86,810 research outputs found
Milking characteristics, hygiene and management practices in Saanen goat farms: a case of Canakkale province, Turkey
No full textIn order to determine the current status of milking characteristics, hygiene and health protection practices in Saanen goat farms in Turkey, data were obtained from 92 farms through surveys in Çanakkale province. The farms are grouped according to the number of animals as small-scale (25–75 heads), medium-scale (76–150 heads) and large-scale (151 and overheads). As a result of the data observed, it has been seen that the majority of the farms (63.04%) had primary education and only 8.69% had education at the university level. While 44 farms have a milking machine or milking system in their farms, the other 48 farms use the hand milking. The 72.8% of the farms stated that they did not receive any training on milking hygiene and milking machines. Breast diseases are among the most common health problems in the farms (61.9%), followed by, digestive system diseases (8.6%), bacterial diseases (5.4%), foot diseases (2.1%) and viral diseases (4.3%), respectively. The prevalence of mastitis which is the leading cause of breast disease differs statistically in terms of scale (p < .05). In this period, the scale of the farms increased and the use of machine milking became widespread in dairy goat farms. Considering that Saanen breed goats, which have high milk yield, are also sensitive to diseases and are delicate breeds, it is important for the farmers to be educated and informed about breeding, herd management, and milking hygiene practices in order to increase milk production and quality and to prevent economic losses.Highlights The current status of milking hygiene and practices was evaluated. Mastitis was the most common disease (39.1%) observed in Saanen goat farms. To prevent economic losses due to diseases, farmers should be trained on hygiene and management practices
Pain in Pig Production: Text Mining Analysis of the Scientific Literature
No full textPublic’s concern about poor animal welfare provided by intensive farming systems has increased over the last decades. This study reviewed the interest of the scientific research on the pain issue in pig production to assess if the societal instances may be a driving force for the research activity. A literature search protocol was set up to identify the peer-reviewed papers published between 1970 and 2017 that covered the topic of ‘pain in pigs’ using Scopus®, database of Elsevier©. One hundred and thirty papers were selected and they were mainly focused on the practice of castration (64%) followed by tail docking (24%). The scientific community first focused on these painful practices as a way to improve production efficiency and quality issues while more recently, due to the increased pressure by the public opinion, turned its interest towards the search of alternative solutions. A text mining analysis on the abstract of the selected papers clearly indicated the effort of the research to explore solutions to alleviate pain. Evocative words of this target were the selected terms ‘pharmacological analgesic’ and ‘anaesthetic treatments’. The text mining highlighted vocalizations as the main pain indicators in pigs as this term was frequently associated to ‘acute stress’. Ethical issues were a minor research topic in the scientific literature on pig breeding but in the short run, they are supposed to become a major subject to justify the acceptance of the modern production systems at the eyes of the consumers
Contingencies and characteristics of service recovery system design: insights from retail banking
No full textPurpose: this paper explores the contingencies and characteristics of service recovery system
(SRS) design.
Design/methodology/approach: informed by extensive case study data from two large
Italian retail banks, our theory-building study builds on the seven design characteristics
proposed by Smith et al. (2009). Nineteen sub-dimensions are identified that provide a finergrain
view of the SRS at the operational level. The design characteristics and the
corresponding sub-dimensions comprise the SRS design framework. These sub-dimensions
are then analysed across the two cases. Specific attention is given to sub-dimensions that are
contingent upon service recovery strategy.
Findings: the findings suggest that the extended set of SRS sub-dimensions (providing
greater specificity) contributes to identifying commonality and difference between SRS
configurations. This specificity facilitates the identification of two sets of SRS design
characteristics (S-Type; C-Type) that correspond with SR strategy. Two propositions have
been formulated with respect to this SR strategy – SRS contingency. An additional set of subdimensions,
common to both cases, is explained by conformance to regulatory control.
Originality/value: the paper provides novel theoretical insights into SRS design. The
increased specificity of the SRS framework and the sets of sub-dimensions contingent on SR
strategy extend current theory in OM. This provides opportunities for both practicing
managers and for future theoretical development
Problemi di confrontabilità dei dati di sopravvivenza.
No full textIl presente studio ha esaminato l'omogeneità dei criteri di registrazione e follow up adottati dai diversi registri partecipanti, per consentire una corretta valutazione dei dati e delle differenze osservate tra le diverse aree geografiche italiane. Il controllo sui dati ha riguardato la corrispondenza alle regole internazionali di registrazione, la loro correttezza e la metodologia adottata per il follow up. Per le differenze osservate nella gestione di alcune neoplasie a più incerto inquadramento clinico e biologico, secondo quanto emerso anche a livello internazionale (codifica tumori in situ, neoplasie vescicali), l'analisi è stata integrata da un questionario somministrato a tutti i registri. Sono emerse alcune differenze nei metodi di registrazione seguiti. I problemi più rilevanti sono stati riscontrati nella registrazione dei tumori vescicali, principalmente nella valutazione dei tumori in situ e a comportamento incerto, e nella proporzione dei pazienti a breve sopravvivenza per alcune aree geografiche. Buoni livelli di qualità e omogeneità sono stati osservato globalmente per i principali indici di valutazione della registrazione (verifiche microscopiche, gestione del follow up). In conclusione i livelli qualitativi osservati nelle procedure di registrazione appaiono sostanzialmente in grado di assicurare una corretta confrontabilità dei dati. Solo per alcune sedi tumorali (in particolare la vescica) si sono evidenziati problemi significativi che suggeriscono maggiore cautela nell'interpretazione della sopravvivenza e delle differenze territoriali osservate
Effects of health disorders on milk yield and calving interval in Italian Holstein cows
No full textMilk production, reproduction and health are the major determinants of profitability in dairy herds. The smooth progress in cow milk yield over the last decades and the positive association found between milk yield and risk of disease outbreak (Heuer et al., 1999; Fleischer et al.,2001; Gallo et al., 2002) increased the interest towards health traits. For providing a contribution to this topic, this study aimed to investigate the incidence of some health disorders in Italian commercial dairy herds and to estimate the effect of these diseases on milk yield and calving interval. Data for this study were from data base of MTP Project, a program aimed to collect functional and health traits of Italian Holstein cows, carried out from 1998 to 2001, in cooperation with some provincial breeder associations (APA) of Veneto. Altogether, records from 6832 lactations relevant to 5497 cows herded in 94 farms were available. In conclusion, health disorders taken into account appeared widespread in dairy herds sampled and frequently affected milk yield at lactation level, whereas their effects on calving interval appeared more occasional
Risk factors and strategies for integrated management of bird pests affecting maize establishment
No full textBird damage to maize crops is an important cause of economic loss for maize growers in Italy. Consequently, the objectives of this study were to identify main species of birds attacking maize in north-eastern Italy and quantify the effects of agronomic characteristics, cultivation practices, landscape variables, and management practices on the incidence of bird damage to maize at establishment. A systematic survey of 5065 ha of maize cultivated land (Zea mays L.) at early plant stages was performed from 1986 to 2020, resulting in a dataset of 1619 records. Corvids (Corvus cornix) were found to be the main culprits of damage to maize fields. A multifactorial model was applied to assess the impact of potential risk factors. The presence of nearby roosting areas, such as hedgerows and woodlands with trees higher than 7 m, was associated with a five-fold increased risk of damage by birds. No-tillage soil management was associated with a higher risk of bird damage when compared with minimum tillage and conventional tillage systems. The probability of damage to a field with no risk factors was always low (<1%). The application of naturally derived bird repellents incorporated in seed coatings (i.e., ScudoSeed® and Eurodif®) decreased the risk of damage to maize by birds below the threshold value of 15%, yet they were slightly outperformed by their synthetic counterparts (i.e., Methiocarb and Ziram). Our results further suggest that it is possible to implement IPM principles for pest birds in maize
Chronic nasal obstruction secondary to perinatal listeriosis
No full textPerinatal listeriosis has not been reported previously as a cause of chronic nasal obstruction. We describe a preterm infant with early-onset neonatal listeriosis in whom the suppurative inflammation of the nasal cavities was complicated by total and irreversible airway obstruction
The Welfare of Beef Cattle in the Scientific Literature From 1990 to 2019: A Text Mining Approach
No full textBeef cattle are the third most numerous terrestrial farmed animals worldwide. Factors such as geographical region, animal category, breed, and rearing system pose specific animal welfare challenges that can have an impact on animal and public health. This article uses text mining (TM) and topic analysis (TA) to explore the scientific literature on beef cattle welfare published in English from 1990 to 2019. Our aim was to reveal the main research topics and their evolution over time. Our analysis showed that the three most relevant themes in research since 1990 have to do with calf behaviour and management, efficiency, and environmental sustainability, and the effects of transport and slaughter on meat quality. Topics showing the most marked increase in the number of papers published deal with stakeholders' perceptions and market opportunities for added-value beef products and risk factors for morbidity and mortality, especially in relation to calf health, antimicrobial use, and antimicrobial resistance. The results indicate a particular focus on the welfare of calves, especially in the veal industry. Pain relief during the castration of calves and bulls also featured prominently. Research is also increasingly assessing aspects of beef cattle welfare that are interlinked to meat quality, the social and environmental sustainability of the sector in relation to market opportunities, and public health. The identified topics represent a basic source of information that can be used for further and more detailed analyses (e.g., systematic reviews) focussed on specific research themes or geographical areas
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