Effect of prudent use of antimicrobials in the early phase of infection in pigs on the performance and meat quality of fattening pigs.

The presented study was a part of the ThermoEye project. The study examined the effect of prudent antibiotic treatment in response to illness on the fattening performance, slaughter traits, and meat quality of the pig fatteners. Pigs were divided into an experimental group - EXP and a control - CON. In both groups, the body temperature was monitored, and diseases were confirmed by a veterinarian. In the EXP group, metaphylaxis was used in each case of confirmed disease. The EXP fatteners had greater slaughter weight (by 4.7 kg) and meatiness (by 2.1 percentage points) compared to the CON pigs. The pH in pork was lower in EXP compared to CON pigs. The longissimus thoracis et lumborum of EXP pigs was characterised by a lower cooking loss (28.30 vs. 30.45%) and yellower colour compared to the CON group. Among the amino acids, only the content of histidine (by 5.2%; P < 0.01) and tyrosine (by 7.2%; P < 0.01) was significantly greater in the meat of the CON group compared to EXP, with no effect of sex noted. The content of SFA (by 14.6%; P < 0.05), UFA (by 15.6%; P < 0.05), MUFA (by 17.8%; P < 0.05), MCFA (by 14.1%; P < 0.05), and LCFA (by 15.6%; P < 0.05) was also greater in CON compared to EXP meat. In conclusion, automated monitoring of pig body temperature during the fattening period enables more precise, prudent treatment and effective animal health control while reducing costs due to disease losses and pharmacotherapy. It allows optimal production and affects meat quality.

Unveiling the attributes of rabbit milk.

Increasing the knowledge of rabbit milk can help in breeding practice to solve issues considering the health and growth of rabbit kits. The goal of the study was to perform a broad physicochemical analysis of rabbit milk and examine the effect of the reproductive status of the females on daily milk yield and milk attributes. The study was conducted on a commercial rabbit farm and included three consecutive lactations of Hycole does. It has been observed that the daily milk production increased from the 2nd till the 14th day of lactation when does produced almost 300 g of milk daily. The day of lactation caused a significant variation in the content of total solids, solids-not-fat, total protein, casein, lactose, C18: 2, C18: 3, Somatic Cell Count, and pH. The percentage of fat globules categorised according to their diameter changed with the ongoing lactation as well, and the diameter increased from 5 to 7 µm. The percentage of small milk fat globules decreased with lactation day, causing a possible decrease in the digestions rates of milk. Pregnancy had a negative impact on milk production, kits growth performance, and the content of total protein, solids-not-fat, and lactose in milk. Therefore, we can speculate about the negative impact of overlapping lactations and pregnancies on rabbit kits, as their growth is dependent on milk production and composition.