Higher heritabilities for gait components than for overall gait scores may improve mobility in ducks

International audienceAbstractBackgroundGenetic progress in selection for greater body mass and meat yield in poultry has been associated with an increase in gait problems which are detrimental to productivity and welfare. The incidence of suboptimal gait in breeding flocks is controlled through the use of a visual gait score, which is a subjective assessment of walking ability of each bird. The subjective nature of the visual gait score has led to concerns over its effectiveness in reducing the incidence of suboptimal gait in poultry through breeding. The aims of this study were to assess the reliability of the current visual gait scoring system in ducks and to develop a more objective method to select for better gait.ResultsExperienced gait scorers assessed short video clips of walking ducks to estimate the reliability of the current visual gait scoring system. Kendall’s coefficients of concordance between and within observers were estimated at 0.49 and 0.75, respectively. In order to develop a more objective scoring system, gait components were visually scored on more than 4000 pedigreed Pekin ducks and genetic parameters were estimated for these components. Gait components, which are a more objective measure, had heritabilities that were as good as, or better than, those of the overall visual gait score.ConclusionsMeasurement of gait components is simpler and therefore more objective than the standard visual gait score. The recording of gait components can potentially be automated, which may increase accuracy further and may improve heritability estimates. Genetic correlations were generally low, which suggests that it is possible to use gait components to select for an overall improvement in both economic traits and gait as part of a balanced breeding programme

Knowledge of Bovine Tuberculosis, Cattle Husbandry and Dairy Practices amongst Pastoralists and Small-Scale Dairy Farmers in Cameroon

BACKGROUND:Control of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) and zoonotic tuberculosis (zTB) has relied upon surveillance and slaughter of infected cattle, milk pasteurisation and public health education. In Cameroon, like many other sub-Saharan African countries, there is limited understanding of current cattle husbandry or milk processing practices or livestock keepers awareness of bTB. This paper describes husbandry and milk processing practices within different Cameroonian cattle keeping communities and bTB awareness in comparison to other infectious diseases. STUDY DESIGN:A population based cross-sectional sample of herdsmen and a questionnaire were used to gather data from pastoralists and dairy farmers in the North West Region and Vina Division of Cameroon. RESULTS:Pastoralists were predominately male Fulanis who had kept cattle for over a decade. Dairy farmers were non-Fulani and nearly half were female. Pastoralists went on transhumance with their cattle and came into contact with other herds and potential wildlife reservoirs of bTB. Dairy farmers housed their cattle and had little contact with other herds or wildlife. Pastoralists were aware of bTB and other infectious diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease and fasciolosis. These pastoralists were also able to identify clinical signs of these diseases. A similar proportion of dairy farmers were aware of bTB but fewer were aware of foot-and-mouth and fasciolosis. In general, dairy farmers were unable to identify any clinical signs for any of these diseases. Importantly most pastoralists and dairy farmers were unaware that bTB could be transmitted to people by consuming milk. CONCLUSIONS:Current cattle husbandry practices make the control of bTB in cattle challenging especially in mobile pastoralist herds. Routine test and slaughter control in dairy herds would be tractable but would have profound impact on dairy farmer livelihoods. Prevention of transmission in milk offers the best approach for human risk mitigation in Cameroon but requires strategies that improved risk awareness amongst producers and consumers

Preference testing in intensively kept meat production rabbits for straw on wire grid floor.

The main aim of the study was to determine to what extent young rabbits kept on wire-floor cages would be attracted by straw bedding and how would access to straw modify their behaviour, health and performance. A total of 384 hybrid commercial breed rabbits (Hycol(R)) were assigned to 16 pens of 1.6 m(2) (15 rabbits/m(2)). Eight pens used as controls had an all-wire floor, while in eight other pens, rabbits could choose between a wire floor or a deep litter topped up once a week and completely replaced once during the course of the 40-day-long study. Behaviour was recorded by video camera between 7 and 10 weeks of age through 24 h observations consisting of 24 sequences of 1 min every 60 min. Reactions to a new environment were compared between both treatments through the use of an open-field test. Parasitism was monitored from faeces and growth performance analysed. Time budgets showed resting, 60%; grooming, 19%; and feeding, 19-20%; were poorly influenced either at 7 or 10 weeks of age by type of floor. The most unexpected result was the low attraction of straw. Rabbits in the littered pens spent most of their time on the wire (89% at 7 weeks and 77% at 10 weeks; P < 0.01), especially when they were lying (96% at 7 weeks and 84% at 10 weeks; P < 0.01). The most plausible explanation for this preference seems to be that rabbits were attracted to the cleanliness and the dryness of the wire. Reactions to a new environment, and parasitism were not significantly influenced by treatments. On the other hand, final bodyweight, carcass weight and daily gain significantly decreased by 8%, 6.5%, and 10%, respectively in the littered pens compared with the wire pens (P < 0.05). These results demonstrated that fattening rabbits kept under intensive conditions preferred a wire floor to a straw deep litter. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reservedIn: Applied Animal Behaviour Science, vol. 64, nr. 1, pp. 71-80The main aim of the study was to determine to what extent young rabbits kept on wire-floor cages would be attracted by straw bedding and how would access to straw modify their behaviour, health and performance. A total of 384 hybrid commercial breed rabbits (Hycol(R)) were assigned to 16 pens of 1.6 m(2) (15 rabbits/m(2)). Eight pens used as controls had an all-wire floor, while in eight other pens, rabbits could choose between a wire floor or a deep litter topped up once a week and completely replaced once during the course of the 40-day-long study. Behaviour was recorded by video camera between 7 and 10 weeks of age through 24 h observations consisting of 24 sequences of 1 min every 60 min. Reactions to a new environment were compared between both treatments through the use of an open-field test. Parasitism was monitored from faeces and growth performance analysed. Time budgets showed resting, 60%; grooming, 19%; and feeding, 19-20%; were poorly influenced either at 7 or 10 weeks of age by type of floor. The most unexpected result was the low attraction of straw. Rabbits in the littered pens spent most of their time on the wire (89% at 7 weeks and 77% at 10 weeks; P < 0.01), especially when they were lying (96% at 7 weeks and 84% at 10 weeks; P < 0.01). The most plausible explanation for this preference seems to be that rabbits were attracted to the cleanliness and the dryness of the wire. Reactions to a new environment, and parasitism were not significantly influenced by treatments. On the other hand, final bodyweight, carcass weight and daily gain significantly decreased by 8%, 6.5%, and 10%, respectively in the littered pens compared with the wire pens (P < 0.05). These results demonstrated that fattening rabbits kept under intensive conditions preferred a wire floor to a straw deep litter. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reservedOnderzoeksbibliografie Frank OdbergHerkomst: Onderzoeksbibliografie van em. prof. dr. Frank O. Ödberg, verbonden aan de Vakgroep Voeding, Genetica en Ethologie van de Faculteit Diergeneeskund