Summary Health, Welfare and Management (ADP-30306)

Health, Welfare and Management
Adaptive capacity
Adaptive capacity
 Ability of an animal to adapt to a changing environment with minimum loss of function
 Represent a range of factor it can cope with

How to balance adaptive capacity with environment
 Genetic selection
 Stimulate the development of adaptive capacity
o Epigenetic effects
o Pre- and postnatal
o Experience and learning
 Facilitate adaptive capacity
o Provide right environment

Development of adaptive capacity
 Difference in temperature first weeks in pigs
o Low temperature causes short legs and ‘’rounder” animal with more fat
o High temperature longer legs and tail
 To lose heat
 Immune systems is very dynamic in early life

Facilitation adaptive capacity
 Social experience
 Negative energy balance
o During first week of lactation energy balance is too low
o Keep milking the cow will result in a less negative energy balance


Health status
Tasks of immune system
 Protection against infection
 Combat of infection
 Maintenance of homeostasis
 Sensory organ
 Protection to tumours

Different infections need different methods
 Virus  T cells
 Bacteria / worms  B cells, plasma cells, antibodies

Immune levels
 Age dependent
o Baby’s and elderly have lower immune levels
 Sex
o Males have lower immune levels thanks to testosterone
 Stress level decreases immune level

,  Happiness increases immune level
 Diet has major influence
o Malnutrition, deficiencies, one sided
 Biological rhythms
o Daily, seasonal

2 types of immune systems
 Mucosa immune system
o Gut, lungs, reproductive organs, bladder
 Systemic immune system

 (Immune privileged sites)
o Brain, thymus, testis

Types of immunity
 Innate (natural)
o Born with
o Directed to danger signals
o No memory, but training
o Cells
 Natural antibodies
 Cytokines
 Phagocytes (eat cells)
 Adaptive (specific)
o Involves either T and/or B cells
o B cells
 Specific receptors: Immunoglobins
 Plasma cells  antibodies
o T cells
 TH, Tcyt, Treg
 Specific receptors: TCR
 2 types
o 2 types of responses
 TH1
 Cell mediated
 Inflammatory
 TH2
 Antibody mediated
Relevant parameters
 Reflection of the protection to infectious disease
 Maintenance of homeostasis

Value markers for health
 Immune responses to vaccines
 Antibodies and delayed type hypersensitivity
 Mucosal IgA levels (saliva)

, Chicken vitality
Good quality chicken
Visual score
 Large open eyes
 Form and colour of the beak
 Leg position
 Body weight
o Lower residual yolk is preferred
 More nutrients are absorbed
 Colour of down
 Behaviour
 Chicken length
 Yolk free body mass

 Fast but subjective

Tona/Pasgar score
 Tona: 0-100
 Pasgar: 5-10
 Reflex, navel, legs, beak, residual yolk
 Precise, but time consuming

Embryo development
 First nerves systems (brain)
 Second brain

Factors affecting chicken quality
 Breed
 Breeder flock age
 Egg size
 Storage temperature (before incubation)
 Incubation temperature