Learning objectives
<br />To give to the student the knowledge about: bovine milk production, properties of the milk, goat and buffalo productions, animal welfare, zootechnical hygiene, production cattle equine, swine meat. <br />To give to the student the knowledge about the main methods of morphologic evaluation of domestic animals.
Prerequisites
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Course unit content
<br />Dairy cattle livestock and milk production. Dairy cow breeding organisation. Calf breeding for replacement. Heifer breeding. Dairy cow breeding. Functional controls of milk production. Causes of cow culling. Feeding techniques. Cow housing types: tie-stall and free-stall. Machine milking. Milking systems: milking equipment for cowsheds and milking installations for milking parlours. Milk chemical composition. Milk proteins. Milk physico-chemical properties. Genetic factors and milk production. Physiological factors and milk production. Pathological factors and milk production. Feeding factors and milk production. Zootechnical factors and milk production. Climatic conditions and milk production. Environmental hygiene and milk production. Milk production legislation. Milk quality payment.<br />Dairy sheep, goat and buffalo production: Sheep, goat and buffalo rearing technologies. Milk production and quality. Technical and hygienic characteristics of the zootechnical housing and liquid manure treatment. <br />Sheep meat production: Sheep breeding techniques: reproduction, lactation and weaning. Suckling lamb production. Light and heavy lamb production. Castrated male production. Carcass and meat features in the different classes.<br />Animal welfare: main legislation on the bovine and the swine welfare; the legislation on animal welfare and its relationships with the rearing structures of the herd.<br />Beef production: cattle breeding techniques. Functional parameters. Production of: veal, baby beef, beef. Carcass characteristics and meat quality in the different cattle categories. Equine meat production. Carcass characteristics and horse meat quality. Pork production: breeding techniques of young sows, boars, gestating and lactating sows, piglets from birth to weaning. Light and heavy swine production. Carcass characteristics and pork quality.<br />Morpho-functional typology elements and aptitude of breeding animals. Morpho-functional evaluation methods of animals and report cards. Regions in the trunk. Regions in the fore legs and related defects. Ungual zone and related defects. Regions in the hind legs and related defects. Elements of animal mechanics and stance evaluation. Movements and gaits. Horse and cattle coats. Horse identification. Age determination in horse and cattle. Wool features and fleece evaluation in sheep. Age determination in dog.<br />Guided tours to cattle, sheep, buffalo, swine, equine herds. <br />
Full programme
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Bibliography
<br />ALAIS C.: Scienza del latte - principi di tecnologia del latte e derivati. Ed. Tecniche Nuove, Milano,1984<br />BITTANTE G., ANDRIGHETTO L., RAMANZIN M.: Tecniche di produzione animale. Liviana Ed., Torino, 1993<br />MONETTI P.G.: Allevamento dei suini e dei bovini. Giraldi Ed., Perugia 2001<br />SUCCI G.: Zootecnia speciale. Città Studi Ed., Milano, 1995
Teaching methods
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Assessment methods and criteria
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Other information
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