1. Animal management Flashcards
Which species have we domesticated and why?
Dogs, cats, horses, sheep, pigs, cows + sheep
- work = transport and draught, service animals, warfare, therapy
- companionship = leisure, status, culture/religious
- produce = clothing, food
What are common factors seen in domesticated animals?
- Rapid rates of growth and maturity = efficient to farm
- easily bred in captivity, often have multiple periods of fertility in a year
- majority eat a plant based diet = cheap + easy to feed
- hardy and adaptable to different conditions
- herd animals, making them easier to control as one group
- strong parental instincts = advantages for offspring survival
- Precocial young
What are precocial young?
hatched/born in an advanced state and able to feed its self almost immediately
How has this been achieved?
Selective breed (artificial selection) Individuals expressing desirable traits or characteristics are selected to breed from i.e farmers choosing those animals that are better adapted to local environments (in agriculture = meat, milk and wool)
How is selective breeding performed?
- Identify desired characteristics
- Select parents that display those characteristics
- Select offspring that display desired phenotypes and breed from them in the future
- Repeat process
What can occur as a result of taking selective breeding too far?
Belgian blue cattle: double muscled due to selective breeding
- prone to leg weakness
- 90% births are caesarean
What are common changes seen in domesticated species?
- dwarfs and giants
- fewer vertebrate
- differences in tail morphology
- reduction in brain size and in specific regions
- increased juvinile periods
- increased docility
- changes in social communication
- changes in breeding cycles
Define a wild animal
an animal that lives and breeds outside of captivity - no human interaction
Define a tame animal
A wild animal that tolerates humans naturally or through training
Define a domesticated animal
an animal that has been genetically adapted and adapted to live alongside humans
Define a feral animal
a domesticated animal living in the wild
What defines a breed
Several different definitions
- member of a species that has identifiable characteristics allowing it to be separated from other breeds in the same species
- animals that share a large percentage of their genes or DNA
- human term, created by selective breeding chosen for development and improvement of the animal
- characterised by a breed society
How does a Landrace breed occur?
Genetic adaptation to local environment: altitude, terrain, water availability, food sources, parasite and predator prevalence
- does not arise from human interaction, can occur due to human providing shelter, food and veterinary care
What are characteristics of a Landrace breed?
- concentrated in a specific geographical location
- limited numbers of animal
- geographical isolation causes genetic isolation
- no written standard
What are characteristics of a standardised breed?
- has a broad geographical distribution
- animal number can be extremely common to extremely rare
- pure breeding causes genetic isolation
- desired characteristics pinned under a written standard
Is it worth remembering older breeds?
- Studies have shown that reverting back to older dual purpose cattle breeds rather than the newer holstein friesian cattle breed can reduce the environmental impact of milk and meat production
- Businesses, farmers and charities want to cross breed older, rare breeds to prevent their extinction and for some a desire to eat rare pork
What must an intensive housing environment provide?
- clean and dry bedding
- appropriate ventilation
- easy access to food and water
- space based on differing needs e.g. pre-natal
- a safe environment with no sharp objects or places where animals can become trapped
- protection from extreme conditions
- non - invasive observation
- appropriate enrichment
What is the importance of hierarchy?
- wild = grouping occurs based on factors such as food availability and breeding status, more controlled in captivity therefore influencing group development
- by recognising co-specifics and remembering competitions - a dominant or subordinate status is gained (create a dominance hierarchy)
What are general rules for ordering a hierarchy?
- adding or removing animals will alter a dominance hierarchy
- older animals tend to be more dominant
- different ranks hold different roles
- dominant animals tend to have a priority over food sources
- subordinate animals benefit in that although they can experience aggression, they are protected in a group
- success in competition may be due to an animals needs at the time e.g. a nesting site
- larger groups may prevent the ability to recognise individuals and in some cases may prevent aggression e.g. in a flock of hens
What is the production system classification (FAO)?
Solely livestock
↓
landless grassland based
↓ ↓
monogastric subcategorised according to climate
(meat/eggs)
↓
ruminant
(meat/milk)
mixed farming
↓
rain fed irrigated
↓ ↓
subcategorised according to climate
Why do we need classification systems?
- different animals have different values
- biomass of species is different
- economic investment is different
- consume different levels of feed and excrete different levels of waste
- no. of employees
- quantity of produce
- amount of money generated
- type + quantity of resources used
- balance of how costs are structured
What is intensive (landless) livestock production?
Mainly pigs and poultry in some cases dairy systems and beef systems
Controlled systems and this is mainly indoors
Number of animals per unit area is high (high stocking rate/density)
Much of the food is processed and produced off the farm
Levels of production and the concentration of animals mean very high health status is needed
What is a grassland production system?
Intensive and extensive production
- rangeland/extensive grazing
- permanent grasslands
- leys
Majority of sheep and a high proportion of cattle
Animals kept outside for most some of the year
Majority of forage is grown on the farm
Number of animals per unit land is few - lower stocking rates/density
What factors affect the organisation and timing of production cycles?
Breeding cycles - all species - aim to optimise number of offspring produced 89
Grass growth in grassland bases systems
Market demand/prices - sheep - some farmers aim to produce product when price is highest
What is the cycle of calf production?
Ovulation rate = 1
Gestation period = 282 days
Calving to conception = 40-100 days, 282 days + 40-100 days = 322-382
- expect 1 calf/cow/year
What is the cycle of piglet production?
Ovulation rate = 9-13
Gestation period ~ 112-115 = 3 months, 3 weeks, 3 days
Farrowing to conception = 2.25 litters/sow/year
- 26 piglets/sow/year (indoor)
- 24 piglets/sow/year (outdoor)
What is the cycle of lamb production?
Ovulation rate 1-3 (breed dependant)
Gestation period ~ 147 days
Most UK breeds are seasonal breeders - only breed in the autumn 1 litter/ewe/year
- aim for 1-2.2 lambs/ewe/year
What does the grass growth and demand curve tell us?
Timing of the production cycle based around the grass growth patterns - peak grass growth is in spring
Main adult animal demand = late pregnancy & early lactation
Time lambing/calving to coincide with grass growth
- seasonal
- young animals grazing in early summer
- lambs/calves often sold before following winter
Describe the importance of agribusinesses in the UK
Agri-food sector contributed £120.2 million in 2018, or 9.4% to national gross value in 2018
4.1 million people employed in the agri-food sector in 2018, 13% of national employment
What are hot issues in agribusiness?
Animal disease control and on farm welfare Biosecurity and food security Healthy diets Agricultural wages and labour availability Optimising land use Basic payment scheme & BREXIT Waste management and recycling Farmer work/life balance + technology Trust Climate change
What is agri-business?
Sometimes assumed to be corporate farming
Can incorporate:
- mass production
- input sector
- production sector
- processing-manufacturing sector
= generic term referring to various businesses involved in food and fibre production
- deals in low-margin commodities where competitive market forces typically result in the cost of production being close to the value created (thin profit margins)
What are agri-chains?
Businesses do not operate in isolation but within chains
that reflect their relevant industry
Facilitate domestic and/or international relationships to maximise competitive advantage
- classified as value or supply chains
What are supply chains?
Physical flow of goods that are required for raw materials to be made into finished products
Farmer → trader → abattoir → supermarket →consumer
What are agribusiness supply chain issues?
Food safety and security
Fluctuating changes in supply and consumer demand
What are value chains?
Group of companies working together, creating value at each link in the chain to achieve sustainable competitive advantage for the businesses in the chain
Why do we create value?
Corporate advantage
Increased profits and sales
Generate trust
What are challenges to creating trust?
Technology, financial, organisation, research, marketing, infrastructure
What are the core drivers of doing business?
Theory of the firm
Maximising profitability and minimising costs
Vale propositions and customer satisfaction
Resource allocation
Supply chain optimisation
Cost management
Commercial relationships
What is economics?
Making rational choices/decisions in the allocation of scarce resources
What does economics help in?
Understanding why people have made animal health decisions in the past, predicting how they might make them in the future
Guiding people on how to improve future animal health decisions for the benefit of individuals and society in general
How does animal health economics achieve its objectives?
- concepts e.g. opportunity cost, productivity
- theoretical frameworks e.g. marginality of decision making, institutional setting in which a decision is made
- practical tools that stimulate reality e.g. decision tree analysis
What does economic analysis require?
Production (output)
Inputs (bare minimum of variable costs)
Prices
What does economic analysis of animal health and livestock production system requires?
Technical assessment of the system
Epidemiological analysis of a change
Herd\flock monitoring
What is gross margin analysis?
Used to assess and compare different enterprises
NOT a full measure of profitability, but of financial efficiency of conversion of variable costs into outputs
Basis of the analysis are real data
Not taking into account fixed cost nor management time given by the owner of the enterprise or a change in the environment
What is a way of calculating gross margin?
Gross margin = output - variable costs
What are three important aspects of calculating output from a livestock enterprise?
- animals and products that move out = sale of products/animals, value of: livestock products consumed in the household, given to workers as a form of payment or animals that are gifted or loaned
- animals and products that move in = purchased animals, animals received as gifts or loaned
- change in herd or flock value
How to calculate output?
Productivity = measure of the efficiency of the conversion of inputs into outputs
- e.g. beef fattening unit
- beginning of the year farmer has 7 young bullocks each worth £120
- during the year the farmer buys 5 calves at £50/head and all survive
- end of the year: - bullocks = £230/head
- calves = 120/head
What are variable costs?
Vary in short term according to the scale of production. No product and variable costs = £0 i.e. animal health inputs (vaccines, drugs), concentrate feeds, mineral supplement, forage costs
What are fixed costs?
Vary in the long term. No production fixed costs still exist. if there is a mixture of enterprises then costs are shared between enterprises i.e. salaries, maintainence of machinery, rent, admin costs, running costs, depreciation, interest
How to calculate gross margin per sow?
Outputs = 12 piglets/sow/year
Pig mortality = 15%, 15% of 12 = 10.2 piglets surviving
pigs are raised until 100 kg
Farmer sells pigs at £1.2kg
So total output = 1.2x100x10.2.= 1224 +£500-600= £1724-£1824 output
Input = £700 + £150 + £15 = £865
So gross margin = £859-£959
What influences prices?
Consumer demand = quantity, quality (taste, presentation, food safety, welfare and production standards)
Production supply = cost of input, breeds, technology (disease control), transport, processing and retailing
Media = food scares (salmonella, BSE, HPAI), superchef’s
Marketing = brand image
How would you best describe a cow’s vision?
Very very good binocular vision
Good depth perception
How would you best describe a sheep’s vision?
Very good monocular vision
- can be complicated by horns
How would you best describe a pigs vision?
Binocular vision is better than for sheep and cows
How would you best describe a horse’s vision?
Good binocular vision
Very good monocular vision
In marginal site area, movement can be detected
What is the flight site?
Area around it all which if you step into, the animal will move away
What should you do if you have to stand in the kick zone?
Stand against the body/flank of the animal
What is a single entry pen?
lets one cow through at a time
What is a flow through pen?
lets a continuous stream of cows through
