民办高职院校饲料与动物营养专业模块化实训教学体系的构建

近年来,我国民办高职院校迅猛发展,已经成为高职教育中一支不可忽视的生力军。民办高职院校教学的实训、实习以及校企合作正在摸索阶段。文章以饲料与动物营养专业为例,探讨民办高职院校模块化实训教学体系的构建。     

中草药防治动物疾病的研究进展

现阶段的化学药剂、抗生素、生物制剂等对动物疾病的防治容易引起药物残留和耐药性等问题,因此中草药制剂的研究日益受到人们的关注.文章就中草药防治动物疾病的作用特点、效果、应用等三方面进行了综述.     

政府购买服务承接能力建设问题研究——以部属公益二类事业单位为例

政府购买服务是我国公共服务供给的一种模式创新,对经济社会高质量发展具有重要意义。党的十八大以来,部属公益二类事业单位作为政府购买服务新的重要的承接主体,在实践中服务能力与服务质量不断得到提升,但由于历经时间不长,部属公益二类事业单位的承接能力与政府购买服务的要求还不完全相适应,还存在着一些需要研究解决的矛盾。文章对承接能力的概念、内涵和基本特征进行了创新性分析界定,在此基础上,结合当前部属公益二类事业单位政府购买服务承接能力的现状与问题,提出了加强承接主体能力建设的思路与对策。     

Heat stress: A major contributor to poor animal welfare associated with long-haul live export voyages

Recent investigations by the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry into high mortalities on live export voyages from Australia to the Middle East during the Northern hemisphere summer suggest that animal welfare may be compromised by heat stress. The live export industry has generated a computer model that aims to assess the risk of heat stress and to contain mortality levels on live export ships below certain arbitrary limits. Although the model must be complied with under Australian law, it is not currently available for independent scientific scrutiny, and there is concern that model and the mandated space allowances are inadequate. This review appraises the relevant literature on heat stress in sheep and cattle, including laboratory studies aimed at mimicking the ambient temperatures and humidity levels likely to be encountered on live export voyages. Animal welfare is likely to be very poor as a result of heat stress in some shipments.     

How do visual and auditory cues influence calf stress reactions at weaning?

We investigated the effects of visual and auditory information related to cow and calf stress responses at weaning. Three weaning conditions were established with physical separation only (PS), physical and visual separation (VS), and physical, visual and auditory separation (VAS). Stress responses such as vocalization and self‐grooming, and changes of three maintenance behaviors (lying, walking and grazing) were recorded for experimental cows and calves in the respective conditions. Comparison of the data revealed that the cow responses differed slightly among groups. However, the peak frequency of vocalization was higher in the PS calves than in those of either VS or VAS. Self‐grooming frequency was significantly different in calves and was high in the order of VAS, VS and PS calves. Furthermore, the percentage of time spent lying down was greater, and that of walking was less, in VAS calves than in either VS or PS calves. These results demonstrate that different information at weaning might strongly affect the stress responses of calves but not those of cows. Relative impacts of different types sensory information on stressors must be considered to plan animal‐friendly weaning.     

The use of eutectic mixture of lidocaine and prilocaine in mice (Mus musculus) for tail vein injections

ObjectiveTo investigate a topical local anesthesia technique as a means to prevent and/or diminish pain in mice in a laboratory setting associated with tail vein injections performed by personnel in training.Study designProspective, randomized experimental trial.AnimalsThirty six adult female, 23–28 g CD-1 mice from an in-house training colony. They were acclimated to routine training and handling classes.MethodsEutectic mixture of local anesthetics (EMLA) cream (2.5% lidocaine/2.5% prilocaine) or a bland ointment control (n = 18) was applied on the tail prior to intravenous injection. The injections were performed by novices, who had never attempted the procedure, and experienced personnel. All participants were blinded to treatment groups. Three injection attempts were allowed per animal. The mice were observed and scored by blinded evaluators for behavioral and physiological changes, including respiratory rate, vocalization, tail flick, and escape behaviors, during and after the injection.ResultsThis study demonstrates that aversive behaviors induced by lateral tail vein injection were not changed by the preemptive application of EMLA cream. The aversive behaviors associated with lateral tail vein injection were significantly affected by the number of injection attempts and the individual's experience level.Conclusions and clinical relevanceTopical EMLA cream did not reduce signs of aversive reaction to tail vein injection and thus we did not find support for its use in mouse training programs for tail vein injections.     

Effect of meloxicam administration after calving on milk production,acute phase proteins,and behavior in dairy cows

Calving is an intrinsically risky process that can cause welfare and economic problems. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug meloxicam on various physiological and behavioral measures which can be related to pain in cattle. Sixty Friesian dairy cows from first to sixth parity were studied around calving and were randomly allocated into 2 homogeneous groups relative to parity and treated with either meloxicam or a placebo after calving. Treatments were administered on average 3.4 hours after calving, within a maximum of 6 hours. Calf positions at calving and calving assistance (unassisted or easy manual pull) were recorded. Milk production, rectal temperature, and activity (calculated as the number of steps per hour) were measured on each cow. From a subsample of 20 cows, haptoglobin (Hp) and serum amyloid A (SAA) concentrations were also obtained. The following behaviors were observed on video recordings: posture, changing posture, location of cow in pen, feeding, and tail up behaviors 2 days before and after calving. Statistical analysis was carried out with the SAS software using MIXED or GENMOD procedures. Most variables showed a parity and/or time effect around calving. This study did not demonstrate any significant effect of meloxicam on milk production or on acute phase responses of Hp and SAA. However, postcalving activity was significantly increased in meloxicam-treated heifers.     

Comparison of interpretation of cat's behavioral needs between veterinarians,veterinary nurses,and cat owners

Cats have certain strongly motivated behaviors, which could be defined as “needs,” that should be understood to provide the cat the best quality of life and assure proper welfare. It is well recognized that cats have several behavioral needs, which if not met, can result in anxiety and secondary behavior problems. These problems can lead to relinquishment or euthanasia. Veterinarians and veterinary nurses have a special role when educating owners. To increase owners' compliance, veterinary professionals should have evidence-based knowledge for the right information to be communicated to feline owners. The goal of the present study was to identify and compare the level of knowledge that veterinarians, veterinary nurses, and pet owners have about cat behavior and to compare their perceptions on this subject. We were also interested in determining whether living with a cat affected the professionals' knowledge base and what they are able to properly communicate to pet owners. It was expected that the veterinarians would have the highest level of knowledge regarding the interpretation of feline behavioral needs. We also hypothesized that those professionals who had or have previously owned a cat would have a better understanding of what cats actually need. A questionnaire, called “questionnaire to assess cat's needs” (QACN), was completed by cat owners, veterinarians, and veterinary nurses. The QACN had 13 different statements about the behavioral needs of cats, and each participant had to select their level of agreement with the statement. The QACN was then scored and a principal component analysis was used to identify meaningful associations. The following 3 components were extracted: elimination, stress releasers, and human stimulation. Contrary to what was expected, the results showed that in some specific areas (stress releasers and human stimulation) veterinarians' and veterinary nurses' knowledge was not significantly different from that of cat owners. This could mean that the role of these professionals in preventing behavioral problems can be very compromised. Those professionals who had owned a cat personally were better at identifying the behavioral needs of cats, with some significant differences (related with stress releasers), compared with those professionals who had never owned a cat. More education about feline behavior should be included when training veterinarians and veterinary nurses for clients to continue to trust these professionals to provide them with evidence-based knowledge about cat behavior.     

The Feeding of Live Food to Exotic Pets: Issues of Welfare and Ethics

Live food items are often fed to exotic pet species whether they are birds, amphibians, reptiles, or mammals. This raises issues of welfare, both of the animals fed live prey items and the prey itself. Concerns over live food welfare are particularly marked in the feeding of vertebrate prey items and evidence presented here shows the prolonged time taken for rodents to die. However, the welfare of all exotic pets relies both on providing optimal nutrition to the predator and ensuring, as much as possible, that their natural behaviours can be expressed. Does that mean that predatory species must be fed live prey? This article discusses this problem and seeks potential solutions.     

Effects of 2 training methods on stress-related behaviors of the dog (Canis familiaris) and on the dog–owner relationship

Instrumental learning plays an important role in dog–human interactions. The recent demand for pet dog training has resulted in the development of various training methods. The present exploratory study aims to compare the effects of 2 training methods on both the behavioral welfare of the dog and the dog–owner relationship: the first method is based on positive reinforcement (appearance of an appetitive stimulus), whereas the second method is based on negative reinforcement (disappearance of an aversive stimulus). The study compared behaviors linked to signs of stress and attentive behaviors toward the owner in 2 dog training schools, which used different methods. Walking on-leash activity and obeying the “sit” command were studied. The results show that dogs from the school using a negative reinforcement–based method demonstrated lowered body postures and signals of stress, whereas dogs from the school using a positive reinforcement–based method showed increased attentiveness toward their owner. However, neither method affected avoidance behaviors. This exploratory study reveals the differential effects of the 2 training methods on dogs' behaviors; it suggests that training methods based on positive reinforcement are less stressful and potentially better for their welfare.