General Principles of Animal Husbandry

Year 1 - Normal Animal

features of housing/environment

shelter from weather, stocking density, bedding, cleanliness

animal husbandry

the breeding, rearing and daily care of domestic animals

impact of poor husbandry on animals

hunger, thirst, fear, distress, disease, discomfort, abnormal behaviour

impact of poor animal husbandry on people

zoonotic disease, emotional toll, treatment costs, poor performance, production losses, injuries

What are some factors to consider when assessing animal husbandry?

handling, health and welfare of animals, legal requirements, owner abilities, food and water, routine procedures, biosecurity, housing and hygiene, breeds and reproduction

What are the different ways to assess animal husbandry?

analysis of records, evaluation of resources, animal assessments, people assessments

advantages of analysing records to assess animal welfare

specific information on health, disease and production levels, can see changes over time

disadvantages of analysing records to assess animal welfare

relies on animal keeper to correctly identify and record disease, easy to manipulate/falsify, often no records

advantages of evaluating resources to assess animal welfare

often objective measurements, assessor doesn’t need expertise in animal health

disadvantages of evaluating resources to assess animal welfare

doesn’t account for how animal copes in the environment, resources could meet standards and welfare still be poor, less commonly done in small animal practice

advantages of animal assessments to assess animal welfare

direct assessment of animals in their normal environment, takes into account how the animals cope in their environment, can use automated monitoring as an early warning system

disadvantages of animal assessments to assess animal welfare

requires expertise so more expensive, assessments may be more subjective, animals may not show obvious signs of disease or injury

CARE

client, animal observations, records, environment and resources

reasons for housing animals

protection from predators and bad weather conditions, easier to handle animals, more efficient, protects land from overgrazing, increased stock densities, control over feeding, increased control over health and observation

why ventilation is needed in animal housing

to remove harmful gases, to remove moisture and excess heat, to provide fresh air, to remove unpleasant smells

consequences of not enough ventilation

increased concentration of pathogens, buildup of harmful gases (e.g. CO2, ammonia), increased risk of respiratory diseases, high humidity and temperature

consequences of too much ventilation

animals get cold, increased stress, higher susceptibility to disease

methods of ventilation in animal housing

space boarding, slotted roof, open roof ridge, fans

stack effect

1. animals in a building heat the air around them

2. hot air rises and leaves the building through a warm air outlet in the roof

3. the hot air leaving causes cold air to enter the building lower down from outside through a cold air inlet (e.g. side openings)

4. this process creates a convection current of air which replaces stale, warm, moist air with fresh, cool, oxygen-rich air

ways to assess ventilation in a building

smoke bomb test, min-max thermometer, relative humidity monitor, smell, observe animals

smoke bomb test process

1. release a small amount of smoke into building to be tested (smoke bomb pellet or controlled burning)

2. observe how quickly the smoke dissipates from the building

3. identify dead spots where the smoke lingers, indicating poor air movement

ensure animals are in the building during the test to assess ventilation with them present

factors to consider with flooring for animals

comfortable for animals to lie down on, not too hard to prevent injury, is it slippery when wet, ease to clean, durability

cow flow

allowing animals to move freely without getting trapped, this system avoids dead ends in feeding areas or passageways where dominant animals can block subordinate ones which may prevent them from feeding or sleeping

why are pig farms found more in the East of the UK?

more sandy soil which drains more easily and less rainfall which allows breeding sows to be kept outside

why are more dairy farms beginning to house cows inside all year?

to ensure more even nutrition across the year so milk production remains more consistent

what is a recent change to the way dairy cows are bred?

bull semen can now be sex selected during artificial insemination so farmers select for heffer dairy cows and the remaining dairy breeding cows are inseminated with beef cow semen to produce higher value cows

stratification

using different breed characteristics and climate-dependent husbandry types when breeding to produce animals with specific traits

why are beef cows and sheep often kept together?

they graze different grass types and provide work in different seasons

What does the pig pyramid represent?

the 3 stages of pig farming: breeding, weaning/growing and finishing (usually occurs at different farms)

variable costs for farms

feed, forage, bedding, vets and medicines, fertiliser, transport, casual labour

fixed costs for farms

rent, rates, utilities, staff

factors affecting biological efficiency

reproductive efficiency, lactation ability, growth and development, replacement rate

fecundity

litter size

oestrus

the period of sexual receptivity in female mammals during the oestrus cycle which precedes and accompanies ovulation

factors contributing to reproductive efficiency

fertility, fecundity, breeding frequency, peri- and post-partum problems, offspring nutrition, indirect/direct male factor

factors contributing to lactation ability

availability and immunoglobulin concentration of colostrum, lactation curve, nutrition

importance of colostrum

calves are born without gamma globulins as they can’t cross the placenta so colostrum from the mother provides antibodies to calves

parturition

point of birth

lactation curve

the increase in milk yield from an animal from parturition to peak yield after which it decreases as offspring begin weaning, can be influenced by how often the animal is milked 

hyperplasia

increase in cell numbers

hypertrophy

increase in cell size

What does the sigmoidal growth curve show?

increase in body mass which increases fastest at puberty and then at a decreasing rate towards maturity, explains why most animals are sent to slaughter around puberty as after that it becomes more expensive to feed them enough to maintain growth so less efficient

compensatory growth

farm model which involves restricting food for a period of time and then feeding a lot to allow rapid growth, often used in winter when food is more scarce and then animals are able to graze in spring

problems caused by rapid growth

fat can be deposited in the udder or pelvis in cows, joint problems as skeleton can’t support the weight, developmental orthopaedic diseases, bone growing rapidly may be less dense

precocial animals

animals that can walk, maintain body temperature and perform basic functions shortly after being born

altricial animals

animals that are not self-sufficient for a significant period after birth

differences in chemical composition between younger and older animals

younger have more bone, muscle, water and protein while older have more fat/lipids

physical processes that transport heat between body and surroundings

radiation (different colours radiate/absorb more/less heat), conduction (heat flow from animal to ground via direct contact), convection, evaporation of water

relative humidity

percentage saturation of the air by water vapour

endotherm

organism that uses internal generation of heat to maintain a stable internal temperature

poilkilotherm

an organism that has a varying body temperature that fluctuates with its environment

thermo-neutral zone (TNZ)

the optimum temperature range for an animal in which no heat production/loss adjustments are required to maintain body temperature within normal core values and the use of food for growth and production is optimal as no good energy is needed to maintain body temperature

lower critical temperature (LCT)

the lowest temperature an animal can tolerate before going into cold stress

reasons why young animals have higher LCTs and lower TNZs than adults

higher surface area to volume ratio, poor tissue and surface insulation, wet birth coat (evaporation), higher proportional surface area of head, lack of musculature and inability to shiver, inability to move away from cool areas, some species have no brown fat (e.g. piglets)

neonate

newborn animal

animal responses when too hot

mud bath, panting, lying down on cold surfaces, moving away from heat source, seeking air movement and shade, maximising body surface area, minimising surface and tissue insulation, minimising heat production - less active

animal responses when too cold

shivering, huddling together, seeking shelter, withdrawing extremities, counter-current heat exchangers

counter-current heat exchangers

blood vessels are close together so can transfer heat between each other on the way to extremeties which cools arteries and heats veins so less heat is lost from extremities and more reaches the core of the body

non-shivering thermogenesis

ability to produce heat internally

ways neonates survive cold exposure

increasing metabolic rate, activating brown adipose tissue, early colostrum intake

environmental impacts of agricultural expansion

habitat loss, reduced biodiversity, reduced carbon storage, poorer soil conditions, increased greenhouse gas emissions, water degradation

environmental impacts of agricultural intensification

irrigation, fertilisers and pesticides all contribute to soil degradation and reduced biodiversity

key goals to achieve global food security

increase agricultural production, increase total food supply, improve distribution and access to food, increase resilience of whole food system

key goals to reduce the environmental impact of agriculture

reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce biodiversity and habitat losses, reduces unsustainable water withdrawals, phase out water pollution from agricultural chemicals

how to achieve global food security

stop expanding agriculture, close yield gaps, increase agricultural resource efficiency, shift diets and reduce food waste

yield gaps

the difference between observed and potential crop yields given current agricultural practices and technologies

mulching

using dead plant material around plants to reduce water loss and provide nutrients

strategies to increase agricultural water use efficiency

drip irrigation, mulching, reduce evaporation from irrigation canals

ectotherm

an organism that relies on external heat sources to regulate body temperature

homeotherm

an organism that self regulates temperature through thermoregulation