1,721,099 research outputs found
A retrospective analysis on factors influencing the day of parturition in the dog estimated from serum progesterone concentration measured by Fluorescence Enzyme Immunoassay (FEIA).
No full textMilking characteristics, hygiene and management practices in Saanen goat farms: a case of Canakkale province, Turkey
Full text linkIn 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
Full text linkPublic’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
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
The Welfare of Beef Cattle in the Scientific Literature From 1990 to 2019: A Text Mining Approach
Full text linkBeef 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
Unveiling factors prompting physical engagement with human handlers in trained and untrained Holstein dairy heifers
No full textABSTRACT
Fearful and agitated animals represent a risk in cattle farming, while training techniques have been reported to boost heifers’ confidence making their handling easier and reducing stress. We investigated the impact of training aimed at desensitising animals to handling on heifers’ behaviour, focusing on physical interactions with human handlers, such as rubbing, licking and pushing, which can be considered undesirable by farmers. Sixty Holstein heifers of two age classes and three categories of Responsiveness to Humans (RTH), assessed through an Avoidance Distance Test (ADT) were studied. Half of the animals were trained and half not. Faecal cortisol metabolites, heart rate parameters and behaviour during handling were determined and a Physical Animal-Human Contact Behaviour Test (PAHCBT) was performed to detect behaviours which involve physical contact. The number of approaches and Physical Animal- Human Contact Behaviour events (PACHB) were recorded. During the PAHCBT (11 replicates), individual heifers exhibited an average number of 4.3 approaches (range: 0–18) and 8.2 PAHCBs (0–75). Older class heifers exhibited a higher number of approaches (5.31 vs. 3.22, p=0.04). 13 heifers (21.7%) were considered highly physical contact driven (PCDs) showing more than 5 PAHCBs and more than 1 PAHCB per approach. Among predictors, training (p=0.031) and high initial ADT values (p=0.078) acted as a protective factor against being PCDs, whereas the presence of kicking during handling was a proxy for PCDs (p=0.034). The results show that training, besides facilitating handling, helps preventing heifers from being considered PCDs
Computed tomography features for differentiating malignant and benign focal liver lesions in dogs: a meta-analysis
Full text linkComputed tomography (CT) is often performed to complement ultrasound following detection of focal liver lesions (FLL). There is no consensus in the literature regarding the CT features that might be helpful in the distinction between benign and malignant FLL. The aim of this meta-analysis was to identify, based on the available literature, the qualitative and quantitative CT features able to distinguish between benign and malignant FLL. Studies on the diagnostic accuracy of CT in characterising FLL were searched in MEDLINE, Web of Science, and Scopus databases. Pooled sensitivity, pooled specificity, diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), receiver operator curve (ROC) area, were calculated for qualitative features. DOR were used to determine which qualitative features were most informative to detect malignancy; quantitative features were selected/identified based on standardised mean difference (SMD). Well-defined margins, presence of a capsule, abnormal lymph nodes, and heterogeneity in the arterial, portal and delayed phase were classified as informative qualitative CT features. The pooled sensitivity ranged from 0.630 (abnormal lymph nodes) to 0.786 (well-defined margins), while pooled specificity ranged from 0.643 (well-defined margins) to 0.816 (heterogeneous in delayed phase). Maximum dimensions, ellipsoid volume, attenuation of the liver in the pre-contrast phase, and attenuation of the liver in the arterial, portal, and delayed phase were found to be informative quantitative CT features. Larger maximum dimensions and volume (positive SMD), and lower attenuation values (negative SMD) were more associated with malignancy. This meta-analysis provides the evidence base for the interpreting CT imaging in the characterization of FLL
Health, behaviour and growth performance of Charolais and Limousin bulls fattened on different types of flooring
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