Interaction of reproduction rhythm, suckling and parity on mating incidence, ovarian dynamics and estrogen secretion in the rabbit doe

The effects of suckling and remating interval (11 or 21 d post partum) were studied in primiparous (P=25) and multiparous (M=23) hybrid rabbits. In P rabbits, suckling had no significant effect on mating incidence; however, a higher percentage of females accepted the male on d 11 than on d 21 (P<0.01). In M rabbits, no significant differences in mating performance due to either day, suckling or their interaction were found. A higher proportion of nonsuckled than suckled P rabbits ovulated (P<0.01). Ovulation incidence was not affected significantly by day of mating, suckling or their interaction in M rabbits. A comparison of the day influence in P and M rabbits on mating incidence showed a greater effect in the P (P<0.05) while the suckling effect on ovulation performance showed an insignificant difference in the two parity groups. Ovulation rate, as assessed by ultrasound, was not influenced significantly by day or suckling in either P or M rabbits. The follicle distribution was marked by fewer large follicles and lower plasma estrogen levels were detected in suckled than in nonsuckled P and M rabbits (P<0.05). Further research is needed to elucidate these phenomena also when AI is performed

Effects of creep feed pellet diameter on suckling and nursery pig performance

Citation: Clark, A. B., De Jong, J. A., DeRouchey, J. M., Tokach, M. D., Dritz, S. S., Goodband, R. D., & Woodworth, J. C. (2016). Effects of creep feed pellet diameter on suckling and nursery pig performance. Journal of Animal Science, 94, 100-101. doi:10.2527/msasas2016-213A total of 26 litters of pigs (PIC 327 × 1050; initially 3.2 kg BW and 10-d of age) were used to evaluate the effects of creep feed pellet diameter on suckling pig and nursery growth performance. On d 10 of suckling, litters were allotted to 1 of 2 dietary treatments by parity and BW in a randomized complete block design with 13 replications per treatment. Starting on d 10 of lactation, pigs were fed common pelleted creep feed processed using either a 3.2 mm (small) or a 12.7 mm (large) die. Chromic oxide was included as a fecal marker and fecal swabs were taken on d 14, 17, and 21 to determine percentage of pigs consuming creep feed. On d 21, pigs were weaned and re-allotted to nursery treatments for 21-d and fed in 2 phases. Phase 1 (d 0 to 7 postweaning) treatment diets were the same diets fed during the suckling period with 50% of the pigs remaining on their previously allotted pellet diameter treatment and the other 50% of pigs were re-allotted to the opposite pellet diameter treatment in the nursery. A common meal form diet was fed from d 7 to 21 postweaning. During the suckling phase (d 10 to 21), litters of pigs fed the large creep pellet had decreased (P < 0.03) pre-weaning mortality (0 vs. 2.54%; SEM = 0.008) and increased (P < 0.05) ADFI from d 17 to 21 (30.8 vs. 17.6 g; SEM = 4.41). There were no significant differences in suckling pig BW gain (3.21 vs. 3.25 kg; SEM = 0.107, for small and large pellet treatments, respectively) or percentage of pigs consuming creep feed (58 vs. 59%; SEM = 0.008, for small and large pellet treatments, respectively). During the nursery phase, pigs fed a large nursery pellet, regardless of creep feed treatment, had increased (P < 0.01) ADFI from d 0 to 7 (138 vs. 153 g; SEM = 3.6). Pigs fed the large creep feed pellet, regardless of nursery pellet diameter, had improved (P < 0.03) ADG (67 vs. 50 g; SEM = 5.0) and G:F (0.452 vs. 0.334; SEM = 0.0349) from d 0 to 7 postweaning, as well as improved G:F overall (0.828 vs. 0.779; SEM = 0.0129). There were no significant differences in ADG or ADFI during the common or overall period. In summary, feeding a large creep feed pellet improved late suckling creep ADFI and nursery G:F, while feeding a large nursery pellet increased ADFI during the first week in the nursery

Drug-like analogues of the parasitic worm-derived immunomodulator ES-62 are therapeutic in the MRL/Lpr model of systemic lupus erythematosus

Introduction ES-62, a phosphorylcholine (PC)-containing immunomodulator secreted by the parasitic worm Acanthocheilonema viteae, protects against nephritis in the MRL/Lpr mouse model of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). However, ES-62 is not suitable for development as a therapy and thus we have designed drug-like small molecule analogues (SMAs) based around its active PC-moiety. To provide proof of concept that ES-62-based SMAs exhibit therapeutic potential in SLE, we have investigated the capacity of two SMAs to protect against nephritis when administered to MRL/Lpr mice after onset of kidney damage. Methods SMAs 11a and 12b were evaluated for their ability to suppress antinuclear antibody (ANA) generation and consequent kidney pathology in MRL/Lpr mice when administered after the onset of proteinuria. Results SMAs 11a and 12b suppressed development of ANA and proteinuria. Protection reflected downregulation of MyD88 expression by kidney cells and this was associated with reduced production of IL-6, a cytokine that exhibits promise as a therapeutic target for this condition. Conclusions SMAs 11a and 12b provide proof of principle that synthetic compounds based on the safe immunomodulatory mechanisms of parasitic worms can exhibit therapeutic potential as a novel class of drugs for SLE, a disease for which current therapies remain inadequate

Effect of a single subcutaneous injection of meloxicam on chronic indicators of pain and inflammatory responses in 2-month-old knife and band-castrated beef calves housed on pasture

One hundred and thirty-one 2 mo. old pasture housed Angus cross bull calves were evaluated for 62 d over two years (Year 1: n = 69, 134.1 ± 20.37 kg BW; Year 2: n = 62, 118.1 ± 15.49 kg BW) to determine 1) the effects of a subcutaneous (s.c) injection of meloxicam on indicators of long term pain after castration and 2) the potential use of cow-calf proximity and home range as indicators of pain. Calves were randomly assigned to treatments using a 3 × 2 factorial design including castration - sham (CT; n = 47), band (BA; n = 46) or knife (KN; n = 38) castration and medication – s.c. meloxicam (M; n = 66) or s.c. lactated ringers solution (NM; n = 65). Measurements included performance, scrotal temperature, swelling (WS) and healing (WH) scores, and pain sensitivity, collected on d -1, 6, 13, 20, 34, 48, and 62 post-castration. Suckling, lying, standing and walking duration, and head-turning, lesion-licking, foot-stamping and tail-flick frequencies were collected immediately following and up to 2-d after castration. Cow-calf proximity and home range were obtained from d 0 to 2 and from d 14 to 16. With the exception of suckling, no medication (P > 0.05) effects were found. Greater (P < 0.05) pain sensitivity was observed in KN from d 6 to 34 and on d 62, and in BA from d 6 to 62 compared to CT calves. Knife calves showed an earlier (d 20) absence of inflammatory responses (WS; P < 0.05) than BA (d 34) and overall, KN calves had greater (P < 0.05) standing, walking, and head turning than BA and CT. Knife and BA had greater (P < 0.05) foot stamping than CT for the first 2 h post-castration, but KN exhibited greater (P < 0.05) frequencies between 9 and 11 h (d 0) compared to BA and CT, and had greater (P < 0.05) tail flicks from d 0 to 2 than CT. Banded calves were closer to their dams on d 15 while KN calves and their dams had a reduced home range on d 0 than CT cow-calf pairs. Although meloxicam did not reduce indicators of pain (with exception of suckling behavior), our results suggest that knife castration causes greater acute pain, while band castration resulted in greater chronic-pain. Cow-calf proximity and home range have some potential to be used as pain indicators post-castration.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Milk digestion in the young rabbit: methodology and first results

[EN] This study aims to determine the digestibility of milk by the young rabbit (21-25 d old), taking into account the increment of digesta content and urine excretion. Nineteen litters of 9 young rabbits 21 to 25 d old were used: 12 litters (S group) fed exclusively with milk using controlled suckling, and 7 litters (Control group) with free suckling and access to the pelleted feed of the doe. The faecal digestibility of milk dry matter (DM) was measured between 21 and 25 d of age, for S litters housed from 15 d of age in a metabolism cage separately from their mother. Between 21 and 25 d, the milk intake, faeces and urine excretion were controlled daily, and the mean increment in digesta content was measured by comparing digesta weight of the whole tract at 21 and 25 d of age (one kit per litter). The increment in digesta content from 21 to 25 d averaged 77% (+8.5 g), sourcing mainly from stomach and caecum contents increase (+57 and +120% respectively). The mean increase for the dry content of the gut (from 21 to 25 d) was 1.75 g DM/kit, and was considered as non-digested to calculate the digestibility coefficient of the milk. The milk intake averaged 30 g/d/kit (7.9 g DM/d kit). No faecal excretion was recorded between 21 and 25 d. From the milk intake and increment in digesta content, the corrected digestibility of the milk dry matter reached 94% (minimum=92.9%, maximum=95.6%). The daily urine excretion averaged 5.1 mL/kit, corresponding to 1.2 g DM/kit. Therefore, the corrected DM retention coefficient of the milk was 79.5%. The quantity of nitrogen excreted in urine was low (0.06 g/d kits), thus the corrected nitrogen retention coefficient for milk reached 82% and the nitrogen retained (corrected) reached 0.44 g/d kit. Accordingly, the amount in metabolisable protein for the milk was 90 g/kg (fresh). The corrected energy retention coefficient was estimated to 95.8%, for a crude energy concentration estimated at 28.14 MJ/kg DM for the milk. Thus, the energy retained (corrected) reached 223 kJ/d kit and the content in metabolisable energy for the milk was 26.94 MJ/kg DM.The authors thank INRA PHASE division for the financial support. The authors would also like to thank the technicians involved in the experiment at the INRA UE PECTOUL (Patrick Aymard, Jacques De Dapper & Jean De Dapper) and in the GenPhySE laboratory (Véronique Tartié).Gidenne, TN.; Bannelier, C.; Gallois, M.; Segura, M.; Lambrecht, V. (2018). Milk digestion in the young rabbit: methodology and first results. World Rabbit Science. 26(4):269-276. doi:10.4995/wrs.2018.10061SWORD269276264Alstin F., Nilsson M. 1990. The Soxtec®hydrolysis system improves the official methods for determining total fat content. Ind. Alim. Agric., 107: 1271-1274.Carabaño R., Piquer J., Menoyo D., Badiola I. 2010. The digestive system of the rabbit, In: De Blas C., Wiseman J. (Eds.), Nutrition of the rabbit, CABI; Wallingford; UK, pp. 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1079/9781845936693.0001EGRAN. 2001. Technical note: Attempts to harmonise chemical analyses of feeds and faeces, for rabbit feed evaluation. World Rabbit Sci., 9: 57-64. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2001.446Gallois M., Gidenne T., Fortun-Lamote F., Le Hueron-Luron I., Lallès J.P. 2005. An early stimulation of solid feed intake slightly influences the morphological gut maturation in the rabbit. Reprod. Nutr. Develop., 45: 109-122. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731108001730Gallois M., Fortun-Lamothe L., Michelan A., Gidenne T. 2008. Adaptability of the digestive function according to age at weaning in the rabbit: II. Effect on nutrient digestion in the small intestine and in the whole digestive tract. Animal, 2: 536-547. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731108001730Gidenne T., Debray L., Fortun-Lamothe L., Le Huerou-Luron I. 2007. Maturation of the intestinal digestion and of microbial activity in the young rabbit: Impact of the dietary fibre:starch ratio. Comp. Bioch. Physiol. - Part A: Molecular & Integrative Physiology, 148: 834-844. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpa.2007.08.025Gidenne T., Lebas F., Savietto D., Dorchies P., Duperray J., Davoust C., Fortun-Lamothe L. 2015. Nutrition et alimentation, In: Gidenne T. (Ed.), Le lapin. De la biologie à l'élevage, Quae éditions, pp. 152-196.Lebas, F. 1971. Composition chimique du lait de lapine évolution au cours de la traite et en fonction du stade de lactation. Ann. Zootech., 20: 185-191. https://doi.org/10.1051/animres:19710205Maertens L., Lebas F., Szendrő Zs. 2006. Rabbit milk: a review of quantity, quality and non-dietary affecting factors. World Rabbit Sci., 14: 205-203. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2006.565Orengo J., Gidenne T. 2007. Feeding behaviour and caecotrophy in the young rabbit before weaning: An approach by analysing the digestive contents. App. Anim. Behav. Sci., 102: 106-118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2006.03.010Parigi Bini R., Cesselli P. 1976. Estimate of energy excreted in urine by growing rabbits. In: 1st World Rabbit Congress, Dijon, France, Comm. 20, 6.Parigi Bini R., Xiccato G., Cinetto M., Dalle Zotte A. 1991. Digestive efficiency and energy and protein retention in suckling and weanling rabbits. Zootec. Nutr. Anim., 17: 167-180.Savietto D., Cervera C., Blas E., Baselga M., Larsen T., Friggens N.C., Pascual J.J. 2014. Environmental sensitivity differs between rabbit lines selected for reproductive intensity and longevity. Animal, 7: 1969-1977. https://doi.org/10.1017/S175173111300178XUbilla E., Rebollar P.G., Pazo D., Esquifino A., Alvariño J.M.R. 2000. Effects of doe-litter separation on endocrinological and productivity variables in lactating rabbits. Livest. Prod. Sci., 67: 67-74. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0301-6226(00)00196-2Udert K.M., Larsen T.A., Biebow M., Gujer W.P. 2003. 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The performance of heifers reared in a suckling system

In this study the effects on the performance of heifers reared in a suckling system (suckled heifers) compared to heifers reared in a bucket system (bucket heifers) were investigated. Heifers are young dairy cows that started first lactation. Focus was on the following parameters: age and live weight at first calving, milk production, and mastitis incidence. Also, attention was given to Paratuberculosis since suckling systems might increase the risks on its occurrence

Calf welfare in organic herds - planning for the future

These proceedings contain papers based on presentations and discssions at the workshop "Calf welfare in organic herds - planning on the future" held March 31st to April 1st 2008 in Stange, Norway

Effective suckling in relation to naked maternal-infant body contact in the first hour of life: an observation study

Background Best practice guidelines to promote breastfeeding suggest that (i) mothers hold their babies in naked body contact immediately after birth, (ii) babies remain undisturbed for at least one hour and (iii) breastfeeding assistance be offered during this period. Few studies have closely observed the implementation of these guidelines in practice. We sought to evaluate these practices on suckling achievement within the first hour after birth. Methods Observations of seventy-eight mother-baby dyads recorded newborn feeding behaviours, the help received by mothers and birthing room practices each minute, for sixty minutes. Results Duration of naked body contact between mothers and their newborn babies varied widely from 1 to 60 minutes, as did commencement of suckling (range = 10 to 60 minutes). Naked maternal-infant body contact immediately after birth, uninterrupted for at least thirty minutes did not predict effective suckling within the first hour of birth. Newborns were four times more likely to sustain deep rhythmical suckling when their chin made contact with their mother’s breast as they approached the nipple (OR 3.8; CI 1.03 - 14) and if their mothers had given birth previously (OR 6.7; CI 1.35 - 33). Infants who had any naso-oropharyngeal suctioning administered at birth were six times less likely to suckle effectively (OR .176; CI .04 - .9). Conclusion Effective suckling within the first hour of life was associated with a collection of practices including infants positioned so their chin can instinctively nudge the underside of their mother’s breast as they approach to grasp the nipple and attach to suckle. The best type of assistance provided in the birthing room that enables newborns to sustain an effective latch was paying attention to newborn feeding behaviours and not administering naso-oropharyngeal suction routinely