Reproductive Performance of Saanen Goats under Rural or Intensive Management Systems in Elazığ Region, Turkey

This study was carried out to compare the reproductive performance of Saanen goats under rural (n:75) and intensive (n:206) management systems in Elazığ region. Single and multiple births, stillbirth, dystocia, abortion and kids survival rates were determined in both the goat flocks between February 1 and April 30 2011. Percentages of single and multiple births, stillbirth, dystocia and abortion were not statistically different between the flocks. However, the kids survival rates of intensive management system (74.05%) were lower than rural management system (88.88%), (P<0.003). Overall percentage of single and multiple births, stillbirth, dystocia, abortion and kids survival in all goats were 45.08, 54.92, 17.62, 12.29, 13.16 and 78.40%, respectively. Our results show that rural and intensive management systems do not have an important effect on reproductive performance of Saanen goats

Comparative aspects of resistance to body-cooling in newborn lambs and kids : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Agricultural Science in Animal Science at Massey University

THE PROBLEM OF PERINATAL MORTALITY IN LAMBS AND KIDS Fibre-producing goats are becoming an increasingly important species on New Zealand farms. There is a considerable lack of information about the physiology of goats, especially as it relates to the development of appropriate management strategies. For instance, goats are reputed to be more susceptible than sheep to cold, wet, windy conditions but comparisons between the species have not been reported. Newborn kids are thought to be very susceptible to cold-stress, but it is not clear whether this is a function of their low birth weight or some particular characteristic of the species ( such as a low capacity for heat production) which leads to high mortality. The problem of kid mortality is important from the viewpoints of both animal welfare and economic loss. The extent of kid losses in New Zealand has not been investigated, but industry sources suggest that kid mortality is high. In particular, deaths occur during inclement weather. It is expected that losses will increase with increasing goat numbers and the consequent reduction in management intensity

Chemical studies on blood and tissues from Angora goats carrying to normal term and from habitually-aborting animals

The results of a comparative study of the haematology and the levels of various constituents of blood taken from certain groups of ewes emanating from farms where abortion was either not known to have occurred previously and where it was most prevalent, are reported. Anaemia consequent to verminosis, sideropaenia and chronic hepatic disease are cited as possible contributing factors in the aetiology of Angora goat abortions and neonatal kid mortality. A marked difference in the liver iron and selenium content between normal and pathological foetuses has been observed. This is interpreted as evidence of early impairment in the placental transfer of nutrients between mother and foetus. Hypocupraemia was encountered in most of the animals studied. Copper deficiency in the areas concerned may be an important secondary factor on some farms.The articles have been scanned in colour with a HP scanjet 5590; 300dpi. Adobe Acrobat XI Pro was used to OCR the text and also for the merging and conversion to final presentation PDF-Format

Effect of non-genetic factors on prolificacy and pre-weaning kid mortality of Khari goats in Nawalpur, Nepal

Present study was carried out mainly aiming at studying the effect of non-genetic factors on prolificacy and pre-weaning kid mortality of Khari goats in Nawalpur, Nepal. The traits were recorded for 1005 does were measured and analyzed using fixed effect Least Square Mixed Model and Maximum Likelihood Computer Program (LSMMML PC-2). Results revealed that overall mean prolificacy and pre-weaning kid mortality in this study were 145 and 6.2%, respectively. According to the results, non-genetic factors such as altitude, coat color and dam’s parity were the important sources of variation with respect to pre-weaning kid mortality and prolificacy of Khari goats in this study. Thus, the results of present study suggested the scope of improvement in prolificacy and pre-weaning kid mortality through selective breeding

Extra uterine development of preterm kidneys

Objective: We carried out a study to determine the impact of prematurity on renal development. The primary outcomes measured were nephrinuria and albuminuria; renal volume and glomerular filtration rate were the secondary outcomes. Methods: Preterm neonates born at less than 28 weeks of gestation, with birth weight between 10th and 90th centile (appropriate for gestational age), were recruited and underwent assessments at 28, 32 and 37 weeks postmenstrual age (PMA). Results: Fifty-three premature neonates and 31 term neonates (control) were recruited. The median gestational age of the premature neonates was 26.4 [24.7–27.4] weeks, with a mean birth weight of 886 (179) g. The mean gestational age of term neonates was 39.1 (1.2) weeks and the mean birth weight was 3406 (406) g. The median age of the term neonates was 6.5 [3.0–12.5] days. The total kidney volume (TKV) almost doubled from 10.3 (2.9) cm3 at 28 weeks PMA to 19.2 (3.7) cm3 at 37 weeks PMA (P = 0.0001). TKV at 37 weeks PMA was significantly smaller compared to term neonates (19.2 (3.7) vs 26.3 (7.0) cm3; P = 0.0001). However, there was no significant difference in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) between premature neonates (at 37 weeks PMA) and term neonates (control) (43.5 [39.7–48.9] vs. 42.0 [38.2–50.0] mL/min/1.73 m2; P = 0.75). There was a statistically significant decline in nephrin-creatinine ratio and albumin-creatinine ratio from 32 to 37 weeks PMA. Conclusions: Despite having a smaller renal volume (and fewer nephrons), extremely premature neonates achieve similar eGFRs at corrected term as term-born neonates, likely through single nephron hyperfiltration. Extremely premature neonates also show evidence of glomerular injury

Longitudinal assessment of renal size and function in extremely low birth weight children at 7 and 11 years of age

BACKGROUND: There are a lack of studies describing a longitudinal association between preterm delivery and renal complications later in life. We assessed renal size and function in preterm infants born with extremely low birth weight (ELBW) during 4 years of follow-up, comparing these parameters to age-matched children born full term (term controls). METHODS: The results of selected renal laboratory tests [levels of cystatin C, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen (BUN)] and of renal ultrasound evaluations were compared between the ELBW group and the term control group at age 7 and 11 years. RESULTS: The study population consisted of 64 children born with ELBW (ELBW children) who had been recruited at birth and 36 children born at term (term children) who took part in both follow-up assessments. Renal ultrasound examination revealed a significantly smaller renal volume in the 7- and 11-year-old ELBW children compared to the term controls [right kidney volume: 50.8 vs. 61.2 ml/m(2), respectively, at 7 years (p <0.01) and 51.4 vs. 58.2 ml/m(2), respectively, at 11 years (p <0.01); left kidney volume: 51.4 vs. 60.3 ml/m(2), respectively, at 7 years (p <0.01) and 55.2 vs. 60.7 ml/m(2), respectively, at 11 years (p = 0.02)]. Renal function in ELBW children was also affected. Serum cystatin C levels were significantly higher in ELBW children than in the controls at 7 years of age, and this difference remained statistically significant at 11 years of age [0.63 vs. 0.59 mg/l, respectively, at 7 years (p = 0.02) and 0.72 vs. 0.61 mg/l, respectively, at 11 years (p = 0.01)]. Six ELBW children also had elevated cystatin C levels (0.97–1.11 mg/l) at 11 years of age. Cystatin C levels were within normal range in the ELBW children at age 7 years and in term children in both follow-up studies. BUN levels were higher in ELBW children at the age of 11 years (4.49 vs. 4.15 mmol/l; p = 0.028). CONCLUSION: Continued follow-up of these patients will reveal whether the observed worsening in renal function will persist into adulthood