An On-Station Analysis of Factors Affecting Growth Traits of Pure Red Maasai and Dorper Sheep Breeds under an Extensive Production System

This comparative study aimed to evaluate genetic and environmental factors’ effects on the growth traits of lambs in Dorper and Red Maasai (RedM) sheep breeds. The data analyzed contained the following measurements: birth weight (Bwt), weaning weight (Wwt), yearling weight (Ywt), birth type (single or twins), and details on each lamb’s dam (dam ID and age) and sire. Except for the RedM, whose birth weight decreased with time, both breeds generally showed an increase in other growth weights across the study period, with yearly variations affecting both breeds. Additionally, analysis by a linear mixed model with restricted maximum likelihood (REML) showed that only breed as a factor significantly (p < 0.05) influenced birth weight; breed, sex, and birth type all significantly (p < 0.05) influenced weaning weight, whereas season, sex, and dam age significantly (p < 0.05) influenced yearling weight. The RedM breed outperformed the Dorper breed in post-weaning growth rate, demonstrating early resilience and adaptation to local environmental factors independent of maternal influence. Breed and non-genetic factors play a vital role in the growth of lambs, and the results of this study offer an opportunity for improved farm management under an extensive production system and selection for the conservation of the indigenous Red Maasai breed.

Changes in piglet and litter characteristics across parities in two highly prolific sow hybrids in an outdoor organic herd

High piglet mortality constitutes a welfare challenge in organic pig production. Litter characteristics were investigated from parities 1-5 of two hyper-prolific hybrids with different selection traits in an organic commercial herd (DanBred vs. Topigs Norsvin [TN70]). TN70 sows had more functional teats than DanBred sows, and their offspring had higher birth weights. Several interactions between hybrid and parity were found. The total born increased with higher parity and was more pronounced for DanBred sows. Litter weight at weaning was higher in parities 1-4 for TN70 compared with DanBred, and within DanBred parities 4 and 5 had higher litter weight at weaning than parity 1. The survival rate was higher for TN70 in parities 1 and 2 compared with DanBred, and for both hybrids, the survival rate was higher in parities 1 and 2 compared with parities 4 and 5. The number of weaned piglets was stable across parities 1-4 but lower in parity 5 for both hybrids. Thus, despite a lower number of total born piglets in TN70, TN70 sows weaned the same number of piglets as DanBred, with a lower mortality rate and a heavier litter at weaning.

Beef Cattle Preference and Usage of Environmental Enrichments Provided Simultaneously in a Pasture-Based Environment

Environmental enrichment can improve livestock welfare through increasing environmental complexity to promote a greater range of natural behaviours. However, there is limited understanding of the need for and impacts of enrichments for extensively managed beef cattle that can sometimes be kept in grassed paddocks devoid of additional natural and artificial features, i.e., ‘barren pastures’. This trial assessed which enrichments beef cattle preferred and utilised in a barren paddock environment. Eight groups of seven Angus steers housed on pastured paddocks devoid of natural or artificial features were observed during daylight hours for two days a week over a period of three weeks, after being presented with four enrichments simultaneously: a cattle brush, a piece of hanging rope, a tree stump, and a woodchip pile. Although enrichment use generally decreased over time, the brush, stump, and woodchip maintained a higher level of use than the rope, based on the frequency of interactions and number of displacements around the enrichments (both p < 0.001). This suggests that the brush, stump, and woodchip pile were more valuable resources to the cattle, allowing for grooming and lying behaviours, although oral manipulations also occurred on the stump, woodchip, and rope. The inclusion of these enrichments can increase the complexity of barren pasture environments and allow for the increased expression of natural behaviours, potentially contributing to improved welfare.

A Cow-Calf Farming System Fully Adapted to Elevation and Harsh Conditions in Andorra (Europe)

The use of natural resources is an important topic to optimize the efficiency of cattle production. The purpose of this work is to describe the project of the Bruna d'Andorra; a local cow breed under an extensive cow-calf system in Andorra (Europe), as an example of local farming and marketing of its meat products in an area with adverse environmental conditions. This breed is located in Andorra, a microstate that consists predominantly of rugged mountains and harsh weather conditions. The cow-calf Bruna d'Andorra extensive system is thoroughly described and productive and reproductive performance, compiled over 21 years (2000-2020), has been analyzed by years with the Chi-square test or ANOVA to compare proportions or means, respectively, and regression analysis was used to decipher evolution across years. The results show a population with a census large and stable enough to avoid inbreeding. Moreover, a sustained improvement of the productive performance and maternal fitness has been observed along the studied period for Bruna d'Andorra. The work concludes that local breeds can achieve sustainable animal production, especially when farmers, public administration and commercial circuits in the area agree to cooperate on such projects. The study also concludes that the Bruna d'Andorra cow breed can still improve in meat and reproductive performance.