Livestock Management Practices

Livestock management refers to adequate or intensive care given to animals to ensure maximum production.

The major considerations in livestock management practices system are:

1.   The type of animal and the use of the right animal

2.   Selection of right breed

3.   The housing system to be used

4.   Type of feeding or the feeding system

5.   Hygiene and sanitation practices

HOUSING MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

          The housing management practices depend on the size and the type of animal. Generally, we have the following housing management

1.   Free range or extensive system

2.   Intensive system

3.   Semi intensive system

FREE RANGE OF EXTENSIVE SYSTEM

          This is a system of animal management whereby animals are given very little or no care at all.


Animals are to go out to look for food themselves and to sleep anywhere at night.

ADVANTAGES

1.   There is little or no cost of feeding

2.   Spread of diseases is at the minimum level

3.   It does not involve much labour

DISADVANTAGES

1.   Under this system, record keeping is difficult

2.   Animals could be killed by wild animal

3.   Animals can be easily infected with diseases

4.   Disease infected animal cannot be easily identified or located for treatment 




INTENSIVE SYSTEM

In this system of livestock management animals are kept indoor throughout the period of rearing. They are given food, water and other necessary things for their growth and development.

In poultry, intensive management system include the following

1.   Battery cage system: This housing system is considered good for layers and it is a system where birds are kept in cage.




2.   Deep litter system: This is a system where birds are kept in a house with concrete floor and litter (saw dust or saw wood) to absorb the drooping of birds.

ADVANTAGES OF INTENSIVE SYSTEM   

1.   It aids record keeping

2.   Disease infected animal can be identified for treatment

3.   It aids proper monitoring of animal especially the ones kept for breeding.

4.   Animals are provided with required nutrition for their growth and development

5.   Animals under intensive system are not exposed to diseases

DISADVANTAGES

1.   This system is costly

2.   It is labour intensive

3.   Diseases spread faster


SEMI-INTENSIVE SYSTEM   

This is a system of animal management whereby animals are provided with housing and are allowed to move about within a fenced area during the day.


ADVANTAGES OF SEMI-INTENSIVE SYSTEM   

1.   It is not labour intensive

2.   Spread of diseases is minimal

3.   Management cost is relatively low



DISADVANTAGES OF SEMI-INTENSIVE SYSTEM   

1.   Record keeping could be difficult

2.   Theft case could result

3.   They are liable to diseases attack 

RESPIRATION IN MAMMALS

Farm animals require energy for various metabolic functions. Essentially, respiration is a catabolic process that involves breaking down of glucose or simple sugar to liberate energy from the oxygen that is breathe in or inhalation. 

carbonIVoxide and water are produced as waste products.

C₆H₁₂06₂+60₂                  6C0₂+6H₂0+ energy

The lung is a respiratory organ which is enclosed in the thorax of the farm animal. It is lined with blood vessel and mass of little thin wall sack called Alveoli which leads to Bronchiole which in turn leads to Bronchi that is connected to the inside through trachea.

INHALATION (Breathing in)

This occurs when the thoracic cavity enlarges by the contraction of the diaphram and the ribs are raised up to draw in  air (oxygen) into the lungs. The oxygen from the air sack diffuses into the capillary, from it, it is transported by the blood to the living tissues.

EXHALATION (Breathing out)

In this process the thoracic cavity decreases and the diaphram fastens out and the ribs are lowered to removed carbonIVoxide and water from the lung.

RESPIRATION IN BIRDS

Birds have thin lungs which are supplemented with four pairs of air sack and one single air sack. The air sacks are:

1.   The abdominal air sack

2.   The intercavilar air sack

3.   The cervical air sack

4.   The anterior and posterior air sack

The lungs are active while the sacks are passive in respiratory exchange. The air sacks connect the bones to the ribs, to the legs, thoracic and cervical vertebra. Their bones are hollow and they are connected to the air sack and make the birds tight and buoyant which helps the birds to fly.

BLOOD CIRCULATION IN FARM ANIMALS

The blood is made up of liquid plasma which contains a mixture of blood cells, the plasma is a pale yellowish liquid that is mainly water. It contains many dissolved substances such as plasma protein, antibodies, hormones, enzymes, dissolved gases, salts, digested food materials and waste products of metabolism. The blood cells are made up of:

1.   Red blood cells (Erythrocytes):

2.   White blood cells (Leucocytes)

3.   Platelets

RED BLOOD CELLS

The inside of the red blood cells is completely filled with an oxygen carrying pigment called hemoglobin, adult red blood cell has no nucleus its main function is to transport oxygen from the lungs to the body cells.

WHITE BLOOD CELLS

They are larger than the red blood cells and they have nucleus. They also help in fighting disease attack in the body.

PLATELETS

They are tiny irregular cell fragments which do not contain nucleus, they produce an important factor which initiates the blood clotting process

FUNCTIONS OF THE BLOOD

1.   Transportation of oxygen, carbonIVoxide, urea, digested food and hormones.

2.   Heat distribution or temperature control

3.   It helps to fight against diseases

4.   It minimizes loss of blood through clotting

PARTS OF THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM

1.   Arteries: These are thick walled vessels that carry blood under pressure from the heart to all parts of the body. The largest of them is the aorta. Each artery divides the small hair-like vessels called capillary. All arteries carry oxygenated blood away from the heart except the pulmonary artery which carried deoxygenated blood. 

2.   Veins: They are blood vessels which returns deoxygenated blood from  other parts of the body to the heart. The pulmonary vein is an exception because it carries oxygenated from the heat.

3.   capillaries

PROCESS/MECHANISM OF BLOOD CIRCULATION

The heat brings about two types of circulation that occur simultaneously

1.   Systemic circulation

2.   Pulmonary or lung circulation

SYSTEMIC CIRCULATION

This is the movement of oxygenated blood from the heart through the aorta to all parts of the body and subsequent return of deoxygenated blood into the heat for pulmonary purification in it, oxygenated blood leaves the heat through the left auricles or return to the left ventricle. The left ventricle then pumps it to the aerta to supply all parts of the body. 

PULMONARY OR LUNGS CIRCULATION

This carries deoxygenated blood to and from the lungs for the renewal of oxygen. It begins from the right ventricle of the heat through the pulmonary artery to the lungs for oxygenation and back through the pulmonary vein to the left auricle. The liver is the only organ that receives double supply of blood.

EXCRETORY SYSTEM

The following are excretory organs and their waste products

1.   Liver: bile as a  waste product 

2.   Kidney: urine as a waste product

3.   The Lungs: CarbonIVoxide

4.   Skin: sweat

FUNCTIONS OF THE LIVER

1.   It helps in the regulation of blood sugar

2.   It helps in the fat metabolism

3.   It helps in the formation of bile

4.   Maintenance of body heat

5.   It helps in the manufacturing of plasma protein

6.   It helps in the storage of vitamin B

FUNCTIONS OF THE KIDNEY

1.   For excretion

2.   For removal of excess glucose

3.   For maintenance of acid/base balance

4.   For osmo-regulation of the body

FUNCTION OF THE SKIN

The skin is the outermost layer of the mammalian body. It contains both living and death cells and each of them has its own function. Nerves and other needed blood vessels are also present in the skin.

Functions

1.   For protection: The layers of the cell of the skin is for a continuous bacteria for harmful micro organism, reduction of water loss by evaporation from the body cells.

2.   For sensitivity: The skin is sensitive to touch, pressure, heat, cold, pain e.t.c that is the skin is sensitive to external stimuli.

3.   For temperature control: Warm blood regulation as a body system that is temperature being constant. Heat losts and gain through graduate correction, evaporation, etc.

4.     For excretion of waste products

5.   Production of vitamin D

6.   Production of milk in female animals

7.   For storage of preserved food

Write short notes on the lungs and their functions

          The lung is located in the thoracic cavity. The atmospheric oxygen passes through the nostrils, the pharynx, larynx, or voice box bronchi and to the lungs. The movement of oxygen through these organs family terminates in the alveoli where exchange of gases like oxygen and carbonIVoxide take place.

FUNCTIONS

1.   It supplies oxygen to the body cells

2.   It helps to reduce heat load in the body

3.   It removes carbonIVoxide from the body

4.   It promotes gaseous exchange