Iran is the greatest pistachio producer in the world. A large quantity of pistachio by-product (at least 150,000 tons in DM) is produced from pistachio dehulling process in Iran, annually. The results of some experiments show this by¬product can be used as a feedstuff for ruminants (Shakeri and Fazaeli, 2005; VAhmani et. al., 2005). However, more information about physical and chemical compositions of this by-product is needed. Pistachio by-product is mainly consists of epicarp, peduncle, leaf and a little amount of mesocarp and kernel. The aim of this study was to determine chemical composition and in situ dry matter disappearance of each part of pistachio by-product (Ohadi variety) after 0, 12 and 24 h incubation in the rumen.

Several techniques involving enzymes as alternatives to rumen fluid in in vitro studies have been proposed. However, high cost, ill-defined characterisation and high variation among enzyme preparations and batches have discouraged their use. In addition, most studies have aimed at determining dry matter degradability (DMD) at a fixed time, commonly 48 h. Consequently little information has been published concerning the DM degradation dynamics of forages incubated with enzymes. Therefore the objective of the present study was to compare the ability of a commercial enzyme mixture to describe the fermentation dynamics of two contrasting forages, using the ANKOM in vitro fermentation system (Daisy II, ANKOM Co, USA).

Parasitised sheep consuming forages high in condensed tannins (CT) show lower faecal egg counts (FEC) and total worm burden (TWB) compared to those consuming CT free forages (Niezen et al., 1998). This may be due to an indirect effect of CT, through an increase in protein availability; extra protein could improve the host’s ability to mount an effective response towards gastrointestinal parasites, during the expression of the immunity (Coop and Kyriazakis, 1999). However, CT have been also shown to have a direct anthelmintic effect on adult Trichostrongylus colubriformis (intestinal nematode), when they were administered for a short period (Athanasiadou et al., 2000). The objectives of this experiment were i) to elucidate the effects of a continuous intake of CT during the development of a T.colubriformis infection and ii) to test whether these effects are dose dependent.

Recent developments in maize breeding and in agronomic practices, particularly the development of degradable full cover plastic mulch, have resulted in the possibility of consistently producing high yields of high starch maize silage in Northern Ireland. However, there is considerable variability in the quality of maize and grass silages produced. In a recent study Keady et al. (2002) concluded that the highest yield of fat and protein from dairy cows was obtained from maize silage ensiled at approximately 30% dry matter (DM) when offered as 40% of the forage component of the diets consisting of either medium or high feed value grass silages supplemented with concentrates. Also Keady et al. (2002) concluded that replacing 40% of the grass silage component of the diet with maize silage had a concentrate sparing effect, as determined for milk yield, of up to 1.9 kg/cow/d. The objective of the current study was to examine further the effect of maturity of maize silage at harvest on the performance of dairy cattle offered grass silages differing in feed value. The potential concentrate sparing effect of contrasting maize silages was also examined.

Colour deterioration and lipid oxidation are major factors limiting the shelf life and acceptability of meat. Vitamin E slows down these processes and meat from animals fed supranutritional amounts of vitamin E has an increased shelf life. However, vitamin E supplementation in sheep has produced variable results (Enser et al. , 1999). This work shows the effects of supplementing vitamin E on the concentration in plasma over a 63 day feeding period and on meat quality.

Anthrozoology (the study of human-animal interactions) is proving that human interactions with animals can have a severe impact on their welfare, production and ease of management; and can therefore have a substantial impact on productivity of a livestock unit. Recent research on dairy cattle shows how the quality of human-animal interactions has a potentially greater effect than with other intensively farmed species, due to the extended duration, intensity and frequency of contact. Early work by Bouissou and Boissy (1988) imposed various positive handling treatments on young heifers to determine the most sensitive time to socialise cattle to humans and investigate subsequent ease of handling; it revealed that the benefits of handling decreased with time, it was harder to establish a positive relationship with older animals but the work did monitor the heifers upon entry to the milking herd. Our research is designed to bring together techniques and hypotheses of previous pioneering work and carrying it to its commercially important conclusion when the dairy heifer calves, enters the herd and commences her productive milking life. The aim is to investigate whether the extent and nature of human contact during the rearing period has an effect on heifer welfare and subsequent production.

Information on the sensitivity of genotypes to different nutritional inputs is important to the pig industry to ensure the feeding of appropriate diets. Testing genotypes on a single diet may constrain potential growth, defined by an animal's genotype, by under-supplying nutrients or may reduce the efficiency of nutrient utilisation by over-supplying nutrients. The current study examined the relationship between selection strategy and the sensitivity of genotypes to different nutritional inputs.

Previous work has shown that the mobile bag technique (MBT) can be used to study the dynamics of digestive processes in the whole tract of ponies (Hyslop et al, 1998). This experiment further develops the MBT as a method to study feed degradation dynamics over time in the pre-caecal segment of the digestive tract of ponies.

Two caecally-fistulated mature Welsh-cross pony geldings (LW 270kg) were offered 4kg of dry matter (DM) per day of a 1:3 rolled barley:hay cube mix plus minerals, in 2 equal meals per day at 09:00 and 17:00h. Grass hay was also offered ad libitum between 17:00 and 09:00h. Two sizes of mobile bag (6 x 1 cm Ø-large and 4 x 1 cm Ø- small) made from monofilament polyester with a 7 μm pore size were used.

The increase in ovulation rate caused by the Booroola gene was first observed in the Booroola Merino strain of sheep (Davis et al., 1982) and the gene was subsequently mapped to sheep chromosome 6 (OOV6) (Montgomery et al. 1994). The low heritability of fertility traits and the desire to produce more lambs per ewe from meat breeds has lead to many crossbreeding programs seeking to obtain the benefits of the Booroola gene. However, many producers report animals carrying a Booroola allele to be lighter than non-carriers (G. Davis, personal communication). The Booroola Merino strain of sheep is typically lighter than recipient breeds used in the introgression programmes e.g. Romney. This study aims to determine whether the Booroola gene has a pleiotropic effect on liveweight or whether there is any evidence to suggest a closely linked quantitative trait locus (QTL) affecting liveweight that may ‘hitchhike’ with the Booroola gene.

Faeces may be representative of the microbial population present in the large intestine (LI) of monogastric animals, and is being used as the inoculum for in vitro procedures to investigate hindgut fermentation. To test this hypothesis, samples were taken from the caecum, mid-colon, and rectum of three pigs fed a simple diet (no antibiotics or copper). The in vitro cumulative gas production technique (Theodorou et a/., 1994) was used to measure the fermentation characteristics of four standard carbohydrate feedstuffs.

Four feeds representative of certain carbohydrate fractions were used. They were fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS- oligosaccharides), oat hulls (OatH- fibre), potato starch (PST- resistant starch), and wheat bran (WBR- fibre). The entire large intestine was taken to laboratory, where samples were removed from the caecum, mid-colon, and rectum, diluted, and mixed, under strictly anaerobic conditions before being used as inoculum. The cumulative gas data (144 hours) were fitted to the monophasic modified Michaelis-Menten model (Groot et a/., 1996). After fermentation, samples were taken for VFA analysis, and substrate losses and pH measured.

Leg-weakness in female breeding pigs has serious implications both in terms of economics and welfare, accounting for up to 0.2 of first litter gilt cullings at an estimated cost to the UK pig industry of up to £3.0 million (Douglas, 1992), with the principal predisposing cause in the growing pig being osteochondrosis. It has been reported that selection for increased lean tissue growth rate and increased growth rate accompanied by ad libitum feeding of diets with high energy and nutrient concentration may increase the incidence of osteochondrosis and leg- weakness (Jorgensen and Sorensen, 1998), although evidence is largely equivocal. The effect of protein level in the diet is uncertain. Although both high and low levels of dietary protein lead to bone growth failure and fracture in human studies ( Reid and New, 1997), protein level has not been found to affect osteochondrosis in pigs (Jorgensen, 1995), thus the aim of the current study was to assess further the effect of protein nutrition on leg weakness in gilts.

Nutritional research on commercial farms is difficult to carry out due to the problems associated with measuring individual animal dry matter intake (DMI). This research was aimed at developing a satisfactory method of estimating DMI from routine farm records, supplemented by cow body condition score and height at withers of the cow.

Crop maturity at harvest affects the intake potential of maize silage. A short feeding trial with young beef heifers (Browne, Bryant, Beever and Thorp, 1998) identified a significant depression in intake when low DM silage was fed, yet no significant effect on live weight gain was recorded. The objective of this experiment was to determine if these results were repeated in a longer intake study using finishing beef cattle and to examine the effect of maize maturity on carcass quality.

Forage maize was harvested at three stages of maturity (LOW, MED and HIGH) during September 1997. At each stage of maturity, the crop was cut and ensiled in a separate AgBag during one day, without the use of an additive. The respective silage DM concentrations were 297, 339 and 393 g/kgFWt.

The Thoka gene for fecundity, a gene which originally occurred in Icelandic sheep, was introduced to the UK in 1985 and through a programme of crossbreeding was established in Cheviot sheep (Russel et al, 1997). Ewes are now retained as "Thoka carriers" only if they have lambed in each of the first three years and had at least two sets of twins. The gene has been introduced into separate North and South Country Cheviot (NCC and SCC) lines which are now phenotypically indistinguishable from purebred animals and contain proportionately less that 0.2 of the Icelandic genotype. The purpose of this analysis was to determine the increase in fecundity in the two breeds and whether or not the reproductive response to the incorporation of the Thoka gene differs between NCC and SCC breed types.

Selection for carcass leanness in pig breeding schemes has promoted lean tissue growth rate whilst reducing body fat stores and appetite. Dietary protein restriction has been proposed as a way to enhance body fat reserves in the breeding animal. However, protein restriction during gilt rearing has been shown to adversely affect reproductive performance (Cia et al., 1996). The aim of this study was to test the effect of short term elevation of dietary protein prior to ovulation in gilts reared on restricted protein, to determine whether short term improvement in metabolic state could reverse these detrimental effects.

Automatic milking systems have the option to feed cows as they are being milked. This would be beneficial if it were to keep cows quieter during the teat cup attachment and milking process, and improve yield, flow rate and time taken to milk out via its action on oxytocin as shown by Svennersten and Samuelsson, 1994. Potentially feeding may create dust and encourage vermin, defecation and urination. It may also make the cows more restless (Whipp, 1992). The aim of this experiment was to assess the effects of feeding cows in the milking stall of an automatic milking system on their behaviour and milking characteristics.

Consumption of a highly fermentable, high energy density (ED) food by ruminants results in changes within the rumen environment including a fall in pH. It has been shown that such changes can influence subsequent intake and diet selection in sheep as they attempt to correct these changes through their feeding behaviour (Cooper et al, 1995). The addition of a buffer eg NaHCO3 to a previously consumed high ED food or offering the sheep a low ED food would assist in preventing changes in the rumen environment hence the ruminant would not need to modify it’s diet selection in an attempt to correct these changes. The objectives were to determine (i) whether or not sheep would make a continuous non random selection between 2 foods of different ED (Test 1), (ii) to determine what concentration of NaHCO3 should be added to a food to obtain the most beneficial effects on rumen pH combined with intake (Test 2), and finally (iii) the main objective was to determine what consequences the ED of a food and the supplementation of NaHCO3 to a food offered for a short period of time had on subsequent diet selection made by sheep (Test 3).

Flooring in the farrowing house has changed dramatically over the years from straw bedding on concrete to metal, cast iron or plastic slats. Animals can develop abrasion injuries from these floors (Edwards and Lightfoot, 1986) and sows have been shown to avoid slatted floors during and immediately after farrowing (Phillips et al., 1996). There is some evidence that providing a cushioning material in the pen could improve animal welfare (Gravas, 1979). The objectives of this study were to assess the effect of providing mats in the farrowing house on behaviour and lesion development in sows and piglets.

Nineteen sows and their litters housed on metal slatted floors (Tri-bar, Nooyen, Duerne, The Netherlands) and nineteen sows and their litters on mats (Productive Comfort, Pemarsa, S.A.) were included in the study. Mats were made of micro-cellular foam and were placed in the area of the farrowing crate and on both heat pads. Sows were examined in 34 locations for skin lesions on entry to the farrowing house and again at weaning, approximately four weeks later. Lesions were scored according to their severity (1 to 6); addition of scores yielded a total score for each sow.

There is increased interest in using forages other than grass hay as the basal diet for equines in the UK. Whilst a range of short-chopped dehydrated alfalfa based forages may be used as alternatives to grass hay in equine diets, there is very little information available on their likely intake characteristics, apparent digestibilities or their nutritive values. The objectives of the current experiment were:- 1) to determine the voluntary feed intake (VFI) characteristics of three alfalfa based forages when offered ad libitum to ponies, 2) to determine the in vivo apparent digestibility, digestible energy (DE) and digestible crude protein (DCP) contents of these forages and 3) to compare the actual energy and protein intakes with theoretical energy and protein requirements.