing system based on automatic milking, automatic recording of feed intake and automatic weighing of the cows. All cows had 3 kg of individually separately offered concentrate (ISC) in addition to a mixed ration (MR). Cows were either allowed a medium energy MR during whole lactation (strategy MR1) or a high energy MR during early lactation, which was reduced to a low energy MR either early or late (strategy MR2-E and MR2-L). The early and late changes were defined as a live weight gain after live weight minimum at 15 and 35 kg, respectively, for DR/DH and 11 and 25 kg, respectively, for DJ. When MR energy concentration was changed, cows on the MR2 strategies were offered 3 kg per day of extra concentrate. The total allowance of 6 kg ISC was stepwise reduced to 3 kg per day as live weight continued to increase until 50 and 35 kg for DR/DH and DJ, respectively. Compared to feeding the MR1 strategy, the analysis showed that feeding the MR2 strategies did not significantly affect milk yield within primiparous DR and DH or within any DJ, as total lactation feed energy intake within these groups of cows was not significantly affected by the feeding strategy. Results obtained for multiparous DH showed that it is possible to increase milk yield without reducing the milk:feed ratio, when MR2 strategies were applied compared to the MR1 strategy. Feeding high energy rations during early lactation caused a higher peak feed energy intake within multiparous cows of DH and DR, but only multiparous DH obtained higher peak ECM yield in response to higher feed energy intake in early lactation. Across breed the results suggested that cows offered the MR2-E strategy might obtain higher lactation ECM yield compared to cows offered the MR2-L strategy due to a higher ECM yield persistency obtained by cows offered the MR2-E strategy. Results on feed intake and live weight changes presented in a companion paper indicated, that cows offered the MR2 strategies obtained a lower extent of mobilization compared to cows offered the MR1 strategy, and feeding the MR2-E strategy significantly increased duration of the mobilization period, which might have increased MR2-E cows' ability to maintain a high milk production during mid lactation.

Throughout human history, livestock producers have relied on a vibrant international exchange of genetic resources to achieve improvements in the quality and productivity of their animals. In recent years, however, some observers have argued that changes in the legal, technological, and economic environment now imply that international exchanges of animal genetic resources (AnGR) systematically benefit rich countries at the expense of poor countries. It is argued that international flows of AnGR are displacing the indigenous animal genetic resources of developing countries, and also that the genetic wealth of the developing world is being expropriated by rich countries. In reaction, there have been growing calls for limitations and/or barriers to the exchange of animal genetic resources. These discussions, however, seem to be based on limited information about the magnitude and direction of current trade flows in AnGR. This paper offers an analysis of AnGR trade flows from 1990 to 2005. The paper draws on national-level data from 150 countries that reported information to the United Nations Statistics Division. Three major trade categories were evaluated: live cattle and pigs for breeding, and cattle semen. Over the period studied, Europe and North America were the primary exporters of genetic resources for the species evaluated. OECD countries accounted for 98.7, 92.5, and 95% of cattle semen, live cattle, and swine exports in 2005, respectively. In evaluating the direction of trade between developed (North) and developing (South) countries, North–North trade had the largest magnitude, followed by North–South, South–South, and South–North. The data do not support the notion that Southern genetic resources are being used on a large scale in the North. We believe that importation from South to North is limited by the vast discrepancies in production efficiency and production systems between countries in the North and South. Given the low volume of South–North exchange, it seems doubtful that sufficient revenues could be acquired through a “benefit-sharing mechanism” to have any substantial impact on in situ or ex situ conservation efforts, or to generate benefits for poor livestock keepers in developing countries. We question whether global agreements or restrictions on trade will achieve the desired goal of conserving rare breeds and threatened genetic resources. We also doubt whether these agreements will succeed in improving the well-being of the poor. We suggest that resources instead be urgently employed for conservation and that more direct measures should be taken to aid poor farmers, ranchers, and herders in their efforts to conserve genetic resources.

The paper discusses central moral issues raised by the applications of advanced biotechnology to animal agriculture and introduces the major ethical concepts and principles of animal bioethics. It is argued that biotechnology enables human beings to transform animals according to human needs, which blurs the boundary between humans and non-human animals in moral and biological sense. The more humans change animals, the more responsible humans are for the welfare of the animals and the greater their moral obligations. The paper introduces the main ethical approaches to animal welfare, traces the philosophical roots of animal ethics in the Judeo-Christian tradition and discusses the views of classical and contemporary ethicists such as Kant, Bentham, Mill, Peter Singer and Tom Regan. The paper explores the concept of animal welfare, suffering and rights, and the values behind Animal Liberation. Special attention is given to the animal welfare issues posed by cloning, genetic engineering and patenting of living organism. For each technology, actual or potential risks to animal welfare are identified and their moral implications are outlined. It is noted that the traditional moral principles of animal welfare, animal interests and animal rights are inadequate as means for evaluating the morality of certain advanced technologies because the technologies can change the animals in profound ways that make animal awareness too limited to give rise to claims about welfare, interests or rights. The principle of animal integrity is endorsed as an alternative better suited for evaluating the morality of advanced biotechnology.

The basic problemwith the approach we adopted in the paper of Jardim et al. (2013) is that we found the denominator of the reported ratio Eq. (17)/Eq. (18) by assuming Lc 1⁄4ME=Mm, Mm 1⁄4 ðFHPþAÞ=km, and km 1⁄4 0:35ME=GEþ0:503. Nonetheless, the metabolizability of the diet (q1⁄4ME=GE) is lower than the metabolizability of the diet at maintenance, namely qm, 8 Lc41 (Blaxter and Boyne, 1978). We maintained terms and units here accordingly. In the paper of Jardim et al. (2013), we assumed the gross energy intake as GE1⁄4 18:8F (MJ/day). Therefore, our km values were biased because our qm values were also biased to some extent. By definition, qm is measured at maintenance (Blaxter and Boyne, 1978): qm 1⁄4MEm=GEm. MEm and GEm are the respective metabolizable and gross energy intake rates at maintenance, and MEm meets Mm, i.e., MEm=Mm 1⁄4 1. Nonetheless, let us define the dry matter intake measured at maintenance as Fm (kg/day), consequently, GEm 1⁄4 18:8Fm. If Mm 1⁄4ME=Lc, Mm 1⁄4 ðFHPþAÞ=km, km 1⁄4 0:35MEm=GEmþ0:503, and Mm 1⁄4MEm, then after algebraically isolating ME and taking only its positive root and simplifying constants, we have a new Eq. (18) based on the correct definition of qm: ME1⁄4 26:9Fmð 0:503Lcþð0:253Lc þ1:4Lc ðFHPþAÞ=ð18:8FmÞÞÞ: ð18Þ

EWEN (EuropeanWorkshop on Equine Nutrition) is a biannual congress focused on equine nutrition. About 100 delegates from Europe, but also from overseas, are attending this congress held every second year. The aim of the EWEN congresses is to improve our knowledge in the field of nutrition and nutrition physiology of horses, to present the latest research results and to discuss relevant topics related to equine nutrition. The first EWEN congress was held in Dijon 2002. Thus, the EWEN 2014 congress held in Leipzig, Germany (September 29th to October 2nd 2014), was the 7th EWEN congress. The meeting was hosted by Ingrid Vervuert and Manfred Coenen from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Leipzig, Germany. The overall theme of the 7th EWEN conference was “The impact of nutrition on metabolism” which provides a close link between nutrition and health in the equine. This special issue of Livestock Science contains 14 of the papers presented in the 7th EWEN congress. This is the first time that the papers presented at a EWEN congress are published as a special issue of a peer-reviewed scientific journal. By choosing this way of publishing we hope that the scientific impact of the congress can be increased, and that the papers can be more easily reached by equine nutritionists and scientist worldwide.

Stakeholders’ involvement is key to breeding programs’ success. The identification of stakeholders, their categories, respective role and weight in the overall process therefore constitutes a crucial aspect of animal breeding. The objective of this paper is to show how the different international experts in breeding perceive the participation of stakeholders and their collaboration in the sustainable management of cattle-breeding programs in developing countries. This study uses the Delphi method to collect experts’ opinions on stakeholders’ involvement in breeding scheme design. In a first round, experts are asked to list all potential stakeholders and to score them on a scale from 1 to 5 according to the perceived importance of roles assigned to them. In a second round, experts were asked to confirm or modify their first notes for each proposal, by taking into account the opinion of the other experts. In the first and second rounds, 17 and 12 experts answered our questionnaires respectively. Two types of analyses were first realized, i.e., a statistical analysis, which evaluated the consensus and the divergence between experts, and a textual analysis, which evaluated the arguments and the roles. Then a factorial correspondence analysis was conducted to propose a typology of stakeholders according to their roles. In the first round, the State representatives, researchers and breeders were frequently mentioned, but the experts variably perceived the importance given to them individually. In the second round, the experts confirmed the need to involve these stakeholders. Between the two rounds, a convergence of views is observed on this implication, despite a persisting divergence on the assigned roles and their relative importance. This diversity of views may have reflected a diversity of origins and professions of responding experts. Development professionals considered the State as the main actor, while researchers considered the breeders and researchers. Expressed through a typological analysis, this divergence of experts’ perception of roles suggests three groups of actors playing main roles. Group 1 corresponds to research, which role is to provide a scientific support for genetic and economic evaluation, as well as technological development. Group 2, composed of State, NGOs and funding institutions, covers roles in financing, subsidizing and capacity building. Group 3, including farmers and their organizations, is responsible of the breeding program management, genetic progress and breed conservation. The proposed typology of actors according to their role may intervene as a basis of discussion, helping in the identification of fruitful agreements beyond the perspective of one sole expert in charge of the designing of a breeding program. It suggests an organization that federates these groups of actors and defines the intervention framework and the activities of the breeding program.

According to the literature, vertical and horizontal relationships are of key importance to farmer performance. However, most studies have examined these relationships using distinct models. This paper contributes with new insights to the supply chain management and network theories by using a single model to analyse how horizontal relationships impact on vertical relationships and how these jointly affect the performance of Brazilian pig farmers. Data were obtained from 269 farmers delivering pigs through contracts and spot markets in southern Brazil. The results demonstrate that both vertical and horizontal relationships can improve farmer performance. Moreover, horizontal relationships positively influence vertical relationships by improving the exchange of information between farmers and buyers. Furthermore, the findings suggest that these relationships are sensitive to the context (spot market or contracted production) in which the transactions are executed. The study draws relevant management implications for pig farmers, buyers and farmer associations.

The objective of this paper is to review the existing literature regarding the advantages and disadvantages that different weaning practices have on the stress responses and productivity of water buffalo in different breeding systems. On farms where water buffalo are bred for milk production, early weaning favors the amount of milk produced, reduces breeding costs and improves the reproductive rate. However, this early separation may be associated with the restriction of colostrum and essential nutrients for water buffalo calves, which cannot be replaced by the use of milk replacers made for cattle. Consequently, colostrum restriction can lead to an increase in disease susceptibility, high mortality rates and compromises future performance. In addition, mothers show a more temperamental behavior, making milk ejection difficult due to the anatomical characteristics of the udder in this species. On the other hand, a continuous suckling system may be more beneficial to weight, immune status, and welfare of calves but may cause economic losses due to delayed postpartum estrus. The results in terms of susceptibility to stress are contradictory; some authors conclude that separation between mother and calves does not generate stress, as long as weaning is carried out within the first hours or days after birth (3–6 days old) after colostrum intake, compared to weaning at 45 and 90 days. However, these calves have greater difficulty in learning to eat on their own and show an increase in abnormal behaviors. The most commonly utilized form of weaning is abrupt. Behavioral and physiological indicators suggest that abrupt weaning is stressful for both the mother and the offspring. The protocols for performing gradual weaning seem to offer advantages in reducing stress in buffalo compared to abrupt weaning. On buffalo farms, calf management is one of the critical points of breeding, therefore, more studies are required to improve current breeding systems and promote the welfare of water buffalo calves.

This paper describes a choice experiment (CE) administered to explore farmer preferences for conservation agreements to conserve rare breeds among a sample of 174 respondents in Transylvania (Romania). The study site was chosen due to the prevalence of small-scale and extensive farm systems threatened by a changing policy environment that is increasing the scale and intensity of production units. Agreement attributes included length of conservation contract (5 or 10 years); scheme structure (community or individual managed conservation programme), and scheme support (application assistance or farm advisory support). A monetary attribute that reflects compensation for scheme participation allows the assessment of farmers’ willingness to accept (WTA) for different contracts. Results suggest 89% of respondents would be willing to farm with rare breeds; cattle and sheep being the most popular livestock option; 40% of farmers were reportedly farming with endangered breeds. However, only 8% were likely to qualify for funding support under current requirements. WTA estimates reveal minimum annual compensation values of €167 and €7 per year respectively, for bovine and ovine farmers to consider enrolling in a contract. These values are comparable to Romanian Rural Development Programme (RDP) support offered to farmers keeping rare breeds of €200 and €10 per year for bovine and ovine farmers respectively. Our estimates of scheme uptake, calculated with coefficient values derived from the CE, suggest rare breed conservation contracts are considered attractive by Romanian farmers. Analysis suggests meeting farmer preferences for non-monetary contractual factors will increase participation.

Brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEP) are useful to diagnose neurologic and genetic disorders in cattle but normal parameters and its application to detect changes in hearing are not demonstrated. The aims of this study were to develop a protocol for obtaining BAEP in Holstein calves and to establish the normal parameters of peak latencies, interpeak latencies (IPL) and waveforms of BAEP in this species. Ten male Holstein calves, aged 2.5 months and weighting 90.7 ± 4.0 kg were used. All animals were previously sedated with 0.08 mg/kg xylazine hydrochloride administered intramuscularly. The BAEP analysis was recorded using the IHS SmartEP-ASSR program connected with electrode needles placed on the standardized locations of the animal's head. Monoaurally presented broadband click stimuli (0.1 ms) were used for BAEP stimulation, with contralateral masking of 30 dB SPL. Stimuli were presented at a rate of 35.5 pulses per second (PPS) and evoked responses were collected and averaged 450–1500 times for each sound intensity. Earphones were inserted into the ear canal to present the acoustic stimulus and to attenuate environmental noise. Peak latencies, IPL, waveforms and auditory thresholds were recorded and analyzed in the right ear and were like those described in previous papers in adult male bulls. Auditory thresholds obtained in all animals were 33 ± 1.5 dB SPL. Peak latencies were 1.4 ± 0.07 ms (Peak I), 2.4 ± 0.10 ms (Peak II), 3.3 ± 0.10 ms (Peak III), 4.4 ± 0.19 ms (Peak IV) and 5.6 ± 0.28 ms (Peak V). IPL were 1.9 ± 0.12 ms (IPL I-III), 4.1 ± 0.29 ms (IPL I-V), 2.2 ± 0.19 ms (IPL II-V) and 2.2 ± 0.19 ms (IPL III-V). Brainstem auditory evoked potentials are a minimally-invasive method to evaluate level of audition in Holstein calves. In addition, BAEP is a method that can be applied in young calves and it would work on-farm to select the animals with better conditions.

Numerous Red cattle breeds exist all throughout Europe. Some Red cattle breeds are only used locally in certain regions and are smaller in population size, whereas other Red cattle breeds are used in multiple countries in mainstream production environments. Conservation of local Red breeds is necessary to maintain genetic diversity. Collaboration between local and mainstream Red cattle breeds can increase the genetic potential of the local breed and thereby the success of survival. The aim of this paper was to explore possibilities to increase the genetic potential of local Red cattle breeds by collaboration with a mainstream Red cattle breed, while at the same time conserve the local Red cattle breeds. Three breeds were included in this study; the mainstream Red dairy cattle breed from Denmark, Finland and Sweden (RDC) and two local Red cattle breeds, German Red and White dual-purpose cattle (RDN), and Lithuanian Red (LIR). Each simulation included the RDC breeding program and one local Red breeding program. Simulated time was 30 years, in which the first 20 years were used to build up reference populations and the last 10 years were used to run a genomic selection scheme with varying levels of collaboration between the local and the mainstream breeding program in the different scenarios. The maximum percentage of breeding bulls selected for breeding to the cows in the local breeding program that could originate from the RDC breeding program differed between scenarios, and could be either 0, 20, 50 or 100%. Results show that the maximum rate of genetic gain in the local breeds was reached in the scenarios where maximum 20, 50 or 100% of the breeding bulls could originate from the RDC breeding program. The highest rate of inbreeding was found in the scenario where no RDC bulls were selected in the local breeding programs. However, even with very restricted selection, the breed proportion of the local breeds dropped significantly after ten years of genomic selection. To really conserve a local breed such as RDN or LIR, a different selection strategy is needed.

Genetic improvement programmes should incorporate emerging challenges about environmental concerns into breeding goals. The large volume of pig meat production implies important greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions despite its lower carbon footprint per animal in front of ruminant productions. The different breeding goals considered by swine industry depending on different purebred lines, or line crosses adapted to different market demands and production constraints, could mask the effect of incorporating GHG emissions into selection indexes for improving sow productivity traits in nucleus populations. This paper analysed this effect following a methodological approach consisting in augmenting existing selection indexes derived from profit functions. An index previously described in the literature including litter size at birth, piglet perinatal survival, piglet survival to weaning, age at first conception and weaning to conception interval, was employed. This index was expanded to include GHG emissions calculating the emission intensities per litter, assuming a finished pig market and different scenarios and financial costs of GHG emissions. Results indicated that the inclusion of GHG emissions diminished the economic weight of litter size and piglet survival vs. the age at first conception and the interval weaning to conception, but did not affect significantly the contributions of these traits in the selection indexes. The improvement of sow productivity traits diluted relevantly the GHG emissions per piglet produced, and so, per kg of pork produced. The approach used in this study, despite its limitations in front of bio-economic models, has shown to be a simple and flexible way to analyse the effect of incorporating GHG emissions into existing selection indexes.

This paper forms a part of a series of studies aiming to estimate the costs of abortion in Iranian dairy herds. In previous studies we have determined mastitis as a significant risk factor for abortion. In order to provide a more reliable estimation of the costs associated with abortion in Iranian dairy herds, the risk of a cow getting infected with mastitis needs to be included. Data from 6 commercial herds and 32,191 cows was assigned to 3-weeks in milk (3-WIM) records from 1 to 567 d after calving (1st–27th 3-WIM). The effect of herd, parity, calving season, past incidence of abortion, cumulative FCM yield level (CFCML), past incidence of mastitis in previous 3-WIM periods (EMAS), days in milk (DIM) and their significant 2-way interactions on mastitis in current 3-WIM period (MAS) were evaluated using a logistic regression model. Mastitis rate (MR) in studied herds was on average 28.3%. Results show that herd, parity, EMAS, CFCML, calving season, and lactation stage significantly (P It can be concluded that a risk factor analysis with all significant interactions is more informative than a model without the interactions, especially when making the optimal decision for a cow with given characteristics. Moreover, knowledge on the effect of influential factors on mastitis will be useful when designing mastitis control programs at herd or national level.

Woody rangelands are important forage resources for grazing goats in the Mediterranean basin. Goats are well adapted in these heterogeneous and complex ecosystems due to their particular anatomic characteristics, metabolic efficiency and browsing ability. However, the mechanism of grazing behavior and forage selection in goats is quite complex and depends on several factors. The present study deals with the seasonal changes of chemical composition in the selected forages and ingested diets as well as their effects on milk yield and composition of goats grazing in a Mediterranean woody rangeland. Hand plucked forage samples similar to those consumed by the goats were collected for chemical analysis. The nutritive value of consumed forages, in combination with the different feeding and grazing system per trial period, influenced milk quality and performance. The replacement of feed supplementation with an increase of the contribution of grazing in the rangeland could maintain the milk yield and quality at the late stage of lactation. In addition, this paper focuses on the influence of the chemical composition of selected forages on the diet selection of goats using a modeling approach. The model showed a high interpretative accuracy and explanatory value (R2 = 0.923) and was able to distinguish the goats' most important criteria for selecting among the forage plant species in relation to several factors. The results indicate that the dietary preferences of goats were influenced, not only by the seasonality of nutritive value and availability of forages in the rangeland, but also by the plant origin of each nutrient source. The selection of Quercus frainetto was highly correlated with its NDF content. Herbaceous species, Cistus creticus and other woody species were mainly selected due to their CP content. The ADL content seemed to have the lowest influence of all nutritive variables on the selection among groups of plant species. The modeling approach, apart from the understanding of grazing behavior of goats, offers additional information that can be useful to the shepherds in order to manage more effectively the feeding and grazing system of their goat's flock.

Passive infrared (PIR) detectors are widely used to measure animal activity, which is an increasingly relevant variable for livestock production insofar as activity is an indicator of animal welfare. This paper evaluates the agreement between two animal activity measurement methods: a PIR detector that uses the sensor's digital signal to perform measurements and human observations of activity in a group of 50 weaned piglets on a commercial farm. The location chosen for the sensor allowed for the recording of the main transverse movements with respect to the orientation of the sensor, which maximized its detection capacity. Human observation revealed two types of behavioral activity, feeding (eating or drinking) and playing. Based on the characteristics of both measurement methods, the correlations between PIR detection and human observation of animal activity were strong, with a Spearman's correlation coefficient of 0.90 (p

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is an important tool to evaluate environmental ‘hot spots’ in livestock systems and recommend production improvements. However, it is common for livestock LCA to investigate only a narrow subset of environmental impacts to simplify results for decision-makers, which makes it difficult to fully understand the tradeoffs among environmental impacts and identify the most relevant mitigation options. We completed a systematic review of the livestock LCA literature to better understand the impact categories included and the progress made towards more comprehensive LCA. Our search of publications between 2000 and 2016 identified 173 relevant peer-reviewed papers. Nearly all the publications (98%) included climate change as an impact category and almost one-third of the publications (28%) focused solely on that one category. Biodiversity, ionizing radiation, and particulate matter were the least common categories addressed. Cattle LCA, including dairy or beef, were the livestock species most frequently evaluated. Our analysis shows that while the number of multi-category livestock LCA (LCA with 4 or more impact categories) increased over time, LCA including 1–3 impact categories (which we define as “simplified LCA”) increased at a higher rate than multi-category LCA. Simplified LCA therefore remain the most prevalent in the literature. Publications that included multiple impact categories were better able to identify environmental impact tradeoffs among livestock production systems and management scenarios. To compare results across livestock LCA studies, it is necessary to increase the standardization of system boundaries, functional units, impact frameworks and mandatory inputs. The optional steps of normalization and weighting in the life cycle impact assessment can also help decision-makers prioritize which environmental impacts to address. More work that includes a greater number of impact categories in livestock LCA is sorely needed to more fully understand and to harmonize the communication of the environmental performance of livestock production systems.

The spleen plays a key role in immune regulation. Progesterone (P4) exhibits different immunological effects through binding to different types of receptor. In the present study, splenic samples were obtained at day 16 of non-pregnancy and days 13, 16, and 25 of pregnancy to study the expression of P4 receptor (PGR) and P4-induced blocking factor (PIBF) in ewes through quantitative real-time PCR, Western blot and immunohistochemistry analysis. Our results showed that the relative expression levels of PGR and PIBF mRNA increased from day 13–16 in pregnant ewes, but decreased from day 16–25, and the 26 kDa isoform of PGR and the 22 kDa variant of PIBF were down-regulated in the spleens at day 25 of pregnancy compared with expression at day 16 of the oestrous cycle and days 13 and 16 of pregnancy. The immunohistochemistry test results confirmed that PGR and PIBF proteins were localized in the cytoplasm of cells in the capsule, trabeculae and splenic cords. This paper reports for the first time that the 26 kDa isoform of PGR and the 22 kDa variant of PIBF were down-regulated during early pregnancy, which may be essential for normal pregnancy in ewes.

Although mountain sheep systems suffer from climatic and environmental handicaps that constrain productivity and economic viability, they have an important economic role, maintain habitats and species of high nature conservation value and support the provision of a range of ecosystem services of benefit to society. Using Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) in extensive mountain sheep systems could bring benefits for animal performance, economical performance and labour. This paper presents results from a 3 year experiment where PLF principles were implemented on an extensive mountain sheep farm and an assessment made of whether or not such an approach could benefit more marginal sheep systems. A 900 ewe flock (600 Scottish Blackface ewes, 300 Lleyn ewes) was divided equally into two separate systems, one where the flock was managed conventionally (CON) at group level, and the other where the individuals in the flock were subjected to a PLF management protocol where electronic weighing, recording and drafting equipment were used, linked to the electronic identification (EID) tags of the animals. Two main management strategies were compared and contrasted; one relating to winter feeding of the pregnant ewes, the other relating to anthelmintic treatment of lambs during the summer. Yearly labour profiles were created by measuring the time spent doing individual tasks associated with the two management systems. Net margins (£/ewe) were calculated for the two systems. Additionally, the yearly labour profiles were scaled-up using commercial data to quantify potential labour savings on more traditionally managed mountain farms if PLF principles were adopted. Analyses indicated that the two different management systems did not result in any significant difference in terms of ewe weights, mid-pregnancy scanning figures, ewe and lamb mortality rates, or lamb weight post-weaning. However, the proportion of lambs needing anthelmintic treatment was significantly reduced by 40% between the CON and the PLF, resulting in a reduction of 46% in the amount of anthelmintic used. Over a whole year, the total amount of labour required in the PLF management system was reduced by 36%. Across the 3 years, the net margin for the two systems showed an average difference of £3/ewe higher in the PLF. For a more traditional farm embracing a PLF approach, analyses suggested labour reduction of 19%, equating to £1.60/ewe savings. This study shows that it is beneficial for farmers to consider managing a mountain ewe flock at an individual rather than at flock or batch level using PLF technology.

The effect of vitamin E supplementation on the growth performance, carcass traits, meat quality, and immune response of male broiler chickens was studied using a meta-analysis. The database was consisted of 51 scientific papers published in peer-reviewed journals. The dependent variables for meta-analysis included final body weight, average daily gain, daily feed intake, feed conversion ratio, vitamin E concentration in the muscle, tissue polyunsaturated fatty acid concentration, lipid peroxidation value, post mortem pH, heterophil to lymphocyte ratio, and total immunoglobulins. Linear mixed models were used to analyze the data. Vitamin E supplementation did not influence growth performance, as the estimated slopes were not different from zero, with P-values equal to 0.92 for final body weight, 0.81 for average daily gain, 0.31 for daily feed intake, and 0.83 for feed conversion ratio. Dietary vitamin E supplementation increased the vitamin E content in the muscle (P = 0.001), did not change the polyunsaturated fatty acid concentration, and decreased the lipid peroxidation (P = 0.01). The immune response was improved, the heterophil to lymphocyte ratio was constant, and the total immunoglobulins were increased (P = 0.037) by dietary vitamin E supplementation. With regard to broiler chicken performance, there seemed to be no relationship between dietary vitamin E supplementation and growth performance. There is ample indication that meat quality and immune response could be improved by dietary vitamin E supplementation.

The need to produce safe food products for an ever-growing world population while reducing the impact on climate change makes it necessary for the farm business to combine productivity and sustainability. As more efficient and sustainable production systems need to be developed for this purpose, the creation of new instruments that allow the management of farms and provide information to contribute to their evolution and improvement becomes more relevant. The main goal of this paper is to assess a model to be used as a decision-making tool in a meat sheep cooperative group in southwest Spain. The methodology is structured in three stages: (i) creation of a model, (ii) identification of representative farms and (iii) model assessment. The model is applied to representative farms obtained from a cluster analysis. A simulation of the model is performed taking into account profitability variables under different stocking rate and weather scenarios. The outcomes of the model show that farmers may try to maximize the profitability per hectare adjusting their stoking rate to average weather scenarios. In a climate change framework this model could be a useful tool to assess extensive sheep farms, as it might contribute to the design of sustainable management strategies.

A meta-analysis of 52 peer-reviewed papers was conducted to investigate the effects of ionophores (IOP) supplementation on the performance and ruminal fermentation of lactating dairy cows. We used random-effects models to examine the raw mean difference (RMD) between the IOP group (diets with IOP) and the control group (diets with no additives), weighed by inverse of the variance. We also evaluated the effects of the covariates IPO supplementation level dose groups ( 25 mg/kg dry matter (DM) diet), IOP type (monensin or lasalocid), feeding system (total mixed ration or pasture) and days in milk (DIM) on RMD, by meta-regression and subgroup analysis. Overall, IOP supplementation (21.3 ± 8.3 mg/kg DM) reduced DM intake (DMI; RMD = - 0.39 ± 0.22 kg/d; P N (P = 0.63) and acetate concentrations (P = 0.08); however it enhanced the rumen concentration of propionate (P

Horse conformation has been proposed as an indirect indicator of performance, since their genetic correlations are often positive and high. In Pura Raza Espanol (PRE) horses, the selection of conformation traits more related to functionality and performance allows a pre-selection of animals and contributes towards saving costs and increasing the genetic progress. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the predictability of 16 conformation traits (14 body measurements and 2 linear conformation traits) in adult PRE horses, focusing on the conformation traits of foals. The dataset included 155,716 records (82,408 young and 73,308 adult horses) with conformation traits from 142,244 different horses, aged between 1-36 years old. Animals between 1-3 years old were included in the ‘young’ group and older animals in the ‘adult’ group. A univariate General Linear Model procedure followed by a Tukey-post-hoc test were used to assess the statistical significance of non-genetic effects. Heritability values were estimated univariately. The fitted models included breeder, age and inbreeding (F) as covariates, and sex and coat colour as fixed effects. Coat colour and F were significant for 75% and 87.5% of the traits analysed, respectively; and the other effects analysed were significant for all the conformation traits. Heritability values ranged between 0.178±0.0063 and 0.795±0.0098 in young horses, and between 0.273±0.0038 and 0.894±0.0007 in adult horses. The genetic correlations of the conformation traits between young and adult horses were above 0.75 for 93.75% of the conformation traits analysed, which confirms the efficiency of pre-selection in young horses based on conformation features to predict their adult performance.

The aim of this paper is to develop a new specific algorithm (fat- and protein-corrected milk calculation) for dairy goat to be used in life-cycle assessment (LCA) studies. Though the contribution of goat milk to world milk production ranks third, the literature does not report any specific correction for goat's milk. Using the available bibliographic data, a multiple regression was performed that allowed obtaining the relationship between the energy content (EC) and the fat (FC) and protein content (PC) of dairy goat milk. The multiple regression resulting from the 3 variables analyzed through the data drawn from the literature was significant (R2= 0.99; p ≤ 0.001). The equation resulting from the correlation was used to develop algorithms for the calculation of fat- and protein-corrected milk (FPCM) at specific FC and PC. Since FC and PC are very different depending on the goat breed two different groups have been defined: i) goat breeds with FC in milk below 4% (FCB4), and ii) goat breeds with FC in milk above 4% (FCA4). The EC found for the FCB4 group (FC = 3.70 and PC = 3.27) was 728.11 kcal kg−1, while that of the FCA4 group (FC = 4.92 and PC = 3.61) was 860.69 kcal kg−1. After substituting the EC values obtained before, the resulting FPCM equations to calculate specific FC and PC by unit of mass (kg of milk = M), according to each group, are shown below: FCB4 group = FPCM (FC = 3.70, PC = 3.27) = M * [(0.12 * FC + 0.10 * PC + 0.23)]; FCA4 group = FPCM (FC = 4.92, PC = 3.61) = M * [(0.10 * FC + 0.08 * PC + 0.20)]. Finally, the variation between the FPCM values calculated using the specific equation obtained in this study for goats and those previously published (for sheep or modifications made from dairy cattle) was evaluated; in FCB4 group the differences varied between (-) 32% and (+) 14% and in FCA4 group between (-) 21% and (+) 35%. Values are overestimated if sheep's FPCM calculations are used (because sheep milk has higher fat content than goat milk) and underestimated if dairy cattle's FPCM calculations are used (because cow milk has lower fat content than goat milk). In conclusion, the results found in the present study show the need to use a specific FPCM formulation in the LCA equation for goat's milk. Unión Europea, Junta de Andalucía GOP21-GR-16-0016

In this paper, we examine preferences for flooring properties that enhance animal welfare in dairy cattle barns among a sample of Swedish dairy farmers. The findings reveal that respondents differ in their choice of flooring properties that improve farm animal welfare. The findings also show that they consider low-slip risk and the softness of floors to be the most important properties. Findings from a latent variable model revealed that floor packaging and installation, workability and animal welfare are important factors that explain the respondents’ preferences for different types of floors. The findings demonstrate that dairy farmers who prefer soft, low-slip and less abrasive floors are influenced by the way the floors are incorporated and installed into the building design, the ease with which other tasks can be performed after installing the flooring and the welfare that the specific flooring provides for the animals. The findings contribute relevant insights that are needed for the promotion and adoption of farm management practices that improve animal welfare.

This paper evaluates the performance of smallholder farmers in three districts of the forest-savannah transition agroecological zone of Ghana and examines the effect of integrated crop-livestock management practices (ICLMPs) on the productivity and technical efficiency of production of small-ruminant outputs of farmers. Using farm-level data collected from a sample of 510 farmers from the Atebubu-Amantin, Nkoranza South and Ejura-Sekyedumase districts, a metafrontier production function model is used to estimate the mean technical efficiencies of farmers in each district and their metatechnology ratios. Small-ruminant outputs of the farmers were significantly influenced by the inputs, herd size, capital, labor, feed and veterinary expenses, in at least one of the three districts and for the metafrontier function. Furthermore, the small-ruminant outputs were significantly and positively influenced by the use of pigeon pea, ash or neem, improved pasture and storage of crop residue. The efficiency of production of small ruminants was affected by ICLMPs such as the use tetracycline, use of ash or neem, and storage of crop residue in one or more of the three districts. The technical efficiency of the crop-livestock farmers was also influenced by their age, gender and education, by their participation in projects, obtaining off-farm income, market information and access to extension advice in one or more of the three districts. The results indicate that there are significant differences in small-ruminant production technologies across the three districts and that the production technology in Nkoranza South district is superior to the ones in use in the other two districts. The results underscore the need for investments in research and extension in developing and disseminating relevant ICLMPs and complementary training that leads to more efficient small-ruminant production and, consequently, increased farm income.

Herd health slaughter checks regularly identify enzootic pneumonia-like (EP-like) lesions and pleuritis. The aim of this paper is to determine the associations between these lesions and post-trimming carcass weight. Data were collected on the presence/ absence and severity of EP-like lesions and presence/ absence of pleuritis from pigs at the abattoir. Linear mixed models identified a significant association between an increase in EP-like lesion severity and a decrease in post-trimming carcass weight (P=0.006) at the individual level. Each categorical increase in EP-like lesion severity (5 points step) was associated with a 0.37 kg reduction in post-trimming carcass weight. The presence of EP-like lesions in individual pigs, irrespective of severity (P=0.034) and the presence of pleuritis (P=0.038) were significantly associated with a reduction in post-trimming carcass weight of 1.26 kg and 1.25 kg respectively. The results confirm that the presence of these lesions at slaughter are associated with a significant decrease in production performance which can result in substantial economic implications for producers.

Pig farming is one of the most technologically advanced and continuously growing production sectors. As the pig herds grow larger and at the same time the number of farmers decreases worldwide, it is almost impossible for the farmers to assess every individual animal and assure its wellbeing. Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) could provide solutions to these problems. PLF is intending to achieve fully automated continuous monitoring of pigs, emphasizing on each pen, by using technological advancements as part of the management process. It can potentially improve animal welfare, feed efficiency, performance and reduce livestock emissions and therefore positively impact the financial viability of the unit. The data may be collected by cameras (CCTV, infra-red, thermal, etc.) and real-time analyses systems, by microphones and sound analyses systems, or by any other sensor within the production unit or on the animal such as accelerometers, RFID sensors, etc. This overview presents and critically discusses several papers, attempts to make predictions of future technological developments, and proposes potential research needed.

Farmers’ poor levels of knowledge are related to low rates of efficiency and productivity in milk production in Brazil due to problems of information diffusion and innovation. This paper set out to evaluate to what extent efficiency in production and the position of dairy farmers in the social network, formed by the Program for the Development of Dairy Farming (PDPL), affect the diffusion of technical information and technologies in the production chain. The data used in the study were made available by the PDPL technical staff and refer to 31 dairy farmers, located in municipalities in the Zona da Mata micro region of the state of Minas Gerais, who participated in the Program in 2016. Through Social Network Analysis, Data Envelopment Analysis and Agent-Based Modeling, a diffusion model was structured into which information on the technical efficiency of the dairy farmers was incorporated, as well as information about their relationship pattern. The efficiency analysis showed benefits when inefficient farmers sought best practices and the optimal production scale. Through the model created, it was found that the selection of technically efficient dairy farmers for the diffusion process is a good policy, but when the adoption pay-off is low and resources are scarce, selecting central farmers would be the more appropriate policy. Additionally, it was shown that the choice of the initial adopters, adoption and non-adoption pay-off values, and the relationship pattern all influence the diffusion process. The study, thus, suggests a new way of choosing policies to accelerate the diffusion of information and technology in typical dairy systems in Brazil and other countries.

Intensive genetic selection has improved productive traits in poultry and contributed to changes in systemic metabolism; however, their blood coagulation processes have received little study. The precise physiological mechanisms of haemostasis in birds remain poorly understood, but blood clotting is believed to be governed by an extrinsic tissue factor-dependent pathway, with some residual intrinsic pathway serving an ancillary function. Disorders of haemostasis are a common pathology in poultry rearing, manifested by bleeding, which most often occurs in the muscles, intramuscular fat, connective tissue and internal organs. Efficient diagnosis of haemostatic disorders in poultry remains an ongoing problem. The diagnostic methods currently in use in veterinary medicine are inadequate for evaluating haemostatic disorders. The optimisation of coagulometric methods and the availability of species-specific reagents remain significant obstacles. Furthermore, although vitamin K is essential for the synthesis of extrinsic coagulation factors and interacts with vitamin D in bone formation, it is frequently deficient in birds. The objective of the paper is to present the current state of knowledge of haemostatic disorders in poultry, and to stress the need to develop more detailed laboratory procedures and methods of producing species-specific reagents for determination of haemostatic parameters to deepen the understanding of blood clotting in birds.

This paper investigates the factors affecting the implementation of various management activities related to the characterization, use and conservation of animal genetic resources (AnGR) across countries. The 128 official country reports provided for The Second Report on the State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture were analysed based on a multivariate approach. These reports investigated topics related the national level of AnGR diversity, the extent of characterization activities, use and breeding programmes and conservation activities, as well as capacities in AnGR management and the use of biotechnologies related to livestock breeding. A large part of the variability (34.7%) of the dataset could be explained by one synthetic variable, which could be interpreted as the general extent of AnGR related activities, and indicate that country efforts on AnGR are directed relatively homogenously towards the various activities and species considered. This variable differentiated mainly OECD and BRICS countries from less developed ones. OECD and BRICS countries also appeared to be differentiated with respect to the use of some specific biotechnologies such as cloning, genetic modification and transplantation of gonadal tissues. With regards to economic and development indicators, the first synthetic variable showed large correlation with the number of researchers in agricultural sciences per inhabitant ( r =0.643) and national GDP (r=0.516). Capacities in research therefore appeared to be one of the main enabling forces for activities related to AnGR and the implementation of the Global Plan of Action (GPA) for AnGR.

Horse conformation is considered an indicator of performance, which plays an important role in breeding decisions. Apart from conformation, Pura Raza Espanola horse (PRE) breeding goal is to improve its functionality, and they are being selected by some studs over the last decades as a dressage sport horse. This process may be accompanied by a mass selection which has probably caused morphological changes in recent decades. This paper has three main aims: To evaluate the development of body conformation in PRE over the last three generation intervals (GI), to evaluate the current morphological differences of PRE selected for dressage competitions by specialized stud farms with others with the others and to estimate the genetic parameters in order to show the response to individual mass selection. A maximum of 26 morphological measurements (MM) from 52,681 PRE collected between 1980 and 2013 were split into three groups of 11 years (GI). The GLM showed that gender and GI were significant factors in all the MM analyzed in the last 30 years. In the current PRE population, gender and belonging to a stud attached to the official dressage improvement program were significant factors for 17 and 16 MM respectively. The heritabilities ranged from 0.31 (angle of shoulder) to 0.80 (height at withers). There 57.5% of the genetic correlations were higher than 0.50. The predicted breeding values were different for dressage and non-dressage subpopulations.

External markers are useful or required to estimate forage intake, digestibility, faecal output and passage rate in horses. Oral administration is challenging because of horses’ high sensitivity and selection skills. A suitable bolus matrix should ensure high and consistent acceptance. Boluses were investigated with and without labelling. Synthetic alkane wax, embedded in filter paper or contained in hypromellose capsules, was used as a test marker. Boluses were baked (100 °C, 30 min) or freeze-dried. The freeze-dried boluses varied in size (1.5, 2, or 3 cm O ) and drying time (6, 12, 24, or 48 h). In two tests (AT1 and AT2), acceptance by the horses was assessed with scores between 1 (complete intake) and 4 (refusal). In AT1, marginal rejection of the marker was recorded, whereas the following tests were performed with placebos only. In two bending tests (BT1 and BT2), the force required to break the boluses (FL, flexural load) was determined because this may affect acceptance. Pre-selected variants were stored for 4 weeks in closed boxes under controlled conditions (20 °C and light for 16 h/d, 16 °C and night for 8 h/d, and 65% relative humidity) and were subsequently analysed for residual moisture (RM) and spoilage-indicating microbes. In baked boluses, the alkanes were partly found outside of the inner matrices. This was not evident in the freeze-dried variants. Acceptance of the labelled boluses (scores≤1.7±0.18, AT1), baked placebos (scores≤2.2±0.35, AT1) and the freeze-dried placebos (scores≤1.1±0.31, AT2) was consistently high. This was explained by the BT, with a mean FL of 202±16.5 N for the baked (BT1) and up to 257±22.5 N for the freeze-dried placebos (BT2) being obtained, which was close to the masticatory forces in horses. However, when the boluses distinctly exceeded a size of 3 cm O , this size probably led to increased FL (BT1), thereby depressing the acceptance of the dried placebos (AT1). The results indicated that the adaption to suitable boluses can lead to increased acceptance. Limiting the drying time to at most 24 h seemed justified, especially for the smaller boluses. After 6 and 12 h, the RM was 7.5±0.52% (1.5 cm O ) and 5.7±0.52% (2 cm O ), which make the risk of microbial spoilage appear low. Tested boluses were unspoiled for up to 1 month after preparation. It was suggested that the variable sizes of the boluses may enable the use of various marker dosages and, incidentally, also use in different target animals. A freeze-dried matrix is likewise open to use with other thermolabile markers or substances. We recommend the pre-administration of placebos prior to marker administration to ensure high acceptance of the labelled boluses.

This project aimed to evaluate a novel method for monitoring the health of grazing cattle. The method studied in this paper is based on an unmanned, automatic precision weighing system that can be used on pasture, and which will alarm farmers when animals show abnormal weight gain curves. The project focused primarily on the detection of pasture-borne nematode parasite infections, which clearly reduce the weight gain of calves, but the method could be further developed to include other diseases that impair animal performance. The early detection of nematode infections would both improve animal welfare and minimize the use of anthelmintics. This study included a total of 63 first season grazing steers born from dairy cows that were allocated to one of two permanent semi-natural pasture enclosures for 20 weeks. Both enclosures had two identical scales except that one scale was powered with line current and one scale was equipped with solar panels. The automatic weighing stations were situated in close proximity to a source of water, salt and minerals so that animals would voluntarily pass through them on a regular basis. LiveStock PlannerⓇ software was used to identify usable data. The number of usable recordings per animal throughout the grazing season varied from 547 to 2677 amongst the four weighing stations, with an average of five usable recordings per animal obtained each week. The herds were guided to the weighing area on a daily basis during the first eight weeks of the grazing period to ensure that the steers received enough water. After this period, manual observations were used to verify that all animals entered the watering area without problems. The findings showed that the weighing technique worked well; hence, the developed method demonstrates great potential as an automatic supervision tool for grazing cattle. However, even though the summer of 2016 was quite dry, there was still water available in ditches and puddles. Accordingly, water alone was not a strong enough motivation to get cattle to pass through the weighing station into the watering area. Hence, in grazing areas with natural water sources, a reward more attractive than the water, salt and minerals used in this study is needed to ensure frequent voluntary passage of cattle through the scales.

Dairy farming is a complex production system involving biological, technological and human inputs. Therefore, ‘general knowledge of cause and effect’ often seems inadequate to identify and implement optimal management procedures. To solve herd-specific problems, this paper explores the potential of planned experiments for internal use at the farm level to take advantage of local causal relationships. The shift towards larger dairy herds with access to automatic data recordings of a large number of relevant inputs and performance indicators supports the development of management tools that are able to estimate the effect of changes made in daily management on individual farms. The concept of EVolutionary OPeration (EVOP) implies making small systematic changes in production factors or procedures while running the production and continuously evaluating the results. The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate the feasibility of implementing EVOP in commercial dairy herds as an integral part of herd management. The concept of EVOP-Dairy is based on five principles: (1) farmer-driven identification of areas for improvement; (2) herd-specific goals for the interventions to be evaluated in EVOP trials; (3) a short EVOP trial period; (4) simple, but statistically sound, EVOP designs including data access and (5) regular estimation of intervention effects and frequent reporting to the farmer. The project involved three activities: first, visiting a number of dairy farms with the aim of identifying areas for management improvements and to define potential EVOP interventions and relevant designs of EVOP trials; second, conducting a series of EVOP trials to develop data registration, statistical models, analysis and reporting; third, interviewing the farmers to obtain their opinion of the conceptual idea and the process. These activities were documented for the twelve project farms, and five different EVOP trials are described in detail to illustrate the concept. In conclusion, the farmers found the concept a useful management improvement tool, although the EVOP trials created additional work. The EVOP-Dairy statistical models need to include dynamic multilevel data and control for confounding factors when estimating intervention effects, as design with randomization was not feasible in the majority of the identified EVOP trials. Therefore, future development for the EVOP-Dairy should focus on (i) easy to implement and execute interventions, (ii) guidelines to interpret intervention effect when practical conditions hinder fully randomized and well replicated interventions, and (iii) automation of the data analysis and reporting part of the concept.

Exchange of genetic material within and among national populations has increased rapidly with the development of artificial insemination and frozen embryos. This has increased the need to compare genetic evaluations across populations and ultimately to combine those evaluations for animals of interest. The combination of different sources of information became even more crucial with the development of genomic evaluation. This review summarizes different strategies and algorithms for solving issues related to comparison of methodology for genetic and genomic evaluations and their combination. Reviewed strategies and algorithms for genetic evaluations were categorized as either a post-evaluation or simultaneous combination approach. Post-evaluation approaches make external and internal estimates of genetic merit and their associated reliabilities comparable or combine them after performing external and internal evaluations. Simultaneous combination approaches combine external estimates of genetic merit and their associated reliabilities with internal phenotypic and pedigree data as interval evaluations are calculated. Several of the strategies developed for genetic evaluations were recently adapted for the context of genomic selection, and were mentioned in this paper.

The aim of this review paper is to present and discuss the current experimental findings describing the effects of dietary oils on the functions of immune cells and the efficacy of different mechanisms of the immune system in poultry and pigs. The majority of experiments of this kind have focussed on dietary sources of n-3 polyunsaturated long-chain fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs). Their results have shown a significant association between dietary fat (i.e., the level of n-3 PUFAs as well as n-6:n-3 PUFAs ratio in the diet) and different mechanisms of immune response. Dietary supplementation with rich sources of n-3 PUFAs, especially with fish oil, can have a beneficial, modulating influence on the immune system; specifically they appear to decrease acute and chronic inflammatory immune reactions and simultaneously to improve indices of specific immune response. However, several studies demonstrated that anti-inflammatory properties of n-3 PUFAs do not always result in improvement of growth or egg performance.

Naturally hornless cattle are called polled. The possibility to introgress the allele responsible (P) for polledness in a cattle population that is more intensively selected for other traits is investigated in this paper. Gene introgression, generally carried out by several steps of backcrossing and selection, takes a long time and may lead to unacceptable genetic loss in other traits or inbreeding. The main objective of the current study was to evaluate the use of genomic selection to speed up the introgression of a target allele in a conventional dairy cattle breeding scheme with overlapping generations. A cattle population and a breeding program were simulated and run over a 12 year selection period. Assuming that the polled population was inferior for overall genetic merit , two selection strategies were evaluated: i) selection on conventional BLUP-EBV (CBLUP); ii) selection on genomic EBV (GEBV) obtained with the genomic relationship matrix used in BLUP (GBLUP). Both selection strategies were applied with (PSEL) and without (NOPSEL) selection for the single polled locus (P). The overall level of genetic merit, the P allele frequency and the inbreeding level (F) in the new born animals were monitored each year, as well as the average genetic gain per year of selection (ΔG). The overall genetic level of new born animals was higher for GBLUP compared to CBLUP, with an average ΔG/year of 8.34% (GBLUP) against 7.49% (CBLUP). The PSEL scenario reduced genetic gain, but P allele frequency increased from 0.130 to 0.415 (CBLUP) and from 0.128 to 0.440 (GBLUP) for PSEL, after 12 years of selection. No substantial changes in allele frequency were recorded for NOPSEL scenarios, both for CBLUP and GBLUP breeding schemes. The overall inbreeding rates for GBLUP were 0.28%/y (NOPSEL) and 0.30%/y (PSEL) and for CBLUP 0.52%/y (NOPSEL) and 0.44%/y (PSEL). In conclusion, application of GS to gene introgression helped to speed up the process of introgression of a gene while simultaneously increasing the genetic gain and reducing the inbreeding rate.

Models are widely used to predict methane (CH4) emissions, and can be used to develop mitigation options and policies. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the performance of the Nordic dairy cow model Karoline in predicting CH4 emissions. Karoline is a dynamic, deterministic and mechanistic simulation model that describes the digestion and metabolism of nutrients, and production in a dairy cow. The model was evaluated against observed data from studies reporting CH4 emissions from respiration chamber studies. The dataset included a total of 184 treatment means from 31 published papers. The dietary and animal characteristics used for the model evaluation represent the typical range of diets fed to dairy cattle. When analyzed with a fixed model regression, there was a good relationship between predicted and observed CH4 emissions measured from respiration chamber studies with a small root mean square error of prediction (R2=0.93, RMSPE=10.1% of the observed mean). The mean bias was small (1.9%) but statistically significant, and there was no slope bias. Most of the error was due to random variation (96.4%), whereas the contributions of mean and slope bias were small. By considering study as the random effect in the model (mixed model regression analysis), the fit improved to R2= 0.98 and RMSPE decreased to 6.1% of the observed mean. The influence of some input variables such as total dry matter intake, proportion of concentrate, dietary concentrations of crude protein, neutral detergent fiber and ether extract, and organic digestibility (OMD) on the residuals (observed–predicted) of CH4 emissions were not significant. The residuals of both CH4 emissions and OMD were significantly related to each other, indicating the Karoline model requires accurate estimates of digestion kinetic parameters as input variables. When the laboratory was used as a class variable in the model, the residuals of CH4 emissions were significantly different both between the laboratories and also between experiments within individual laboratories. It is concluded that the Nordic dairy cow model Karoline is a useful tool in predicting CH4 emissions and understanding the system behavior. The model can also be used in developing mitigation strategies for the national inventories of CH4 emissions.