Irrigation of paddy soil with industrial landfill leachate: impacts in rice productivity,plant nutrition,and chemical characteristics of soil

Treated industrial effluents have high levels of nutrients and dissolved organic matter. The irrigation of rice by flooding can increase nutrient uptake and grain yield. Therefore, this study evaluated the nutrient contents in the shoots and grain of the rice crop and also the chemical of the soil after irrigation of the crop with leachate of the treated industrial effluent. A greenhouse experiment was conducted using pots filled with 20 kg of soil in a randomized block design with three replications. The treatments consisted of control (irrigation with distilled water) and four concentrations of the leachate (25, 50, 75, and 100 %) for irrigation. At the end of the experiment, the nutrient contents in tissues of rice plants, sterility of spikelets, and grain mass were evaluated. Results showed that irrigation with the leachate at 25 % content increased the macro- and micronutrients’ concentrations in the shoot biomass and grain, except for potassium and iron. Irrigation with the industrial leachate decreased tillering and grain yield; however, it increased chlorophyll content, sterility of spikelets, and sodium intake at this leachate concentration. The potassium and sodium levels and the electrical conductivity values of soils irrigated with treated industrial leachate were increased. The use of the treated leachate from industrial effluents is an alternative that reuses the nutritional load, but the volume of leachate should be limited and monitored to prevent the sodicity in the soil and problemsdue to eutrophication.     

Disease and mortality on red deer farms in New Zealand

A longitudinal observational study of 15 red deer farms was carried out in New Zealand for two years from March 1992. The deer were monitored for performance and health problems, and farm management practices were recorded. Numbers at risk were 4,683 hind-years, 2,459 stag-years and 3,202 weaner-years. The numbers of primiparous and adult hinds at risk of losing their progeny by weaning were 653 and 3,364, respectively. Where possible, postmortem examinations were carried out, and organs were sampled for histological and microbiological investigation. Rates of mortality varied with season with most stag and hind deaths in winter and weaner deaths in autumn and winter. Overall mortality rates were 1.77, 2.60 and 5.87 per 100 deer-years for hinds, stags and weaners, respectively. Malignant catarrhal fever accounted for 0.53 stag and 0.17 hind deaths per 100 deer-years at risk Misadventure, including broken bones, accounted for 15.4 per cent of weaner mortalities, or 0.53 weaner mortalities per 100 weaner-three months in autumn. Yersiniosis was confirmed in 18.6 per cent of weaner deaths, or 1.09 weaners per 100 weaner-years during the first six months after weaning, but was also suspected but unconfirmed in a further 41 per cent of weaner mortalities. Overall, 17 per cent of yearling hinds, and 9.2 per cent of adult hinds lost their progeny between pregnancy diagnosis in June and weaning in March. One outbreak of osteochondrosis was recorded. Mortality rates varied between farms and many mortalities were preventable.     

A retrospective study of canine and feline cutaneous vasculitis

Twenty-one cases of cutaneous vasculitis in small animals (dogs and cats) were reviewed, and cases were divided by clinical signs into five groups. An attempt was made to correlate clinical types of vasculitis with histological inflammatory patterns, response to therapeutic drugs and prognosis. Greater than 50% of the cases were idiopathic, whereas five were induced by rabies vaccine, two were associated with hypersensitivity to beef, one was associated with lymphosarcoma and two were associated with the administration of oral drugs (ivermectin and itraconazole). Only the cases of rabies vaccine-induced vasculitis in dogs had a consistent histological inflammatory pattern (mononuclear/nonleukocytoclastic) and were responsive to combination therapy with prednisone and pentoxifylline, or to prednisone alone. Most cases with neutrophilic or neutrophilic/eosinophilic inflammatory patterns histologically did not respond to pentoxifylline, but responded to sulfone/sulfonamide drugs, prednisone, or a combination of the two.     

Ballistic shock wave lithotripsy in an 18-year-old thoroughbred gelding

Prolonged postoperative recuperation time and restricted exercise were circumvented by using ballistic shock wave lithotripsy to break up an 8-cm diameter vesical calculus and by flushing out the sand-like residue under epidural anesthesia with the horse standing. Recovery was uneventful.     

The 1997-1998 classical swine fever epidemic in The Netherlands--a survival analysis

The aim of this analysis was to characterise the temporal pattern of infection during the 1997/98 classical swine fever (CSF) epidemic in The Netherlands and hence identify and quantify risk factors for infection in different enterprise types and areas. Survival analysis and Cox proportional hazards regression were used to describe the epidemic. Substantial differences in temporal survival patterns (herd breakdown rate) were found between areas where different control policies operated. Factors with a significant influence on the infection hazard of individual herds included: sow numbers as a percentage of total sows and fatteners (HR = 3.38 for mixed herds (0.1–60% sows) vs. fattening herds (0% sows) and HR = 2.74 for breeding herds (60–100% sows) vs. fattening herds), the number of ‘transport contacts per month’ (>0.3 vs. <0.3; HR = 4.11), pig density (pigs/km²) in the area (HR_{1000 pigs} 1.48) and herd size (HR_{100 pigs} = 1.01).

Pre-emptive slaughter in an area appeared to be associated with lower subsequent disease levels. Higher frequency of transport contacts for welfare slaughter during the epidemic, however, well regulated and controlled, was associated with a substantially higher risk of becoming infected. The positive association of a higher pig density with CSF indicates the potential importance of local spread as a factor in disease transmission and emphasizes that dilution of the pig population can contribute to reduction in CSF occurrence. This analysis suggests however, that if pre-emptive slaughter can promptly be applied effectively in an area after initial diagnosis, pig density is then not a significant factor. Mixed and breeding herds had a higher probability of becoming infected than fattening herds, possibly due to different types and frequencies of inter-herd contacts. These contacts continue to some extent during the epidemic, despite the standstill of animal movements.     

Field efficacy of a combined use of Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae and Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae vaccines in growing pigs

The effectiveness of simultaneous administration of commercial Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae and Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae vaccines was tested in an indoor commercial piggery which had experienced continuing respiratory-disease problems confirmed as due to both of these pathogens. Piglets were randomly assigned in equal numbers to vaccination and control groups, and each vaccine was administered at a separate site to assigned piglets at two and four weeks of age. Live weight of vaccinates immediately prior to slaughter was 2.49 kg higher (p = 0.04) than for controls at equal mean slaughter age of 132 days. Average daily gain (ADG) from 16 weeks to slaughter of vaccinates was also significantly higher (33 g/day) than in controls (p = 0.05). Daily gain was not significantly different in younger age groups. Active enzootic pneumonia lesions were more likely in control than in vaccinated pigs. There were no significant differences between vaccination groups with regard to severity of pleurisy or presence of pleuropneumonia lesions at slaughter. Log-linear modelling was used to test the statistical association between vaccination, enzootic pneumonia lesions, pleurisy lesions and pleuropneumonia lesions. It showed a reduction in the severity of enzootic pneumonia lesions for vaccinated pigs, and the presence of pleuropneumonia lesions increased the likelihood of pleurisy lesions. No other association was significant, and no evidence of synergy between the vaccines in influencing lesion severity for pleuropneumonia was detected (within the limitations set by the trial design).     

Quantitative review of the effects of environmental temperature on food intake, egg output and energy balance in laying pullets

1. Data from 30 published experiments have been analysed to examine the relationships between environmental temperature and the long-term, adapted responses of laying pullets, measured as metabolisable energy intake, egg output and body weight change. Heat production was also estimated indirectly from the other three variables. 2. The majority of experiments employed White Leghorns, but there were 8 large trials in which brown crossbred pullets had been compared directly with White Leghorns. These trials were used to estimate differences in energy intake and heat output between brown and white birds. 3. A total of over 26,000 birds was involved in the analysis. Individual trials varied in scale from 9 birds to 2,280 birds per treatment and in duration from 8 to 61 weeks. The constant temperatures investigated ranged from 10 degrees C to 34 degrees C, but there were no data for brown pullets beyond 30 degrees C. 4. The relationship between temperature and metabolisable energy intake is curvilinear, with food intake declining more steeply as ambient temperature approaches body temperature. Adapted heat production per bird is also a curvilinear function of temperature, tending towards a value of zero when extrapolated to the point at which ambient temperature equals normal body temperature. However no satisfactory data are available for fully adapted responses in the range 34 to 42 degrees C because egg production declines continuously when these temperatures are maintained for long periods. 5. When energy intake and heat output are expressed as functions of metabolic body size (kg 0.75) they can be represented as linear functions of temperature within the range 15 to 30 degrees C, but the slope must change outside this range. 6. It is calculated that the energy available for production is at a maximum at 23 degrees C for brown birds and at 24 degrees C for White Leghorns. Gross energetic efficiency is at a maximum at 30 degrees C, but egg output is reduced at this temperature. The optimum operating temperature for laying houses will depend upon the local cost of modifying ambient temperature and on the cost of supplying diets of appropriate protein content.     

A quantitative analysis of the literature concerning the restricted feeding of growing pullets

The sexual maturity of growing pullets can be retarded either by restricting calorie intake or by feeding a diet deficient in one or more essential amino acids, Several methods have been proposed for achieving either of these objectives. In this review the methods have been classified as (a) limiting the birds’ time of access to food, (b) quantitative food restriction, (c) the use of low energy diets and (d) dietary protein restriction.

Food restriction by limiting the time of access to food has given inconsistent results and is an unsatisfactory technique. Birds quickly learn to eat normal quantities of food in a very short space of time.

Quantitative food restriction has been widely used in experiments and is usually applied from about 6 to about 20 weeks of age. The available evidence enables relationships to be established between the degree of food restriction and subsequent body weight and sexual maturity. The effect of rearing treatment on mortality and rate of lay is also examined.

The ad libitum feeding of a low‐energy growing diet has always resulted in greater rearing food costs. This is because moderate reductions in energy content of the diet are offset by higher food intake. Diets sufficiently low in energy to cause a reduction in calorie intake will involve the purchase and handling of very large proportions of non‐nutritive material.

The use of protein‐deficient diets during the growing period, or from one day of age, offers a suitable means of delaying sexual maturity. The effects of such a treatment are apparently very similar to those of restricted feeding, but there is a lack of suitable comparisons of the alternative methods.