Does diversity matter?:behavioural differences between piglets given diverse or similar forms of enrichment pre-Weaning

This study investigated the behavioural effects of providing different enrichment materials to suckling piglets from 7 days-old until weaning. One object was attached to the pen wall (WALL), and the other was suspended in the middle of the pen (MID). Control group had the hessian fabric in both locations, and the two diverse groups had hessian and bamboo stick in alternate locations (i.e., BMID-HWALL and HMID-BWALL). Piglets behaviour was recorded on D0 (object introduction), D1, D5, D8, D12, and D14; at weaning and 1, 3, 5 and 15 days after. Groups did not differ in approaching or interacting with objects on D0. MID objects attracted more attention than WALL objects (p < 0.01). Piglets interacted more with hessian than bamboo (p < 0.001). They performed more oral manipulation and shaking with hessian (p < 0.001), but more pushing of bamboo (p < 0.001). Interactions with objects increased with time (p < 0.001), especially with hessian (p < 0.01), while interest in bamboo remained unchanged. Control piglets performed more biting than piglets with diverse enrichment (pooled data), both pre- and post-weaning (p < 0.05). Therefore, providing different types of enrichment material can reduce biting behaviour pre- and post-weaning. Hessian was favoured, possibly because this was easier to bite and shake, which were the behaviours most often observed.Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Irelan

Características de lesões iatrogénicas do nervo alveolar inferior ocorridas na abordagem cirúrgica de terceiros molares mandibulares

Dissertação para obtenção do grau de Mestre no Instituto Universitário Egas MonizA extração dos sisos, especialmente dos terceiros molares inclusos inferiores, são um dos procedimentos mais comuns em cirurgia oral. Com uma técnica cirúrgica adequada e atenta, as possíveis complicações que possam surgir são, principalmente, consequência da inflamação pelo trauma no osso e mucosas. No entanto, alguns danos neurológicos, embora pouco frequentes, mas complexos podem ocorrer para o doente, nomeadamente as lesões do nervo alveolar inferior (NAI). Esta revisão bibliográfica tem como objetivo estudar as características de lesões iatrogénicas do nervo alveolar inferior ocorridas na abordagem cirúrgica de terceiros molares mandibulares. Numa primeira parte será feita uma revisão anatómica do local a estudar. A seguir, será realizada uma análise à fase inicial do plano de tratamento, que consiste em enquadrar um diagnóstico com a ajuda dos exames clínicos e complementares de diagnósticos do doente. O objetivo desta abordagem é confirmar a indicação para o tratamento, precaver possíveis complicações intra-operatórias e considerar as possíveis complicações pós-operatórias, nomeadamente as lesões neurológicas. Para tal, iremos recordar as diferentes classificações de acordo com a posição e o grau de inclinação do terceiro molar. Em terceiro lugar, estudaremos os passos cirúrgicos para esta extração. Numa quarta fase e referente ao pós-operatório imediato, a prescrição medicamentosa e os cuidados pós-operatórios a ter, serão recordados. Finalmente, os agentes responsáveis pelos danos causados ao NAI e serão detalhados os passos cirúrgicos para a extração dos sisos inclusos mandibulares.Wisdom teeth extraction, particularly impacted mandibular third molars, are one of the most common procedures performed in oral surgery. With an appropriate and careful surgical technique, the most predictable complications are mainly a consequence of inflammation caused by bone and soft tissues trauma, nevertheless, less frequently but more complex neurological damage to the patient may occur, in particular, inferior alveolar nerve (NAI) injuries. This literature review aims to study the characteristics of iatrogenic lesions of the inferior alveolar nerve occurred in the surgical approach of impacted mandibular third molars. In the first part, an anatomical review of the surgical site will be carried out. In a second part, an analysis of the initial phase of treatment planning will be made, which consists of framing a diagnosis with the help of clinical and radiographic data. The aim of this approach is to confirm the proper indication for the treatment, to prevent possible intraoperative complications and consider possible postoperative complications, namely neurological lesions. To this end, a recall of the most common classifications of third molar positions according to their position and degree of inclination will be carried out. In a third part, the surgical steps for these extractions will be reviewed. In a fourth part, regarding the immediate postoperative period, drug prescriptions and postoperative care will be presented. Finally, the responsible agents for the damage to NAI will be studied, existing treatment for the management of neurological iatrogenic lesions of the NAI will be reviewed

Artificial rearing affects piglets pre-weaning behaviour, welfare and growth performance

peer-reviewedOne strategy adopted on farms to deal with managing large litters involves removing piglets from their mothers at seven days old to be reared in specialised accommodation with milk replacer. Effects on piglet behaviour, growth and some aspects of welfare were evaluated in this study by comparing 10 pairs of two litters (one sow-reared: SR, one artificially-reared: AR) selected at seven days-old at a similar weight. Piglet behaviour was recorded for 20 min following transfer of AR piglets to the artificial-rearing enclosure (D0) and for 20 min hourly between 09:00 h and 17:00 h (8 h) on D5 and D12. Hourly 5 min live observations were also undertaken. Qualitative Behavioural Assessment (QBA) was conducted on D14 to evaluate piglets’ emotional state. Survival and illness events were recorded until weaning. On D0, D1, D8 and D15 piglets were weighed and scored for tear staining, dirtiness of the face and severity of lesions on the snout, limbs, ear and tail. Survival and illness rates, as well as the rates of behaviours/min were analysed using GLMMs. Weights and QBA scores were analysed using GLM. Lesions, tear staining and dirtiness scores were averaged per litter and analysed using GLM. When AR piglets were transferred to the artificial-rearing enclosure, their behaviour was not different to SR piglets. Over the two observation days, AR piglets performed more belly-nosing (F1,76.53 = 42.25; P < 0.001), nursing-related displacements (F1,79 = 19.32, P < 0.001), visits to the milk cup (compared to nursing bouts; F1,73.8 = 38.42, P < 0.001), and oral manipulation of littermates’ ears (F1,91.95 = 12.79, P < 0.001) and tails (F1,58.54 = 15.63, P < 0.001) than SR piglets. However, SR piglets played alone (F1,88.99 = 8.29, P < 0.005) and explored their environment (F1,99.42 = 4.52, P < 0.05) more frequently than AR piglets. The QBA scores indicated a lower emotional state in AR piglets (t25.1=-3.25, P < 0.05). Survival rate and overall illness rate of piglets were similar between the treatments. AR piglets experienced a growth check following their transfer to the artificial-rearing enclosure and remained lighter than SR piglets through to weaning (6.53 ± 0.139 kg vs. 7.97 ± 0.168 kg, t256 = 9.79, P < 0.001). Overall, snout lesion scores were not different between the treatments, but AR piglets had lower limb (F1,10.1 = 5.89, P < 0.05) and ear (F1,14.5 = 24.89, P < 0.001) lesion scores and higher tail lesion scores (F1,34.5 = 15.54, P < 0.001). AR piglets were dirtier (F1,17.4 = 23.38, P < 0.001) but had lower tear staining scores (F1,19.1 = 68.40, P < 0.001) than SR piglets. In conclusion, artificial rearing impaired piglets’ behaviour, welfare and growth.This work was supported by the Irish Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine through the FIRM/RSF/CoFoRD 2013 Research Call (project no. 13S428)

A Single Dose of Fat-Based Energy Supplement to Light Birth Weight Pigs Shortly After Birth Does Not Increase Their Survival and Growth

peer-reviewedLow birth weight piglets are at high risk of mortality, because of the rapid depletion of their energy reserves after birth. At 3 h postpartum, 405 piglets weighing <1.1 kg were either dosed orally with 2 mL of (1) coconut oil (CO, 74 kJ/2 mL, n = 107 piglets), (2) commercial product (CP, 71 kJ/2 mL, n = 101 piglets), (3) water (W, 0 kJ/2 mL, n = 100 piglets) or (4) were sham-dosed (S, n = 97 piglets). Treatments were applied within litter (97 sows). Before treatment piglets were weighed, scored for vitality and blood glucose concentration (subset: CO = 45 piglets, CP = 38 piglets, W = 49 piglets and S = 44 piglets) and rectal temperature were measured. Rectal temperature was remeasured 1 h post-treatment (4 h postpartum). At 24 h post-treatment (27 h postpartum), vitality, weight and blood glucose were remeasured. Piglets were weighed on D5, D7, D10, D14, D21 and at weaning (27 ± 0.1 day old). Mortality rate and cause were recorded until 24h period post-treatment and until weaning. Data were analysed using Generalised Linear Mixed Models in SAS. There was no overall effect of treatment on any of the parameters measured. In conclusion, a single oral of fat-based energy supplement dose at birth did not improve growth, survival, rectal temperature or vitality of low birth weight piglets

Does Diversity Matter? Behavioural Differences between Piglets Given Diverse or Similar Forms of Enrichment Pre-Weaning

This study investigated the behavioural effects of providing different enrichment materials to suckling piglets from 7 days-old until weaning. One object was attached to the pen wall (WALL), and the other was suspended in the middle of the pen (MID). Control group had the hessian fabric in both locations, and the two diverse groups had hessian and bamboo stick in alternate locations (i.e., BMID-HWALL and HMID-BWALL). Piglets behaviour was recorded on D0 (object introduction), D1, D5, D8, D12, and D14; at weaning and 1, 3, 5 and 15 days after. Groups did not differ in approaching or interacting with objects on D0. MID objects attracted more attention than WALL objects (p &lt; 0.01). Piglets interacted more with hessian than bamboo (p &lt; 0.001). They performed more oral manipulation and shaking with hessian (p &lt; 0.001), but more pushing of bamboo (p &lt; 0.001). Interactions with objects increased with time (p &lt; 0.001), especially with hessian (p &lt; 0.01), while interest in bamboo remained unchanged. Control piglets performed more biting than piglets with diverse enrichment (pooled data), both pre- and post-weaning (p &lt; 0.05). Therefore, providing different types of enrichment material can reduce biting behaviour pre- and post-weaning. Hessian was favoured, possibly because this was easier to bite and shake, which were the behaviours most often observed

The Way Humans Behave Modulates the Emotional State of Piglets.

The emotional state can influence decision-making under ambiguity. Cognitive bias tests (CBT) proved to be a promising indicator of the affective valence of animals in a context of farm animal welfare. Although it is well-known that humans can influence the intensity of fear and reactions of animals, research on cognitive bias often focusses on housing and management conditions and neglects the role of humans on emotional states of animals. The present study aimed at investigating whether humans can modulate the emotional state of weaned piglets. Fifty-four piglets received a chronic experience with humans: gentle (GEN), rough (ROU) or minimal contact (MIN). Simultaneously, they were individually trained on a go/no-go task to discriminate a positive auditory cue, associated with food reward in a trough, from a negative one, associated with punishments (e.g. water spray). Independently of the treatment (P = 0.82), 59% of piglets completed the training. Successfully trained piglets were then subjected to CBT, including ambiguous cues in presence or absence of a human observer. As hypothesized, GEN piglets showed a positive judgement bias, as shown by their higher percentage of go responses following an ambiguous cue compared to ROU (P = 0.03) and MIN (P = 0.02) piglets, whereas ROU and MIN piglets did not differ (P > 0.10). The presence of an observer during CBT did not modulate the percentage of go responses following an ambiguous cue (P > 0.10). However, regardless of the treatment, piglets spent less time in contact with the trough following positive cues during CBT in which the observer was present than absent (P < 0.0001). This study originally demonstrates that the nature of a chronic experience with humans can induce a judgement bias indicating that the emotional state of farm animals such as piglets can be affected by the way humans interact with them

The nature of the experience with the handler biases the judgement of piglets towards AM cues.

<p>Average proportion of approach (i.e. “go” response) in response to the five cues during cognitive bias tests <b>(A)</b> in which the human observer was absent; <b>(B)</b> in which the human observer was present; <b>(C)</b> or the combination of the two conditions, for piglets from gentle (GEN, light grey squares), rough (ROU, black triangles) and minimal contact (MIN, dark grey diamonds) treatments (back-transformed least square means; P, trained positive cue; AP, ambiguous cue nearest positive cue; AM, ambiguous median cue; AN, ambiguous cue nearest negative cue; N, trained negative cue) († <i>P</i> < 0.10; * <i>P</i> < 0.05).</p

Overview of the testing arena and the apparatus.

<p><b>(A)</b> Sketch of the testing arena viewed from the top, including the apparatus and the speakers; <b>(B)</b> Sketch of the apparatus viewed from the side, including the camera, the light, the plastic tube and the trough. In bold topography, a part of the material used for punishments, including the tennis ball relied on a fishing line, the air compressor relied on an air spray gun and a water spray gun; <b>(C)</b> Picture of the apparatus viewed from the front; <b>(D)</b> Picture of the apparatus viewed from the top with a piglet at the trough.</p

Thermorégulation des porcelets issus de deux lignées divergentes pour l’efficacité alimentaire

Hypothermia is a factor of piglet neonatal mortality. This study used Infra-Red Thermography (IRT) to assess thermoregulation abilities of piglets from two lines divergent for residual feed intake (RFI). Birth phenotypes (e.g. body weight, rectal temperature, physical measures, vitality test) were recorded from piglets selected for low RFI (more efficient; LRFI; n=34) or high RFI (less efficient; HRFI; n=28). The IRT images were taken at 8, 15, 30 and 60 min post-partum. Temperatures of the ear base and tip, and minimum, maximum and average temperatures of the back (i.e. shoulders to rumps) were extracted with Thermacam Researcher Pro 2.0 and analysed with linear mixed models. No difference in phenotypic data was detected between the two lines. All temperatures increased over time. Rectal temperature of piglets at birth was correlated with the initial temperature of the ear base and the maximum back temperature (0.36 and 0.35, respectively, P < 0.05). Overall, LRFI piglets, compared to HRFI piglets, had higher minimum (28.0 ± 0.2 °C vs 26.8 ± 0.2 °C, respectively, P < 0.001) and average (35.5 ± 0.2 °C vs 34.5 ± 0.1 °C, respectively, P < 0.001) back temperatures. Ear tip temperature decreased in HRFI piglets from 8 to 15 min post-partum, while it increased in LRFI piglets (-1.1 ± 0.4 °C vs 0.5 ± 0.5 °C, respectively, P < 0.05). In conclusion, IRT allowed non-invasive assessment of piglets’ thermoregulation abilities. Piglets selected for low RFI seemed to have better thermoregulation abilities at birth