Livestock Science最新文献

{"title":"Effects of supplementing a feedlot diet with microalgae (Chlorella vulgaris) on the performance, carcass traits and meat quality of lambs","authors":"I.U. Gadzama ,&nbsp;L.C. Hoffman ,&nbsp;B.W.B. Holman ,&nbsp;A.V. Chaves ,&nbsp;S.J. Meale","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105552","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105552","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study evaluated the effect of different levels of fresh microalgae (<em>Chlorella vulgaris</em>) in a feedlot diet on the performance, carcass traits, and meat quality of lambs. Forty-five, four-month-old wether lambs were randomly assigned to one of three dietary treatments: 1) CONTROL, without algae; 2) MEDIUM, with 0.5 % dry matter (DM) algae; or 3) HIGH, with 1 % DM algae added to a basal diet consisting of barley hay and commercial feedlot pellets in a 41:59 ratio. The lambs were fed for 98 days and then slaughtered. Microalgae supplementation did not affect (<em>P</em> ≥ 0.09) growth performance, wool quality, rumen fermentation parameters, carcass weight, dressing percentage, or subcutaneous fat thickness of the lambs. However, microalgae supplementation at 0.5 % DM increased (<em>P</em> ≤ 0.05) the concentration of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA; C18:3n-3), arachidic acid (C20:0), and total omega-3 long-chain (n-3 LC) fatty acids in the <em>longissimus lumborum et thoracis</em> (LTL) muscle of lambs, compared to the CONTROL. Intramuscular fat (%) was similar between the CONTROL and the MEDIUM group (av. 3.65 %), but was lower (<em>P</em> = 0.044) in the HIGH group (3.1 %). Therefore, our results indicate that adding 0.5 % DM microalgae to lamb diets can increase the levels of alpha-linolenic acid and total n-3 LC PUFA in fresh lamb meat without affecting lamb performance or carcass characteristics.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"288 ","pages":"Article 105552"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871141324001586/pdfft?md5=76e5bab73867f63393248d71da19cfa4&pid=1-s2.0-S1871141324001586-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142097069","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evaluation of the effects of black pepper extract on the growth performance of grower pigs","authors":"Jian Ying Zhang ,&nbsp;Huan Wang ,&nbsp;Jing Hu ,&nbsp;In Ho Kim","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105548","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105548","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study aimed to evaluate the effects of black pepper (BP) extract on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, serum total protein, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine, counts of <em>Lactobacillus</em> and <em>Escherichia coli (E. Coli)</em>, back fat thickness, lean meat percentage (LMP), and fecal gas emission in grower pigs. A total of 160 crossbred grower pigs [(Landrace × Yorkshire) × Duroc] with an average initial body weight (BW) of 25.31 ± 1.29 kg were used in a 42-day feeding trial. Pigs were randomly assigned to four experimental treatments. The basal diet was composed of soybeans and corn to meet or exceed the NRC (2012) recommendations. The dietary treatments included: basic diet, basic diet + 0.025 %, 0.05 %, and 0.1 % BP extract. There were eight replicates per treatment, each comprising five pigs (three gilts and two barrows). All data were subjected to statistical analysis using general linear model procedures (SAS 2001, SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA), with the pen serving as the experimental unit. The results indicated a linear improvement in BW and average daily gain of pigs during days 1–28, 28–42, and the overall period with increasing levels of BP extract in the diet. The apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of crude protein (CP) and lean meat percentage (LMP) increased linearly with BP treatment at the end of the experiment (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.05). In addition, total protein, BUN, and creatinine levels were not affected by the BP extract (<em>p</em> &gt; 0.05). Some fecal microbes, such as <em>Lactobacillus</em> and <em>E. coli</em>, did not change considerably when pigs were fed BP extract (<em>p</em> &gt; 0.05). No apparent response to faecal gas emission of NH₃, total mercaptans, or H₂S was observed in relation to the BP extract in the pig diet (<em>p</em> &lt; 0.05). Dietary supplementation with 0.1 % BP extract improved growth performance by increasing the ATTD of CP and improving LMP without adverse effects in grower pigs.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"288 ","pages":"Article 105548"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142077272","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Whole-genome sequencing of Ganzi horse reveals the genetic diversity and provides unique insights into its plateau adaptation","authors":"Jiale Han,&nbsp;Meixuan Lu,&nbsp;Cong Li,&nbsp;Minhao Sun,&nbsp;Qiaoyan Hu,&nbsp;Yidan Li,&nbsp;Halima Jafari,&nbsp;Zhaofei Wang,&nbsp;Pengcheng Zhao,&nbsp;Ruihua Dang","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105549","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105549","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Ganzi horse is distributed in the Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. As we all know, this region on the southeast of the Tibetan Plateau is characterized by low oxygen levels, low atmospheric pressure, and intense ultraviolet light. The extreme environment causes the genomic variation of plateau animals for environmental adaptation. At present, the genetic diversity and the genetic basis of high-altitude adaptation of Ganzi horses remain unclear. Here, an extensive genetic analysis was conducted utilizing whole-genome sequencing data from 145 individual horses. The analysis of autosomal genetic diversity confirmed that Ganzi horses had experienced low intensity artificial selection and had high genetic diversity. Examination of mitochondrial DNA information from whole-genome sequencing data revealed multiple maternal origins for Ganzi horses. Further, four different selective scanning methods were used to identify positive selected genomic regions and genes associated with high-altitude adaptation. We identified genes associated with altitude adaptation at selection windows in Ganzi horses, such as <em>EPAS1, ABTB2, RHOQ</em>, and <em>TMEM247</em>. Notably, <em>EPAS1</em> and <em>OR52A1J</em> gene exhibited high select signal values, different nucleotide diversities, and haplotype patterns, and missense mutations in <em>EPAS1</em> (<em>A</em> &gt; <em>T</em>) and <em>OR52A1J</em> (C &gt; T) were found to be more frequent in high-altitude horses. Moreover, our research illuminated significant gene flow between Ganzi and Chaidamu horses, which may be related to the formation of Ganzi horses. In general, these findings not only enhance our understanding of this unique native breed but also further our understanding of Ganzi horse's high-altitude adaptation.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"288 ","pages":"Article 105549"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142001743","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Genome-wide assessment of runs of homozygosity to estimate inbreeding in a closed Nellore herd","authors":"Angela Bittencourt ,&nbsp;Andréa Alves do Egito ,&nbsp;Paula Adas Pereira Suniga ,&nbsp;Gustavo Garcia Santiago ,&nbsp;Rafael Monteiro dos Santos ,&nbsp;Eduardo Penteado Cardoso ,&nbsp;Lucas Lima Verardo ,&nbsp;Marcos Vinicius Gualberto Barbosa da Silva ,&nbsp;Fabio Luiz Buranelo Toral","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105547","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105547","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The objective of this study was to compare the inbreeding coefficients estimated from pedigree data (F_PED), traditionally used for internal monitoring by herds and breeding programs, with genomic estimates through the genomic relationship matrix (F_GRM) and runs of homozygosity (F_ROH). Besides, we used the genotype data to obtain the linkage disequilibrium (LD), population effective size (Ne), runs of homozygosity (ROH) islands and functional analysis of the genes presented in ROH islands. Male calves and sires from a closed Nellore herd (Lemgruber line) were genotyped with the Z-chip v2 (Neogen, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA) that contains approximately 30 thousand SNP markers. After quality control, 1088 animals and 21,351 SNPs remained for analysis. Runs of homozygosity (ROH) segments were identified in all analyzed animals, with an average number of 57.93 and average length of 2.95 Mb. We observed a higher occurrence of ROH up to 9 Mb, suggesting a proper mating scheme, which corroborate with LD and Ne analysis results. Estimates of F_PED, F_GRM and F_ROH ranged from 0 to 0.2856, from 0.0705 to 0.3686 and from 0.0229 to 0.2762, respectively. Low to moderate correlations were observed between F_PED and F_GRM (0.17, <em>P</em> &lt; 0.001); F_PED and F_ROH (0.20, <em>P</em> &lt; 0.001) and F_GRM and F_ROH (0.92, <em>P</em> &lt; 0.001). Nevertheless, considering our results we were successful in use runs of homozygosity for estimating autozygosity in a closed Nellore herd. Besides, from ROH islands, we were able to identify a candidate gene (HTR1A) for docility in this Nellore herd.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"288 ","pages":"Article 105547"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142044491","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Partitioning of energy intake in broiler breeders from 27 to 63 weeks old","authors":"Guilherme Ferreira da Silva Teofilo ,&nbsp;Freddy Alexander Horna Morillo ,&nbsp;Damilola Uthman Kareem ,&nbsp;Rony Riveros Lizana ,&nbsp;Lucas Pimentel Bonagurio ,&nbsp;Rosiane de Souza Camargos ,&nbsp;Jacob Van Milgen ,&nbsp;Marcos Macari ,&nbsp;Nilva Kazue Sakomura","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105535","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105535","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Describing the energy partition during the production phase of broiler breeders helps to define the energy requirements of breeders. This study aimed to determine the energy intake partition for maintenance, tissue growth, and egg production in broiler breeders during the laying phase. An energy and nitrogen balance study was carried out in a respirometry chambers with fifty Cobb 500 broiler breeders from 27 to 63 weeks old. Every four weeks, 5 birds were individually housed in a respirometry chamber and fed according to the guidelines. Feed intake (<strong>FI</strong>), excreta, and egg output were recorded daily. O₂ consumption (<strong>VO₂</strong>) and CO₂ production (<strong>VCO₂</strong>) were measured under feeding and fasting conditions to calculate total and fasting heat production (<strong>THP</strong> and <strong>FHP</strong>, respectively). The collected data were used to calculate the retained energy (<strong>RE</strong>) in the egg and body as protein or fat by using energy balance calculations. Linear regressions were used to fit the collected data as a function of age. The measured apparent metabolizable energy corrected for zero-nitrogen retention <strong>(AMEn</strong>, kJ/kg feed) was higher than formulated. The FI and apparent metabolizable energy intake (<strong>AMEi</strong>) showed the highest values at 31 and 35 weeks (<em>P</em> &gt; 0.05). Linear regression was not significant (<em>P</em> &gt; 0.05) for FHP, THP, heat increment (<strong>HI</strong>), egg mass, and RE in the egg as fat and as protein, suggesting that these parameters remained constant as the bird aged. The RE in the body as protein increased (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.005), while the RE in the body as fat decreased (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001) as the birds aged. Variation in the AMEi influenced RE in the body (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05) but not in the egg (<em>P</em> = 0.109). It can be concluded that net energy for maintenance does not change during the laying phase and represents an expenditure of 267.1 kJ/kg^0.75 per day in broiler breeders under a feed-controlled program. As expected, energy is primarily used for maintenance and egg production in the net energy system, with excess energy stored preferentially as fat rather than protein.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"288 ","pages":"Article 105535"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142020703","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of the inclusion of two extracts derived from the olive industry on growth performance, antiparasitic protection, and antioxidant activity in broiler chicken diets from 0 to 45 d","authors":"I. Añover-Ayuso ,&nbsp;A. Muñoz-Luna ,&nbsp;G. Ramis ,&nbsp;F. Gil-Rueda ,&nbsp;J.D. Berrocoso","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105534","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105534","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The objective of the present study was to investigate the optimal inclusion rate of 2 independent extracts with different properties derived from the olive industry [triterpenic acid extract (TAE) and a polyphenol extract (PE)] on productive performances in broiler chickens from 0 to 45 d under challenging conditions. In addition, antiparasitic protection of the TAE was evaluated at d 21 and d 28 through intestinal scoring and oocyst counts, as well as the blood antioxidant activity of the PE at d 45. Wood shavings as bedding material came from a commercial farm with a coccidia load sufficient to create a subclinical coccidiosis situation with minor macroscopic lesions, and a nutritional challenge was imposed using poor raw materials to cause intestinal dysbiosis. There were 9 dietary treatments (8 replicates/treatment and 15 broiler chickens/pen), a positive control (PC) supplemented with commercial coccidiostat (Na monensin), 4 increasing concentrations of TAE (30, 60, 90, and 120 ppm), and 4 increasing concentrations of PE (10, 20, 30, and 40 ppm). For the overall experiment the PC had greater average daily gain (ADG) and average daily feed intake (ADFI) (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001) than the mean of TAE treatments. Besides, the ADG, body weight, and ADFI increased linearly throughout the whole experiment as the TAE level of the feed increased. With respect to the anticoccidial activity, the 120 ppm TAE treatment showed greater concentration of E. acervuline DNA copies at 21 d than the 30 ppm TAE treatment (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05), the rest of the treatments being intermediate. Concerning the PE treatments, for the overall experiment, ADG was the greatest in the PC treatment (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001), and the ADFI was similar in the PC treatment to the mean of PE treatments. There was no effect of the PE on antioxidant activity. In conclusion, under the conditions of this study, the inclusion of TAE does not reach the productive performance indicators achieved by a commercial coccidiostat in our intestinal challenge situations. Also, the inclusion of PE has a positive effect on productive performance on the overall period.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"287 ","pages":"Article 105534"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871141324001409/pdfft?md5=bb5eabcdfe0664310cce0bfa1c500949&pid=1-s2.0-S1871141324001409-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141937765","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Intake, digestibility, serum metabolites, and growth performance of male feedlot lambs fed different fat sources","authors":"Henry D.R. Alba ,&nbsp;José E. de Freitas Júnior ,&nbsp;Laudí C. Leite ,&nbsp;José A.G. Azevêdo ,&nbsp;Stefanie A. Santos ,&nbsp;Douglas dos S. Pina ,&nbsp;Luis G.A. Cirne ,&nbsp;Carlindo S. Rodrigues ,&nbsp;Manuela S.L. Tosto ,&nbsp;Silvia C. Bento ,&nbsp;Amanda B. Grimaldi ,&nbsp;Gleidson G.P. de Carvalho","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105530","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105530","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The experiment was conducted to evaluate the inclusion of different sources of fat on the intake and digestibility of nutrients, serum metabolites, and growth performance of feedlot lambs. Forty male Dorper × Santa Inês lambs (averaging 22.27 ± 2.79 kg of body weight; mean ± standard deviation) with approximately 4 months were distributed in a completely randomized design. Five experimental diets were tested: no added fat (NAF), whole soybeans (WSB), calcium salts of fatty acids (CSFA), soybean oil (SO), and full fat corn germ (CG). Nutrient intake was affected by the inclusion of different fat sources in diets (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05) except for the neutral detergent fiber (aNDFomp). The CSFA diet showed the highest nutrient apparent digestibility (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05), except for the digestibility of aNDFomp and non-fibrous carbohydrates. Nitrogen retention was higher (<em>P</em> = 0.003) in animals fed the CSFA diet. Albumin (<em>P</em> = 0.038), albumin:globulin ratio (<em>P</em> = 0.042), glucose (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001), and cholesterol (<em>P</em> = 0.032) were affected by the inclusion of different fat sources in feedlot lamb diets. Lambs fed NAF and CSFA diet showed the highest average daily gain (<em>P</em> = 0.001) and final body weight (<em>P</em> = 0.036). The use of 3.5 % calcium salts of fatty acids (protected fats); improves the diet digestibility and promoted the highest growth performance parameters in feedlot lambs.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"286 ","pages":"Article 105530"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141863127","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Bioeconomic and sustainability performance of dairy-beef steer and heifer production systems differing in stocking rate","authors":"M. Kearney ,&nbsp;E.G. O'Riordan ,&nbsp;M. McGee ,&nbsp;J. Breen ,&nbsp;R. Dunne ,&nbsp;P. French ,&nbsp;P. Crosson","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105531","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105531","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>There is little published research on dairy-beef heifer systems or comparisons of heifer and steer dairy-beef production. Furthermore, given its impact on the productivity and economics of dairy-beef systems, any comparison of gender must also consider potential interactions with stocking rate (SR). The objective of this study was to evaluate the variability of physical and economic performance, greenhouse gas emissions, feed-food competition and pasture land-use of dairy-beef production steer and heifer systems at differing stocking rates. Performance data from a two (gender: Steers and Heifers) x two (SR: Low and High) x two (breed-types: Early-maturing (EM) and Late-maturing (LM) factorial experiment was used to parameterize a bio-economic farm systems model. Low SR animals were heavier, had higher fat scores and better conformed at slaughter. High stocking rate resulted in greater carcass output per hectare and subsequently were, on average, 22 % more profitable than their Low SR counterparts. Late-maturing animals were found to be more profitable than early-maturing, and steers were more profitable than heifers. GHG emissions of the eight treatments investigated ranged from 10.7 to 17.7 kgs of carbon dioxide equivalents (kg CO₂eq) per kilogram of carcass weight produced, with both High SR and heifer systems having lower GHG emissions per kg of product than their Low SR and steer counterparts. Human edible protein efficiency was only favorable for the steer systems. High SR systems had, on average, lower land use per kg of product than their Low SR counterparts. Results from this study indicate that no single treatment was optimal across the range of performance metrics considered.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"287 ","pages":"Article 105531"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871141324001379/pdfft?md5=b812e493600bfee0b3c671aeffd9c74d&pid=1-s2.0-S1871141324001379-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141863126","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Occurrence of tail docking and tail biting in weaner pigs—A preliminary study in Portuguese abattoirs","authors":"Eduarda Gomes-Neves ,&nbsp;Matilde Fontes Teixeira ,&nbsp;Margarida Fonseca Cardoso","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105533","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105533","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>EU legislation forbids the systematic use of tail docking. Tail-biting is a welfare problem in swine production, including weaners. In Portugal, like in Spain, Greece, Italy, Croatia, and Serbia the transport of five-week-old pigs to the abattoir is a common practice. This study aimed to evaluate the occurrence of tail docking and tail-biting in weaners and associate it with the farm of origin/grouping centre and meat inspection results. Weaners were observed at 6 abattoirs in the Central Region of Portugal. Origin, docking status, tail lesions, and carcass condemnation were recorded during post-mortem inspection. A total of 15,863 weaners were assessed, 12.6 % came from assembly centres, 22 % with docked tails, 21.5 % with tail lesions, and 60 weaners were condemned. Tail-biting lesions were significantly associated with having an undocked tail. This association was stronger if the weaners came from intermediate assembly centres compared to weaners that came directly from the farm (AOR = 5.642, 95 %CI 2.885 to 11.030, <em>P</em> = 0.017 versus AOR = 1.403, 95 %CI 1.062 to 1.853, <em>P</em> &lt; 0.001). The rate of carcass condemnations was higher among weaners presenting tail lesions (6.15 versus 3.13/1000 in weaners without tail lesion). The most frequent cause of condemnation was polyarthritis/purulent arthritis (1.6 per 1000 weaners). Our study shows that tail-docking is still practiced, and having the tails undocked is an additional vulnerability in what concerns tail-biting, especially in those weaners that do not go directly from the farm to the abattoir, with intermediate stops at assembly centres. New regulation is needed that takes into account this further deterioration in animal welfare.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"287 ","pages":"Article 105533"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-07-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871141324001392/pdfft?md5=ce16e14ade4b28a38b25fd8b6b505e92&pid=1-s2.0-S1871141324001392-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141937679","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pre-housing fasting and diet physical form impact broiler chicks’ gastrointestinal development along the first week of housing","authors":"Marina Antunes Augusto ,&nbsp;Letícia Pinheiro Moreira ,&nbsp;Leonardo José Camargos Lara ,&nbsp;Alex Maiorka ,&nbsp;Egladison João Campos ,&nbsp;Hélio Chiarini-Garcia ,&nbsp;Fernanda Radicchi Campos Lobato de Almeida","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105532","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2024.105532","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study aimed to evaluate body and gastrointestinal development in broilers chicks subjected or not to pre-housing fasting and different diet physical forms during the first week of housing. Nine hundred chicks were distributed into a completely randomized design in a 3×3 factorial arrangement: 0, 24 and 48 hours(h) of fasting; mashed (MM), crushed (CC) and micropelletized (MP) physical forms. For each fasting period, 300 animals were housed in protection circles with 100 chicks each. On days 1, 3, 5 and 7 of feeding, six animals were randomly selected, previously weighed and euthanized to obtain organs biometrical and histological data. Chicks fasted for 24 h and 48 h were lighter compared to the 0 h group and the 24-h fasting x MP interaction had a positive impact on body weight at d7 (<em>P</em>&lt;0.05). Although fasted chicks presented lower body weight, small intestine, liver and gizzard were heavier, and presented greater yolk sac consumption (YSC; <em>P</em>&lt;0.05). There were no alterations in the duodenal mucosa (DM) in pre-housing fasting animals (<em>P</em>&gt;0.05). Despite the diet physical form and pre-housing fasting interactions for villus height (VH) and absorptive area (AA) on d1, only diet physical form affected DM, where greater VH and AA on d7 were observed in CC and MP groups (<em>P</em>&lt;0.05). Animals fed MP after 48 h fasting presented smaller VH and AA compared to chicks fed the same diet after 24 h and were similar to the 0 h group (<em>P</em>&lt;0.05). On d1, YSC was similar among groups of the same diet, but for those fed with MP(<em>P</em>&lt;0.05). The 48 h-fasted group presented heavier intestines relative weights (IRW) at d1(<em>P</em>&lt;0.05). Furthermore, the 0 h group fed with CC presented higher IRW, whereas MP showed the lowest IRW over the first week (<em>P</em>&lt;0.05). The DM development (kinetics) showed an increase in VH and AA overtime in all groups, which was more pronounced in 48 h-fasting chicks throughout the first week, showing the highest increase in VH when fed with MP (<em>P</em>&lt;0.05). VH:CD ratio was similar along the first week in MP groups, regardless of the fasting period but more pronounced in the 24 h group fed MM and CC (<em>P</em>&lt;0.05). Therefore, 24 h fasting associated to MP diet may be the most efficient management practice. Collectively, these findings suggest pre-housing fasting is strongly associated with diet physical form at the first week of housing and should be considered to achieve greater performance in broilers.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"287 ","pages":"Article 105532"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2024-07-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141774107","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}