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Animal production

Chassot A., Dufey P.-A.

Finishing of steers following a summering period on mountain pastures: effect of the finishing duration on fatening performance

Subsequent to a summering period of 48 crossbred steers (Limousin x Swiss Fleckvieh) on low input mountain pastures, the effect of a finishing period on fattening performance was investigated. Steers were slaughtered either on the day of returning from the mountain pastures (no finishing) or after 4, 8 and 12 weeks of indoor finishing (loose…
Animal production

Charrière J.-D., Imdorf A., Koenig C., Gallmann S., Kuhn R.

Which influence has sunflower on the development of bee colonies (Apis mellifera)?

In Switzerland, sunflower cultivation extend since the nineties and reaches about 5’000 ha nowadays. The sunflower seeds are not treated with insecticides (imidacloprid, fipronil) but despite that, Swiss beekeepers are complaining about colony losses if the hives are placed close enough to fields of blooming sunflower. We carried out a two years trial, in order…
Animal production

Arrigo Y.

Effect of cut number, stage of maturity and method of conservation on amino acid contents of forages

The amino acid (AA) contents of 42 forages were analysed. During three consecutive years, forage samples from the first and third cut were collected at two stages of maturity (30 days apart) on the same experimental plots. After cutting, the forage samples were either frozen (-20°C), artificially dried (forced air at 30°C, <45% relative humidity),…
Animal production

Schaeren W.

Antibiotic use in 2003 and 2004 on dairy farms

Until now only rough estimations concerning the amounts of antibiotics used in milk production were available. Our objective was to obtain more reliable information on the average quantity and type of antibiotic used on dairy farms by evaluating the stipulated treatment records for milk production farms. The evaluation of the recordings from a representative sample…
Animal production

Morel I., Wyss U., Collomb M.

Influence of the botanical composition of grass or silage on milk composition

Land-laws in German speaking countries contain restrictions how a farm is valued in cases of succession or inheritance. We construct a system dynamics model to estimate the impacts which legal concepts have for agricultural structures and the land market. It shows that current laws slow down structural change and prevent a broader distribution of land.
Animal production

Hess H.D., Kessler J., Liesegang A., Chiappi C.M.L.

Anionic salts in the feeding of dairy cattle

A feeding trial with dairy cows was conducted to assess the effect of different calcium concentrations in diets without or with the supplementation of anionic salts on mineral metabolism and acid-base balance in periparturient cows. Twenty-four Holstein cows were assigned to four groups. From day 263 of gestation until parturition, each group was fed a…
Animal production

Schori F., Fragnière C., Schaeren W., Stoll W.

Linseed and sunflower seed in dairy cow feeding

Three groups of 11 dairy cows each received the same ration composed of hay ad libitum, fodder beet and concentrate. During the experimental period 500 g fat contained in either sunflower seed, untreated and extruded linseed were distributed. Forage- and total intake were not influenced by the different oilseeds. No significant differences were detected by…
Animal production

Morel I., Wyss U., Collomb M., Bütikofer U.

Influence of the botanical composition of grass or hay on milk composition

Two trials, each including 15 dairy cows divided into three variants, were conducted with the purpose to assess the effect of botanical composition of grass (first trial) and hay (second trial) on the chemical composition of milk, especially on the fatty acid profile of milk fat. The comparison included (A) a grass mixture (ray-grass, meadow…
Animal production

Wyss U.

Preservation of moist hay with NaC1

In Switzerland, chemical additives are authorized for the preservation of moist hay. However, they are not allowed to be used on all farms (e.g. not on organic farms and milk producers for certain AOC cheeses). Therefore, the efficacy of NaCl was investigated with hay on 73,4 and 78,2 % dry matter content in laboratory scale…
Animal production

Wyss U.

Testing silage additives 2004

In 2004, we tested the efficacy of the silage additive EM to promote the main fermentation. The trials were carried out in small-scale silos with a mixture of lucerne and cocksfoot. Forage of the first and also of the second cut was ensiled at two different dry matter levels (about 20 and 30 % dry…
Animal production

Nydegger F., Ammann H., Moriz Ch., Rutishauser R.

Comparison of feed-distribution systems for dairy cows

In a three-month trial involving two groups of 15 dairy cows each, Agroscope FAT Tänikon investigated whether mixing the feed components of the basic ration or distributing a non-mixed ration had an impact on feed intake and milk yield. In the mixed-ration system, the basic ration, consisting of various silages and ventilated hay, was distributed…
Animal production

Gutzwiller A., Czeglédi L., Stoll P., Bruckner L.

Fusarium toxins in pig feeds: efficacy of mycotoxin adsorbents

In two experiments using a total of 220 weaner pigs the hypothesis was tested that apple pomace alleviates the negative effects of Fusarium toxins in pigs. The two experiments had the same two-factor design: Fusarium contaminated vs. uncontaminated wheat, and 8% apple pomace vs. no pomace in the diet. Both trials yielded similar results and…
Animal production

Keck M., Koutny L., Schmidlin A., Hilty R.

Odour in ambient air of pig housing systems with exercise yards and natural ventilation

Whereas closed housing with forced ventilation predominated in the past, nowadays, most new pig housing facilities are designed as multi-surface systems with bedding and exercise yards. New pig housing systems have to observe minimum separation distances from inhabited areas. However, these distances are not sufficient for new housing systems with natural ventilation or for exercise…
Animal production

Zähner M., Spiessl-Mayr E.

Electronic livestock identification

Data transfer between farms, dealers, slaughterhouse and the Swiss stock movement database is increasing, especially in response to the requirement for full animal traceability. Identification of individual animals is an important part of this system. The present practice of identifying animals by plastic ear tags has the advantages of being easy to use and inexpensive,…
Animal production

Thomet P., Leuenberger S., Blättler Th.

Project Opti-Milk: Performence of the milk production based on grazed grassland

On a typical site in the Swiss plains the productivity of a dairy production system with maximum proportion of grazing was studied over three years (April2001 to March 2004) The experimental herd consisted of 14 Simmental/red Holstein and two Jersey cows with an average life weight of 592 kg cow-1. After an average calving date…
Animal production

Schaeren W., Sollberger H., Münger A.

Once-daily milking in late lactation: milk and cheese quality

Milking dairy cows only once daily in late lactation increases the physiological changes in milk composition compared to &#8222;normal&#8220; milk. Milk fat and protein contents are considerably higher, coagulation properties are deteriorated, plasminogen and plasmin concentrations are higher and pH is slightly increased. In spite of this critical transformation properties, up to 50% of such…

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