Indicators of exhaustion and stress markers in endurance horses

Prolonged training and physical effort in endurance horses can influence the performance of the endurance horses negatively. The negative impact of the event is especially noticeable if venues are demanding, i.e. bad weather conditions or demanding grounds, high altitude and especially in cases of insufficiently fit horses. One of the most important factors that influence equine performance is abundance of oxygen in the blood, which is directly related to the air oxygen content and changes with atmospheric pressure, so that high altitude and low air pressure demand additional work from horses and accelerate fatigue. The authors goal was to investigate the influence of workload in endurance racing on sport horse organism. A total of 18 trained and competing endurance horses enrolled in a 60 km long endurance race organized on Zlatibor Mountain were included in our survey. Due to the difficult track 8 horses were disqualified due to lameness, and high heart rate and respiration. Only 10 horses completed the race and these animals were submitted to basic physical, clinical and laboratory examinations, in order to evaluate fatigue and stress reaction in endurance horses in Serbia. Results of the clinical and laboratory testing obtained show significant changes in all parameters evaluated which we attributed to physical effort in all 10 horses that finished the race in comparison with the values obtained before the race. In conclusion, 10 horses finished the race and were tested, and they indicated significant alterations in physiological parameters showing stress reaction. The evaluated parameters decreased into physiological interval values during the 5 days following the race. © 2021 Polskie Towarzystwo Nauk Weterynaryjnych. All rights reserved

Uticaj fizičke aktivnosti na histološke karakteristike mišića domaćih životinja

Meso je proizvod koji nastaje kroz različite biohemijske procese nakon rigor mortis-a od skeletnih mišića životinje. Zbog toga karakteristike mišićnog tkiva, njegova struktura, broj, prečnik i zastupljenost pojedinih tipova mišićnih vlakana u velikoj meri određuju količinu i kvalitet mesa. Kako su selekcijom i ishranom gotovo dostignuti maksimumi u proizvodnji mesa sa jedne strane, a sve su veći zahtevi potrošača za “ekološkim” i proizvodima iz održive proizvodnje, uz poštovanje principa dobrobiti životinja sa druge strane, ispitivanje uticaja fizičke aktivnosti kod životinja dobija sve veći značaj, pri čemu se pod tom aktivnošću podrazumeva ili slobodno kretanje životinja (na pašnjacima) ili poluslobodni sistemi držanja različitog stepena intezivnosti. Takođe, ovaj faktor mogao bi biti od značaja posebno kod svinja i živine, kod kojih je intenzivnom selekcijom na mesnatost povećan broj glikolitičkih vlakana u mišićima, što je uslovilo i probleme sa kvalitetom mesa (bledo, meko i vodnjikavo meso - BMV meso)

The effect of organic selenium on haematological and biochemical parameters of blood and the quality of pheasant breast meat

Th e aim of this study was to determine the eff ect of supplementing food with various concentrations of organic selenium (0.2 and 0.3 mg/kg diet) on the biochemical and haematological parameters of blood and the qual-ity of breast meat of 45 pheasants. Th e pheasants were divided into three groups and fed mixtures containing organic selenium supplementation in the concentrations of 0.2 mg/kg (1st group) and 0.3 mg/kg (2nd group) and a mixture without selenium in a control group (K). Aft er 60 days of the ex-periment, it was determined that the average values of selenium content in the breast meat and blood serum of the 2nd group of pheasants which were fed 0.3 mg/kg of organic selenium were signifi cantly higher (p < 0.05) than the same parameters of the pheasants from K group. Th e pheasants from the 2nd group also had better sensory traits of meat and they had the highest diff erence of the sum of the ranks of meat acceptability. Th e diff erence was by 15 points higher than that in the K group and 7 points higher than in the meat of the pheasants from the 1st group that fed 0.2 mg/kg of selenium. Th e addition of organic selenium supplementation to the diet for the 2nd group of pheasants (0.3 mg/kg) increased the water retention capacity in breast meat by 0.75% compared to the K group, namely by 0.58% in comparison to the 1st group. Th e average values of chemical parameters of meat (pH, water, fat, proteins and ash content), haematological parameters of pheasant blood (number of erythrocytes, leucocytes and platelets, haemoglobin and haem-atocrit values) and biochemical parameters of blood serum (glucose, en-zymes: aspartate transaminase and alanine aminotransferase, total protein concentration, total cholesterol albumin, triglycerides, calcium, potassium and sodium) were within the limits of reference values for pheasants and very uniform without signifi cant variations among experimental groups

The influence of rearing system and age on the phenotypic correlation of the physical properties of eggs of Banat naked neck layers

The aim of the study was to examine the influence of the rearing system and age on the phenotypic correlation of the physical properties of the eggs of the Banat naked neck layers. In both examined systems (extensive and semi-intensive system) there were 50 Banat naked neck layers each. The egg properties were examined at three evenly distributed time intervals (40, 45 and 50 weeks of age) in the period from May to July. In order to determine the external properties of egg quality, three basic measures were observed: egg weight, egg length and egg width. Based on the measured length and width of the eggs, the egg shape index was calculated, and subsequently the volume and surface area of the eggs were determined. For each examined factor, the correlation between the mentioned characteristics was determined. The obtained results showed a significant effect of the rearing system on all examined egg properties (Р < 0.05), while the influence of age as well as the interaction of the two examined factors had no significant effect. The highest correlation among all investigated factors was found between surface area and egg volume

Mogućnost, potreba i ekonomski aspekti očuvanja autohtonih vrsta i rasa kopitara

Autohtone rase životinja predstavljaju proizvod specifičnih klimatskih, ekonomskih, biogeografskih, istorijskih i drugih uslova, te i danas najbolje odgovaraju uslovima u kojima se još gaje. Veoma izražena otpornost autohtonih rasa omogućava i njihovo gajenje bez većih ulaganja u zdravstvenu zaštitu i lečenje, pa se na ovaj način dobijaju animalni proizvodi posebnog kvaliteta za ishranu ljudi, koji ne sadrže rezidue različitih antibiotika i sredstava za zaštitu biljaka. Očuvanje autohtonih rasa doprinosi održivosti agrobiodiverziteta, njihovim korišćenjem u ekološkoj proizvodnji hrane i učešćem u agroturizmu. Gajenjem autohtonih rasa ne mogu se osigurati zadovoljavajući nivoi prihoda zbog čega je njihovo gajenje neophodno materijalno podsticati.Zbornik predavanj

Phenotypic correlation of hens body weight and reproductive traits of broiler parents

Examinations were conducted in two flocks of broiler parents' hybrids Ross 308 and Cobb 500. At the beginning of the production cycle (24th weeks of age) was determined that the average hens body weight of hybrid Ross 308 was 2680.40 g, and to hybrid Cobb 500 was 2697.80 g. At 42nd weeks of age (middle of the production cycle) hens body weight was 3565.10 g (Ross 308) and 3599.05 g (Cobb 500), while at the end of the production cycle (61st weeks of age) hens body weight of hybrid Ross 308 was 3841.50 g, and to the Cobb 500 was 3850.00 g. Determined differences of hens body weight (17.40 g, 33.95 g and 8.50 g) in specific periods of the production cycle, and the difference in hens body weight for the entire cycle (23.26 g) weren't statistically significant (P>0.05). Specific consideration of the impact of hens' body weight on reproductive performances of broiler parents was determined by calculating the coefficients of phenotypic correlation among the tested indicators. Thus, between hens body weight and most reproductive indicators of broiler parents were determined statistically very significant (P<0.001) coefficients of phenotypic correlation, while between hens body weight and the percentages of chickens feasibility from fertilized eggs were determined significant (P<0.001; P<0.01; P<0.05) correlation coefficients for a slightly shorter period than anticipated production cycle

The annex to the knowledge of microclimate conditions of sports horses accommodation

An adequate accommodation of sport horses implies the appliance of all construction, zootechnical and hygienic norms. Stables for horses should provide optimal microclimatic conditions for horses, social contact with other horses, unrestricted access to food and water, as well as to reduce the risk to injury to a minimum. Stables are essential for wellbeing of horses, because they spend a significant part of the day in them. Lights, temperature, humidity, air flow, concentration of gases and dust, hygiene and noise intensity in the areas where the animals are, must be within limits that are not harmful for horses. Satisfying optimal microclimatic conditions in the horse stables represent one of the most important items when projecting a facility. The aim of this paper is to highlight the significance of adequate accommodation for horses in accordance with the natural ethological characteristics of horses as well as to describe the most important ambient parameters in the closed type facilities.Proceeding