Learning objectives
Provide students with the fundamentals of husbandry techniques of animals for beef, pork and horse meat production, with particular attention to animal welfare. Put the students in condition to evaluate main breeding factors affecting the quality of meat products. Provide the basis to perform a correct morphofunctional evaluation and compilation of identification documents.
To give to the student the knowledge about dairy cattle breeding and on chemical composition and on the main physico-chemical and dairy-technological properties of the milk. To give to the student the knowledge about the the goat and buffalo productions, the animal welfare and the zootechnical hygiene.
Prerequisites
General Zootechnics and Normal Veterinary Anatomy exams passed
Course unit content
Beef production: techniques of cattle raising for meat production. Functional parameters. Production of: white meat veal, baby beef, steers. Carcass characteristics and meat quality in the various categories. Equine meat production. Carcass characteristics and quality of horse meat. Pork production: breeding techniques of: gilts, boars, gestating and lactating sows, weaners. Light and heavy swine production. Carcass characteristics and meat quality.
Morphofunctional evaluation of horses. Age evaluation. Identification documents compilation.
Cattle, pig, sheep and goat coats. Morpho-functional evaluation methods of animals and report cards. Regions in the head Regions in the trunk. Regions in the fore legs and related defects. Regions in the hind legs and related defects. First elements of animal mechanics and stance evaluation. Weighing and measurements. Morphologic evaluation.
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.
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 manure cleaning.
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.
Guided tours to cattle, sheep and buffalo herds.
Full programme
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Bibliography
ALAIS C.: Scienza del latte - principi di tecnologia del latte e derivati. Ed. Tecniche Nuove, Milano,1984
BITTANTE G., ANDRIGHETTO L., RAMANZIN M.: Tecniche di produzione animale. Liviana Ed., Torino, 1993
CATALANO A.L.: Valutazione morfo-funzionale del cavallo. Igiene ed etnologia. Goliardica Ed., Parma, 1984
MEREGALLI A.: Conoscenza morfofunzionale degli animali domestici. Liviana Editrice, 1980.
PARIGI BINI R., SOMEDA DE MARCO A.: Zootecnica Speciale dei Bovini. Produzione della carne. Patton Ed., Bologna, 1989
SUCCI G., HOFFMANN I.: La vacca da latte. Città Studi Ed., Milano, 1993 SUCCI G.: Zootecnia speciale. Città Studi Ed., Milano, 1995
Teaching methods
Classroom lectures and practical activity in farms and dairy facilities
Assessment methods and criteria
Oral exam
Other information
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2030 agenda goals for sustainable development
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