Livestock Housing Research Articles

Dominant Yeast Community in Raw Sheep's Milk and Potential Transfers of Yeast Species in Relation to Farming Practices.

Simple SummaryAchieving high-quality milk is a major objective of the dairy sector in Spain, and is particularly important for the agricultural economy of the country. The dairy farm environment can affect the microbial communities in milk, and for this reason the yeast community present in this environment could have an important role in the quality of the milk and in dairy products. The focus of this study was Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. The results showed that milk contamination from the yeast species present in the dairy farm environment is reasonable, and certain farming practices favour the presence of desirable microbiota in milk.Yeasts are always present in any type of cheese, as well as in the factories where it is produced. However, the role of the yeast community in the cheese making process, as well as the routes of contamination used by yeast species to contaminate milk from the dairy farm environment, are not well known. The objectives of this study were to broaden the knowledge of the dominant yeast community in Manchega sheep’s milk and to assess the contamination routes of the yeast species depending on the farm practices. Milk, teat surface (collected from ten ewes per farm), feed, and air (collected in milking parlours and livestock housing) samples were collected from 12 typical farms in Castilla-La Mancha, Spain with differences in farming practices, and the yeast species were identified using DNA sequencing methods. To evaluate whether certain farming practices have an effect on the distribution of species of yeast in the milk samples, a mixed model was used. The results showed that most of the dominant yeast species (mainly belonging to the genus Candida) found in milk were also found in the other samples, indicating a microbial transfer from the farm environment to the milk. Furthermore, the statistical model showed that factors influencing yeast counts in milk were the presence of yeasts in the milking parlour, the use of silage, and the frequency of acid treatment for cleaning the milking machines. In conclusion, milk contamination from the yeast species present in the dairy farm environment is related to certain farming practices such as the use of silage and the daily use of acid in the cleaning of the milking machines, which favours the presence of desirable microbiota in milk.

Insulation Systems of Frameless Buildings

The article analyzes different ways of creating an insulating coating within the scope of frameless buildings. Among such constructions, the production halls, raw material and finished-products storages, agricultural storages, livestock housing, garages, covered parking, sports and cultural facilities are to be distinguished. Criteria that the heat-insulating materials should meet in the context of effective and durable insulation coatings are low thermal conductivity, vapor and water permeability, high operational durability and environmental friendliness as well. It is confirmed that products based on polyethylene foam, such as mats and rolls, fully meet the above-mentioned criteria. Furthermore, the possibility of obtaining a seamless joint during the installation process significantly increases the effectiveness of the insulating coating by means of minimizing cold bridges and eliminating leakages when connecting separate insulating elements. Polyethylene foam is an elastic and well stretching material. When fixing polyethylene foam rolls on the metal covering of the frameless construction, they will change their shape together with the metal due to the climatic temperature drops (stretch and constrict). The performed tests have revealed that the longitudinal tensile strength of the products with a metallized coating is 80–92 kPa, without a metallized coating - 80–87 kPa, and 29–32 kPa of the weld seam. The article includes information regarding the results of thermal imaging monitoring of frameless constructions with an insulating coating based on polyethylene foam. It is shown that hot-air welding (with the help of a hot air gun) allows minimizing heat losses both at the joints of the sheets and in the areas adjoining to the base and to the side walls of the buildings.

Screening for Reducing Ammonia Emissions in Broiler Feed Probiotics

The purpose of this study was to screen Probiotic can improve feed utilization rate, improve broiler gut environment, reduce emissions of ammonia in the purpose of broiler manure. Through the simulation of the digestive tract of broiler environment, high yield cellulase, amylase, protease, screening of microbial inhibition of gutharmful bacteria, and conduct the feeding experiment. The results show that the concentration of ammonia in the chicken house when feeding Bacillus subtilis for 58 hours was 13.814 mg / m3, which was lower than that of the People’s Republic of China Agricultural Industry Standard NY / T 1167-2006 Environmental Quality Standard for Livestock and Poultry Farms, Experiments show feeding broilers with Bacillus subtilis can reduce the production of harmful gas ammonia and effectively improve the environment of livestock and poultry houses.

Influence of temperature and humidity on the dynamics of aerosol numbers and airborne bacteria in a dairy calf house

Aerosols are essential indicators of indoor air quality in livestock houses. An investigation was conducted in a dairy calf house into the relationships between the concentration of aerosol number and the concentrations of the airborne aerobic bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), Escherichia coli (E. coli), and Salmonella spp. examining their dependence on air temperature and relative humidity (RH). The aerosol number concentration and the concentrations of airborne aerobic bacteria, S. aureus, E. coli, and Salmonella spp. in the indoor air were monitored over 19 weeks, in Tochigi, Japan. A significant positive relationship was found between the concentration of airborne aerobic bacteria with aerosol sizes 0.3–5.0 μm and 0.5–1.0 μm and Salmonella spp. No relationship was found among the different sizes of aerosol concentration with airborne S. aureus or E. coli concentrations. The most significant positive relationships with temperature and RH were found with the 0.3–5.0 μm aerosol size range. Aerosol sizes 5.0–10.0 μm showed no associations with either air temperature or RH. Both airborne aerobic bacteria and S. aureus were strongly positively related to temperature. These findings will play a crucial role in elucidating the role of aerosols in the transmission of different types of airborne bacteria, and ultimately this could play an essential part in mitigating the influence of aerosols in the transmission of airborne bacteria in dairy houses.

Ventilation performance and bioenergetics of dekalb white hens in a modern aviary system

The knowledge of bioenergetics and building ventilation rate in intensive livestock housing is important for efficient design and operation of modern animal production facilities. However, information is limited about ventilation performance and house-level heat and moisture production rates of laying hens in contemporary cage-free facilities. Therefore, the objectives of this study were: (i) to determine building ventilation rate (VR) and the associated measurement uncertainty through in-situ calibration of ventilation fans and monitoring of fans runtime in a fully-open aviary laying hen house (~140,000 Dekalb White hens); and (ii) to quantify total heat production (THP) of the cage-free hens that is partitioned into house-level latent heat production (LHP) and sensible heat production (SHP) via indirect calorimetry and energy balance methods. THP, SHP, and LHP were expressed for light and dark periods, as well as for time-weighted daily mean, to evaluate the effect of hens’ diurnal activities on bioenergetics. VR averaged 4.0 ± 0.4 m3 h−1 hen−1, ranging from 0.8 to 9.1 m3 h−1 hen−1 for different seasons. VR uncertainty varied with the operational static pressure (SP) and averaged 9.5% at 10 Pa, 12.7% at 25 Pa, and 17.3% at 40 Pa. Overall, daily mean values were 7.5 ± 0.2 W kg−1 for THP, 4.8 ± 0.3 W kg−1 for SHP, and 2.7 ± 0.2 W kg−1 for LHP. THP decreased by 40% during the dark period (5.1 ± 0.3 W kg−1) compared to the light period (8.5 ± 0.3 W kg−1).

The farmer competency that doing partnership systems (Teseng) in beef cattle business at Bone regency, South Sulawesi province, Indonesia

One form of support for developing a beef cattle business in Bone regency is a partnership system (Teseng). This Teseng system is a partnership system by providing capital in the form of beef cattle to be maintained and developed by farmers who have competence in the management of beef cattle business. This study aims to determine the competency of farmers who carry out the Teseng system in beef cattle business. The research sample of 150 farmers was done in a simple random sampling. Data collection was carried out through interviews and focus group discussions. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results showed that the competency of farmers knowledge in the management of beef cattle business which included the selection of seeds, housing, feeding, health management, reproductive systems, and marketing of livestock carrying out the Teseng system in beef cattle business in Bone Regency is in the good category. And the managerial competence of farmers in the management of beef cattle business which includes competency in planning and evaluating livestock business is in the good category.

Factors Affecting Levels of Airborne Bacteria in Dairy Farms: A Review.

Simple SummaryThe environmental quality of farms plays an important role in the food safety of the dairy industry because it may influence the microbial communities in milk. The microorganisms present in the different areas of a farm have an influence on this environmental quality, using the air as a vehicle of dissemination. However, the ability of this airborne microbial community to contaminate the milk, like the sources of origin of these microorganisms, has not been well studied in dairy farms until now. This review examines the importance of different factors that affect the environmental quality of dairy farms, and must, therefore, be taken into account when considering the importance of environmental microbiology as a tool in the improvement of the quality of milk and dairy products.This review attempts to reflect the importance of different factors that affect the environmental quality of dairy farms and must, therefore, be taken into account when considering the importance of environmental microbiology as a tool in the improvement of the quality of milk and dairy products. The effect of a factor such as temperature is vital for the dairy farm environment, especially when the temperatures are extreme, because a proper choice of temperature range improves the quality of the air and, thus, animal welfare. Similarly, the appropriate level of relative humidity in the environment should be taken into consideration to avoid the proliferation of microorganisms on the farm. Air quality, well-designed livestock housing, proper hygienic practices on the farm, stocking density, and the materials used in the livestock houses are all important factors in the concentration of microorganisms in the environment, promoting better welfare for the animals. In addition, a ventilation system is required to prevent the pollution of the farm environment. It is demonstrated that proper ventilation reduces the microbial load of the environment of dairy farms, enhancing the quality of the air and, therefore, the wellbeing of the animals. All this information is very useful to establish certain standards on dairy farms to improve the quality of the environment and, thereby, achieve better quality milk and dairy products.

Search and Rescue Algorithm using a Cooperative Robot System

Cooperative robotics is very different from working on a single robot before. Cooperative robots can perform tasks that were previously impossible with a single robot. This robot research can be applied in computer science, artificial intelligence, and electrical engineering. This research aims to deal with tasks that are difficult or impossible to perform with a single robot. For this purpose, we propose a Se-Re (Search-and-Rescue) algorithm. In addition, the proposed algorithm is designed to allow multiple robots to collaborate in the area of work. Robots use wireless communication to collaborate and are organized in groups, which create environmental maps and share data with each other. The robot uses the shared area map to create a global map. Using this information, the robot does not revisit the previously visited area. The proposed algorithm can be applied both indoors and outdoors. Indoors can be used in general buildings as well as livestock housing, and outdoors can be used for landmine removal, human search, and rescue.

Research on method for high sensitive detection of harmful gases in livestock houses based on laser absorption spectrum

Harmful gases such as ammonia and hydrogen sulfide in livestock and poultry houses can seriously damage the health of livestock and poultry as well as animal keepers, so it is great significant to detect these harmful gases rapidly and accurately for the improvement of the welfare of animals and the health of animal keepers. Laser absorption spectroscopy is a gas detection method with the advantages of high sensitivity and selectivity, and is widely used in industrial gas detection. However, it needs further exploring to verify whether laser absorption spectroscopy is useful in detecting low concentration harmful gases in livestock and poultry houses. This paper researches on the method for high-sensitivity detection of harmful gases in livestock and poultry houses based on laser absorption spectroscopy by detecting the absorption signals of ammonia with a self-designed system including a tunable laser wavelength scanning system, a photoelectric detecting system and a long light path gas absorption well, and verifies that laser absorption spectroscopy can be used for detecting harmful gases in livestock and poultry houses.

Improvement of milk quality for micro-climate formation on cattle farms

In this work, microclimate studies were conducted in cattle rooms and the impact on milk quality. A comparative analysis of the use of natural and forced ventilation in rooms and the formation of microclimate. The normative values of sanitary and hygienic parameters for livestock farms are presented in the paper. The microorganisms isolated from the change of cows and milk are identical to the microflora circulating indoors. Weaknesses in the design of livestock premises were also investigated. Disturbances in building structures affect the welfare of animals. It has been proven that the use of state-of-the-art forced-air ventilation systems on livestock farms reduces indoor moisture and gas levels.
 Diseases and deaths of animals can be caused by violations of sanitary and hygiene standards and feeding and watering of animals. Failure to comply with the disinfection rules increases the microbial contamination of the air.
 Lack of adequate ventilation in the premises causes the accumulation of dangerous gases (ammonia and hydrogen sulfide), moisture and micro-organisms in buildings. All these factors can cause respiratory, digestive and mastitis diseases in cows. In sick animals, the increase in live weight and milk productivity is reduced. Treatment of animals is very expensive because antibiotics are used. Antimicrobial drugs affect the quality of products. Prevention of morbidity in farms is directly related to compliance with zoo-hygiene standards.
 In livestock houses, animals spend most of their lives. The premises protect animals from adverse weather conditions. An important indicator of hygiene requirements for the building is the microclimate. The microclimate includes: ventilation, temperature, gas, light and microbial contamination. All indicators must be in accordance with normal animal-friendly levels.
 Farms under the Animal Protection Act are required to provide them with proper care and appropriate living conditions. The microclimate of the room is formed by many physical factors. Animals overcrowding have negative effects on indoor pollution. Poor ventilation affects the health and weight gain of animals. Accumulation of gases, moisture and microorganisms indoors can cause respiratory and digestive diseases in animals.
 Within 60% were pathogenic staphylococci (S. aureus) as a result of monitoring the etiology of subclinical mastitis. Has made agalactic streptococcus (Str. Agalactiae) 25% of cases. Associated microflora accounted for 5% of cases.

New Emission Factors for Calculation of Ammonia Volatilization From European Livestock Manure Management Systems

The largest source of ammonia (NH3) emissions to the atmosphere is NH3 from agriculture, the majority of which arise from livestock manure. The NH3 emitted is a threat to human health through the formation of fine particles, causes eutrophication of natural ecosystems and is a loss of fertiliser nitrogen (N). The Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTP) and the European Union National Emission Ceilings Directive (NECD) sets limits for national NH3 emissions and require the reporting of annual emission inventories to demonstrate compliance. The EMEP/EEA Air Pollutant Emission Inventory Guidebook provides emission factors (EFs) to support inventory compilation. Here we report the development of revised NH3 EFs for livestock housing, manure storage, field-applied manure and excreta deposited during grazing. Data from 276 studies were used with more than 70% of these data from peer reviewed journals, the remaining being from conference proceedings and scientific reports. For most sources, the new EFs are the weighted means of the emissions reported. The empirical ALFAM model was used to develop EFs for field-applied slurry. The standard deviation of the EFs were substantial, due to the breadth of the categories of livestock and management systems and because of variations in manure management and climate. The data collected will be available at http://www.alfam.dk

Seasonal variations of microbial assemblage in fine particulate matter from a nursery pig house

The microorganisms contained in PM2.5 from livestock houses can spread over long distances through airborne transmission. As such, the potential bacterial pathogens and fungal allergens within can pose a formidable threat to nearby residents’ health and the overall environment. However, little is known about the microbial assemblage contained in PM2.5 from pig houses. In this study, 16S and 18S rRNA gene sequencing was employed to analyze the bacterial and fungal assemblage contained in PM2.5 from a nursery pig house across four seasons, respectively. The results showed that alpha diversity was higher in summer and autumn compared to the spring and winter. The bacterial and fungal assemblage varied according to season. At the phylum level, the dominant bacteria and fungi were Firmicutes and Basidiomycota, respectively, across the four seasons. At the genus level, a total of five potential bacterial pathogen and 20 potential fungal allergen genera were identified across the samples. The most abundant bacterial pathogen and fungal allergen genera were observed in summer and autumn, respectively, but neither had a significant correlation with PM2.5 concentration. Moreover, microbial diversity and the relative abundance of fungal allergen genera were positively correlated with temperature and relative humidity. It can be concluded that microbial diversity and assemblage varied significantly among the seasons in a nursery pig house, and this can be useful in exploring the potential risks of PM2.5 from pig houses across all four seasons.

Numerical study on the ventilation performance of a livestock house built in porous panels in Cold Regions

This paper presents a numerical prediction on the assessment of natural ventilation on a livestock house built in porous panels, aided by Computational Fluid Dynamics techniques. A typical climatic environment in Cold Regions was taken into consideration. The ventilation performances have been assessed by the distribution of indoor air velocity, turbulence intensity and local mean age of air through the cases: the house without porous panels, with wind erosion porous panels, and with snow erosion porous panels. The study has found that the porous panels improve the indoor environment in term of the reduction of air velocity and turbulence, and the wind erosion panel performs better than the snow erosion panel. However, applying porous panels may have negative effects on air exchange effectiveness. The presented numerical model is easy to be constructed, flexible to investigate different case scenarios, and quick and cheap to get solutions.

Methods for assessing the parameters of LED-based lighting in livestock houses

In connection with the massive transition to energy-efficient equipment in livestock and production facilities of the agro-industrial complex, in order to save electricity, the creation and development of modern scientifically-based LED lightning devices is one of the pressing problems of technological lighting. The article presents the methodology and the calculation algorithm on the basis of which the program for calculating the main design parameters of the LED lighting device for livestock houses has been developed. The program and the algorithm of the program allow you to calculate and evaluate the design parameters of the lighting device that ensures uniform distribution of illumination at the lowest cost of electricity in livestock houses. The methodology can be adapted to assess the effectiveness of the application of the LED-based lighting in the livestock, poultry and crop facilities with a linear longitudinal lighting system.

Automation of artificial lighting design for dairy herd cows

The article presents the results of experiments with the use of the developed energy-efficient LED-based lighting device for illuminating the horizontal working surface in livestock houses. The implementation of maintaining the magnitude and mode of illumination was carried out using programmable logic controllers. The results of the effect of the developed LED luminaire on the health and productivity of black-and-white dairy cows are given. The main indicators of the quality of milk in the control and experimental group after 30, 60 and 90 days were determined. It has been established that the use of the visible spectrum of artificial light emission with an adjustable amount of light does not adversely affect the cows’ organism, but rather stimulates its activity, which contributes to more abundant feed consumption and an increase in milk yield, and, accordingly, a reduction in production costs. The maintenance of the magnitude and mode of illumination using programmable logic controllers of the German company Schneider Electric has been implemented.

ЭКОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ ПРОБЛЕМЫ СЕЛЬСКОГО ХОЗЯЙСТВА

The article reveals the main problems of the development of agriculture and animal husbandry. The waste generated in these industries, their environmental damage and the recommendations for improving the situation are characterized. It is indicated that under the influence of agriculture, the natural vegetation is destroyed on large areas and its replacement by field or plantation cultural plants of a few species; destruction of natural habitats of animals; degradation of soil cover with irrational use of land; change of radiation and water balance of vast territories; change of the hydrological regime of the territories; pollution of surface and ground waters with fertilizers, pesticides, water soluble salts, production wastes; air pollution; the formation of waste land; development of desertification processes. Under the influence of animal production, there is also the destruction of natural vegetation over large areas and desertification due to overloading of pastures; degradation of natural vegetation on pastures; destruction of vegetation and erosion of the soil cover around the wells, along the spans, etc.; contamination of surface water by livestock waste near slaughterhouses and processing enterprises, with livestock housing and watering at natural reservoirs and rivers.

The use of biochar in animal feeding.

Biochar, that is, carbonized biomass similar to charcoal, has been used in acute medical treatment of animals for many centuries. Since 2010, livestock farmers increasingly use biochar as a regular feed supplement to improve animal health, increase nutrient intake efficiency and thus productivity. As biochar gets enriched with nitrogen-rich organic compounds during the digestion process, the excreted biochar-manure becomes a more valuable organic fertilizer causing lower nutrient losses and greenhouse gas emissions during storage and soil application. Scientists only recently started to investigate the mechanisms of biochar in the different stages of animal digestion and thus most published results on biochar feeding are based so far on empirical studies. This review summarizes the state of knowledge up to the year 2019 by evaluating 112 relevant scientific publications on the topic to derive initial insights, discuss potential mechanisms behind observations and identify important knowledge gaps and future research needs. The literature analysis shows that in most studies and for all investigated farm animal species, positive effects on different parameters such as toxin adsorption, digestion, blood values, feed efficiency, meat quality and/or greenhouse gas emissions could be found when biochar was added to feed. A considerable number of studies provided statistically non-significant results, though tendencies were mostly positive. Rare negative effects were identified in regard to the immobilization of liposoluble feed ingredients (e.g., vitamin E or Carotenoids) which may limit long-term biochar feeding. We found that most of the studies did not systematically investigate biochar properties (which may vastly differ) and dosage, which is a major drawback for generalizing results. Our review demonstrates that the use of biochar as a feed additive has the potential to improve animal health, feed efficiency and livestock housing climate, to reduce nutrient losses and greenhouse gas emissions, and to increase the soil organic matter content and thus soil fertility when eventually applied to soil. In combination with other good practices, co-feeding of biochar may thus have the potential to improve the sustainability of animal husbandry. However, more systematic multi-disciplinary research is definitely needed to arrive at generalizable recommendations.

Abatement of ammonia emissions from livestock housing fine-tuned according to impact on protected habitats

Livestock farms are an important source of ammonia emissions, which threaten vulnerable habitats and species in nearby natural areas through a process of atmospheric nitrogen deposition. An integrated and spatially-explicit mixed integer programming model was applied to all livestock facilities in Flanders (Belgium), to evaluate the current Flemish policies aimed at limiting ammonia deposition in Natura 2000 sites. The simulations indicate that a substantial reduction in deposition is achievable with a similar cost to the currently applied policy in Flanders. Furthermore, the model allows identification of the most suitable stable type and emission abatement measures for any stable in Flanders. Such a spatially-explicit optimization approach applied to individual emission sources might assist policymakers in improving spatially-differentiated policies.

Fine particulate matter from pig house induced immune response by activating TLR4/MAPK/NF-κB pathway and NLRP3 inflammasome in alveolar macrophages

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from livestock houses is harmful not only to the health and welfare of animals but also to the farmers working inside. As an important pollution source in the atmosphere environment, PM2.5 can threaten public health. PM2.5 collected from nursery pig house was studied. It included particulates of various morphologies, and the concentration of endotoxin was as high as to 681.80 EU/mg. To investigate the ability of PM2.5 from the nursery pig house to induce an immune response, porcine alveolar macrophages 3D4/21 cells were studied. The results showed that PM2.5 can induce cell death, ROS production and inflammatory cytokines release (IL-1β, IL-18, TNF-α and COX-2) by activating TLR4/MyD88 pathway and NLRP3 inflammasome. Furthermore, the downstream signaling pathways of TLR4/MyD88, MAPK and NF-κB, participated in NLRP3 inflammasome activation. To further study the role of endotoxin present in PM2.5 and the oxidative stress induced by PM2.5, polymyxin B (PMB) and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) were used to neutralize the effect of the endotoxin and inhibit the production of ROS, respectively. The results showed endotoxin and ROS played important roles in PM2.5-induced immune response. This study suggests that PM2.5 from pig house is a significant risk for immune response in alveolar macrophages.

A thermal environmental model for indoor air temperature prediction and energy consumption in pig building

Indoor thermal environment is a critical factor for animal health and production in confined livestock facilities. In order to improve indoor thermal environment control and save energy, a novel dynamic thermal exchange model was developed using the energy balance equation (EBE) and 87 days of data collected in three different seasons in a pig building to simulate the heat transfer and energy consumption in the building. To evaluate the performances of the EBE model, a comparison was made using adaptive neuro fuzzy inferring system (ANFIS) for indoor air temperature prediction. Also, the EBE model was evaluated comparing its outputs of indoor temperature with the dataset of six days, under three different ventilation modes (Min-vent, Low-vent, and High-vent) that represent for the cold, warm and hot weather, obtained through a monitoring period in pig buildings during the production. The results showed that, under three different ventilations modes, the maximum errors between the EBE model simulated and measured data were 1.5 °C compared with 2.6 °C of the ANFIS model; and the averaged coefficients of determination R2 were 0.945 and 0.743, respectively, for the EBE and ANFIS models. Compared with the present ventilation operation, there was 358.301 kW h power saved with the EBE model in a pig room during the whole research period of 87 days. Therefore, this research has several practical applications: the model can be used in developing strategies of indoor thermal environmental control, it can also increase the knowledge about energy consumption in the livestock house.