Summer is very much my favourite season of the year. The aspects that appeal to me most are the longer days and the summer sun, although the latter is most likely a cow’s worst nightmare. So, the summer season is bittersweet, with the love I have for it overshadowed by the fact that dairy cows…
05
Jul
Jul
Max McKeown said, “All failure is failure to adapt, all success is successful adaptation.” While you might be on the fence regarding Max’s quote, one thing is certain, climate change has us exposed to ever-changing environmental stressors, bringing about ever-changing challenges. Yes, with the aid of improved genetics and breeding, we can upgrade our flocks…
11
Nov
Nov
Heat stress has become one of the most important factors to affect the efficiency of poultry production, resulting in high economic losses. Heat stress not only negatively influences production performance, but it also has a detrimental effect on meat and egg yield, meat and egg quality, reproductive performance, intestinal function, and immune response. Dietary supplementation…
05
Oct
Oct
Heat stress in pigs is defined as a physiological response to high environmental temperatures, where an animal is out of its thermoneutral zone and can no longer effectively regulate its body temperature. As a result, animal health, well-being, and performance are negatively affected. The effect of heat stress in pigs When pigs are exposed to…
01
Nov
Nov
Modern, fast-growing broiler chickens have been genetically selected for a rapid growth rate and improved muscle tissue deposition, which leads to greater metabolic heat production. This, in turn, makes them more susceptible to high temperatures and humidity when compared to older, native breeds. Besides their high metabolic heat production, broilers also have abundant feathers and…
11
Dec
Dec
The South Africa Weather Service has issued seasonal climate watch on the 31 August 2017 for the rainfall and temperature forecast from September 2017 to January 2017. The El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon is now likely to have no specific influence over the coming summer months over South Africa. In addition, as the current…
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