Farrowing is an intrinsically risky process for both the sow and the piglets that can cause welfare and economic problems. The effects of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug meloxicam on post-farrowing behaviour of sows, and the performance of piglets were investigated. A total of 48 sows were randomly allocated at the day of farrowing (day 0) into two homogeneous groups regarding parity, and treated with either meloxicam or saline solution as placebo. For each sow, number of position changes, total time lying and standing or sitting, feed intake and rectal temperature (RT) were recorded during 3 days after farrowing. Piglets were individually weighed at farrowing and at weaning. The number of position changes did not show significant differences between treatments (P = 0.79). Sows spent significantly less time lying during day +3 after farrowing in the meloxicam group than in the placebo group (P = 0.04). Feed intake and RT showed a parity effect (P < 0.001 in both cases); however, no treatment effect was observed (P = 0.67 and P = 0.47, respectively). Pre-weaning mortality rate in piglets was not affected by treatment. In litters from multiparous sows, piglets of low birth weight (defined as percentile 15: BW <1180 g) had an average daily gain significantly higher in the meloxicam group than in the placebo group (196.6 ± 7.2 v. 166.6 ± 9.1 g/day; P = 0.03). Although the administration of meloxicam 90 min after farrowing showed a positive effect on the total time lying of the sows, additional investigations are required to better qualify relevant indicators of pain following farrowing in sows and to specify the analgesic effects of meloxicam on piglet performance.

Ninety-one farms were visited over a 2-year period to assess the welfare of growing pigs in five different production systems found either in France or in Spain using the Welfare Quality® protocol. This study focused on animal-based measures as indicators of ‘good feeding’ and ‘good housing’. Multiple Generalized Linear Mixed Models were performed for each measure to evaluate the differences between production systems and to detect possible causal factors. Pigs in the conventional system presented the lowest prevalence of poor body condition, whereas extensive Mallorcan Black pigs and extensive Iberian pigs were associated with a decreased prevalence of bursitis and pig dirtiness. The straw-bedded system presented a lower prevalence of bursitis, but poorer hygiene and more susceptibility of poor body condition than the conventional system. The age of the animals had a significant effect on the appearance of bursitis in the three intensive systems studied. The type of floor was a significant causal factor of bursitis and pig dirtiness in the conventional system and among intensive Iberian pigs. The feeding system was another causal factor of pig dirtiness on more than 50% of the body in the conventional system, whereas pig dirtiness on less than 50% of the body was influenced by the age of the animals. The prevalence of huddling animals in the conventional system was associated with the highest stocking densities and the lowest environmental temperatures. The results indicate that there were important differences between production systems based on animal-based indicators of the good feeding and housing principles. The recording of the age of the animals, type of floor, feeding system, stocking density and environmental temperature can be useful to predict the appearance of a given welfare measure of ‘good housing’ on a farm.

The improvement of carcass quality is one of the main breeding goals in pig production. To select appropriate breeding animals, it is of major concern to exactly and reliably analyze the body composition in vivo. Therefore, the objective of the study was to examine whether the combination of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offers the opportunity to reliably analyze quantitative and qualitative body composition characteristics of different pig breeding groups in vivo. In this study, a total of 77 pigs were studied by DXA and MRI at an average age of 154 days. The pigs originated from different autochthonous or conventional breeds or crossbreeds and were grouped into six breed types: Cerdo Ibérico (Ib); Duroc × Ib (Du_Ib); White Sow Lines (WSL, including German Landrace and German Large White); Hampshire/Pietrain (Pi_Ha, including Hampshire, Pietrain × Hampshire (PiHa) and Pietrain × PiHa); Pietrain/Duroc (Pi_Du, including Pietrain × Duroc (PiDu) and Pietrain × PiDu); crossbred WSL (PiDu_WSL, including Pietrain × WSL and PiDu × WSL). A whole-body scan was performed by DXA with a GE Lunar DPX-IQ in order to measure the amount and percentage of fat tissue (FM; %FM), lean tissue (LM; %LM) and bone mineral, whereas a Siemens Magnetom Open with a large body coil was used for MRI in the thorax region between 13th and 14th vertebrae in order to measure the area of the loin (LA) and the above back fat area (FA) of both body sides. A GLM procedure using SAS 9.2 was used to analyze the data. As expected, the native breed Ib followed by Du_Ib crossbreeds showed the highest %FM (27.2%, 25.0%) combined with the smallest LA (46.2 cm2, 73.6 cm2), whereas Ib had the lowest BW at an average age of 154 days. Pigs with Pi_Ha origin presented the least %FM (12.4%) and largest LA (99.5 cm2). The WSL and PiDu_WSL showed an intermediate body composition. Therefore, it could be concluded that DXA and MRI and especially their combination are very suitable methods to reliably identify differences in body composition and carcass traits among different pig lines in vivo.

There is a need for new, non-invasive, rapid and reliable analytical methodologies that can easily be implemented and used for authentication of cattle production systems and the meat derived from them. Easily quantifiable markers could strengthen the current tracing methods for beef authentication. This study investigated the use of a nuclear magnetic resonance-based metabolomic approach as a tool to authenticate beef on the basis of the pre-slaughter production system. Urine and muscle samples were collected from animals fed either pasture outdoor, a barley-based concentrate indoor, silage followed by pasture outdoor or silage followed by pasture outdoor with concentrate over 1 year. A metabolomic analysis was performed on urine (n = 68) and muscle (n = 98) samples collected from animals on the different diets. The results showed that separation according to production system was possible indicating the potential use of this approach in beef authentication. Identification of the major discriminating peaks in urine led to the identification of potential markers of production system including creatinine, glucose, hippurate, pyruvate, phenylalanine, phenylacetylglycine and three unassigned resonances.

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of exposure to the gas mixtures of 70% nitrogen (N2) and 30% carbon dioxide (CO2; 70N30C), 80% N2 and 20% CO2 (80N20C) and 85% N2 and 15% CO2 (85N15C) on aversion, stunning effectiveness and carcass, as well as meat quality in pigs, and to compare them with the commercial stunning of 90% CO2 (90C). A total of 68 female pigs were divided into four groups and stunned with one of the gas mixtures. During the exposure to the gas, behavioural variables (retreat attempts, escape attempts, gasping, loss of balance, muscular excitation and vocalizations) were recorded, and at the end of the stunning, corneal reflex and rhythmic breathing were assessed. After slaughter, meat quality parameters such as pH at 45 min post mortem (pH45) and at 24 h post mortem (pHu), electrical conductivity, drip loss and colour, in the Longissimus thoracis (LT) and Semimembranosus (SM) muscles were measured, and the presence of ecchymosis on the hams was noted. The PROC MIXED and the PROC GENMOD of SAS® were used to analyse the parametric and binomial variables, respectively. The ‘gas mixture’ was always considered a fixed effect and the ‘live weight’ as a covariate. To assess the correlation between meat quality and behaviour measures, PROC CORR was used. Pigs exposed to 90C showed a higher percentage of escape attempts and gasping, a lower percentage of vocalization and shorter muscular excitation phase than pigs exposed to the other N2 and CO2 mixtures (P < 0.05). After stunning, no pig exposed to 90C showed corneal reflex or rhythmic breathing, whereas 85% and 92% of the animals exposed to N2 and CO2 mixtures showed corneal reflex and rhythmic breathing, respectively. Animals stunned with 80N20C and 85N15C had a lower pH45 (P < 0.01) than animals exposed to 90C. Electrical conductivity in the SM muscle was lower (P < 0.001) in 90C and 70N30C pigs than in 80N20C and 85N15C pigs, whereas in LT, it was lower (P < 0.05) in 90C pigs than in 85N15C. As the CO2 concentration of the gas mixture was decreased, the prevalence of exudative pork increased. Twenty-five percent of animals exposed to N2 and CO2 mixtures (n = 68) had ecchymosis in their carcasses, whereas no animal stunned with 90C had ecchymosis. In conclusion, although N2 and CO2 stunning exhibit fewer signs of aversion than 90C, their induction time to unconsciousness is longer, and this may negatively affect meat and carcass quality.

The present study was conducted to evaluate and compare the physiological responses of sheep and goats to water restriction using the deuterium dilution technique (D2O) to predict the total water intake (TWI) in both species. In two consecutive trials, 10 non-lactating Boer goats and 10 non-lactating German black-head mutton ewes were each randomly allocated into a treatment and a control group. In the control groups (n = 5, for each species), water was offered ad libitum, whereas the treatment groups (n = 5, for each species) received water 3 h/day on experimental days 8 to 14 and 6 h every 2 days on experimental days 15 to 22. The respiratory rate, rectal temperature, body mass and drinking behaviour were also recorded. The TWI was estimated by D2O for each animal. Water restriction for 21 h/day or 42 h/2 days had no significant (P > 0.05) effect on water intake (WI), feed intake, WI to dry matter intake ratio or body mass in both species. The absence of differences between species in their WIs was also confirmed using D2O. However, sheep had higher respiratory rates and rectal temperatures than goats in both control and treatment groups. Both species showed the ability to tolerate a moderate water shortage by activating several physiological mechanisms and behavioural strategies.

This study aims to investigate the relative contribution of ante- and post-mortem factors to the final quality of beef. In all, 112 steers (four breed-crosses) were arranged in a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial experimental including production system, growth implant and β-adrenergic agonist strategies. Carcasses were suspended by the Achilles tendon or the aitch bone and meat was aged for 2/6/13/21/27 days (longissimus muscle) or 2/27 days (semimembranosus muscle). Meat quality traits related to beef texture were measured. Statistical analyses were developed including ante- and post-mortem factors and their relative contribution to the variability observed for each measured trait was calculated. The main factor responsible for the variability in sarcomere length was the suspension method (91.1%), which also influenced drip-loss (44.3%). Increasing the percentage of British breeds increased (P < 0.05) the intramuscular fat content in longissimus muscle, but only when implants were not used. Thus, the breed-cross, implant strategy and their interaction were responsible for >58% of the variability in this trait. The variability in instrumental and sensory tenderness was mainly affected by post-mortem factors (carcass suspension, ageing time and their interaction), explaining generally ∼70% of the variability in these traits. Breed-cross was the second most important effect (∼15%) when carcass suspension was not considered in the model, but still ageing time was responsible for a much larger proportion of the variability in tenderness (>45%). In conclusion, post-mortem handling of the carcasses may be much more effective in controlling beef tenderness than pre-mortem strategies.

This study reviews the factors of pig production that impact the quality of dry-cured ham. When processing is standardized, the quality of the final dry-cured product is primarily determined by the quality of the meat before curing (green ham). This has been defined as the aptitude for seasoning and is determined by the green ham weight, adipose tissue quantity and quality, meat physico-chemical properties and the absence of visual defects. Various ante-mortem factors including pig age and weight, genetic type, diet, feeding strategy and slaughter conditions determine green ham properties such as the dynamics of water loss, salt intake and, as a consequence, proteolysis and lipolysis. Muscle conditions (pH, salt concentration, water content and availability, temperature) influence enzymatic activity and development of characteristic texture and flavor. Generally, hams of older and heavier pigs present better seasoning aptitude because of higher adiposity. Adiposity is also positively correlated with fat saturation, which is desired to avoid rancidity and oiliness. The fatty acid profile of tissue lipids can be manipulated by diet composition. Feeding strategy affects tissue accretion and protein turnover, thus directly impacting proteolysis. With respect to the impact of pig genotype on dry-cured ham quality, local breeds are generally considered more suitable for producing quality dry hams; however, the majority of dry-cured hams on the market today are from modern pig breeds raised in conventional systems, providing lean hams. The importance of all these factors of pig production is discussed and synthesized, with an emphasis on the main difficulties encountered in dry-cured ham production.

The rise in the frequency of detecting prednisolone in bovine urine from northern Italy has come into focus of attention in recent years. The possibility that neo-formation of prednisolone or that prednisone may occur in urine after collection of samples was therefore investigated. Cow urine collected for official routine controls in Lombardy containing more than 80 ng/ml cortisol, and prednisolone and prednisone below the decision limit (CCα) of the method (0.4 and 0.5 ng/ml, respectively) was used. The C1–2 dehydrogenation of naturally present cortisol and cortisone was checked by incubating urine, both contaminated and uncontaminated with faeces, at 37°C and by collecting samples at 0, 1, 2, 4, 6 and 24 h. The influence of Helix pomatia juice was also investigated in order to determine whether deconjugation could influence the reliability of the results. All samples were analysed by HPLC-MS3 for the presence of cortisol, cortisone, prednisolone and prednisone in negative electrospray ionisation mode, utilising the consecutive reaction monitoring of product ions derived from the formate molecular adduct ([M+HCOO]–). The observed neo-formation of prednisolone shows that inappropriate temperatures in sample storage and processing can result in an incorrect accusation of non-compliance. The faecal contamination of urine, performed with the aim to mimic a collection conducted without the necessary care, moreover, evoked a high increase in prednisolone concentration in two out of seven animals. Moreover, H. pomatia juice had no significant effect on the prednisolone concentration, indicating that this corticosteroid is present in its free form in cow urine.

The economical profitability of the dairy industry is based on the quality of the bulk milk collected in the farms, therefore it was based on the herd level rather than on the individual animals at real time. Udder infection and stage of lactation are directly related to the quality of milk produced on the herd level. However, improvement of milk quality requires testing each animal's milk separately and continuously. Recently, it was postulated that online equipment can estimate milk quality according to its clotting parameters, and thus result in better economical return for cheese making. This study further investigated the potential application of the AfiLab™ equipment to provide real-time analysis of milk-clotting parameters for cheese manufacture and cheese yield on quarter (1018) and individual cow (277) levels. Days in milk, lactose, log SCC and udder infection were found to have a significant effect on curd firmness and cheese properties and yield. The results clearly indicate that: (a) the parameter Afi-CF determined with the AfiLab™ is suitable for assessing milk quality for its clotting parameters, a value which is not provided by merely measuring fat and protein content on the gland and the cow levels; (b) bacterial type is the single major cause of reduced milk quality, with variations depending on the bacterial species; and (c) early and late lactation also had negative effects on milk-clotting parameters. Cheese made from the various milk samples that were determined by the Afilab™ to be of higher quality for cheese making resulted in higher yield and better texture, which were related mainly to the bacterial species and stage of lactation.

Bruises in cattle develop after the application of force, and they provide evidence for sub-optimal animal welfare. The aim of this study was to describe the gross characteristics of bruises in cows arriving at the slaughterhouse directly from farms or through the livestock market. The number of bruises and their distribution on the carcass as well as their severity, shape, size and colour were assessed post mortem in a slaughterhouse in Chile. A total of 258 cow carcasses were evaluated, and a total of 846 bruises were found on 243 of the carcasses. Cows that had passed through a livestock market (M-carcasses) had in total 563 bruises (mean 3.8 bruises/carcass, s.d. 2.0), whereas cows transported directly from farms (F-carcasses) had in total 283 bruises (mean 2.5 bruises/carcass, s.d. 1.8). The backs of F-carcasses had twice as many bruises as M-carcasses (32.9% and 16.2%, respectively), whereas bruises in the rib area were more frequently observed in M-carcasses (13.1%) than in F-carcasses (8.1%). Superficial bruises (grade 1) were the most frequently observed (66.2% of all bruises). Regarding the size of the bruises, 64 (7.6%) were classified as large, 271 (32.0%) as medium and 511 (60.4%) as small. Irregularly shaped bruises were the most frequent (91.1%, n = 771), followed by linear (3.8%, n = 32), circular (3.1%, n = 26) and tramline-shaped bruises (1.9%, n = 16). The latter were noticed only in M-carcasses, which may indicate that these animals were beaten more frequently with sticks or other rod-shaped objects. Fresh, bright red-coloured bruises were found more frequently on all the animals (69.5% from farms and 70.5% from market) compared with bluish (29.7% and 29.3%, respectively) and yellow bruises (0.4% and 0.2%, respectively). The method of selling was significantly associated with the number of bruises on the carcass (P < 0.001) and the anatomical site (P < 0.05), but not with the severity, shape and colour of the bruises. Increased fat coverage reduced the severity of bruises (P < 0.001). This study shows that, in Chile, market animals have more bruises than those sourced directly from farms, and their distribution is different. More information about the causes of infliction may help reduce bruises and it may also improve their welfare. Further studies are required to elucidate whether the causes of the high bruising in the case of animals passing through markets are related only to extra handling (repeated loading, unloading, transportation, eventual mixing) or to the way of handling by personnel and inadequate design.

The effect of including thyme by-products from the distillation industry into the diet of pregnant ewes on the final quality of lamb meat was evaluated during meat storage in modified atmosphere. A total of 36 Segureña ewes were randomly assigned to three homogeneous groups. One group was fed a basal diet (BD) as control (C), whereas the diet of the other two groups was modified by substituting 10% (T1) and 20% (T2) of the BD with pellets made from 50% barley and 50% distilled thyme leaves (DTL). Meat spoilage (total viable, psychrotroph (PSY), moulds and yeasts, Enterobacteriaceae and lactic acid bacteria), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), colour (CIELab coordinates, metmyoglobin) and sensory characteristics of fresh lamb meat packed in modified atmosphere packaging (70% O2 : 30% CO2) were analysed after storage at 0, 7, 14 and 21 days. In general, the DTL-containing diet inhibited lipid and pigment oxidation in fresh lamb meat. Lower PSY counts and content of secondary oxidation product (TBARS) as a result of adding DTL to the ewe diet, whereas surface redness (a* values) was significantly higher on days 7 and 14. It can be concluded that thyme by-products from the distillation industry could be used as a source of natural antioxidant and antimicrobial in the feed for ewes.

Intensification and specialisation of agriculture in developed countries enabled productivity to be improved but had detrimental impacts on the environment and threatened the economic viability of a huge number of farms. The combination of livestock and crops, which was very common in the past, is assumed to be a viable alternative to specialised livestock or cropping systems. Mixed crop-livestock systems can improve nutrient cycling while reducing chemical inputs and generate economies of scope at farm level. Most assumptions underlying these views are based on theoretical and experimental evidence. Very few assessments of their environmental and economic advantages have nevertheless been undertaken in real-world farming conditions. In this paper, we present a comparative assessment of the environmental and economic performances of mixed crop-livestock farms v. specialised farms among the farm population of the French ‘Coteaux de Gascogne’. In this hilly region, half of the farms currently use a mixed crop-livestock system including beef cattle and cash crops, the remaining farms being specialised in either crops or cattle. Data were collected through an exhaustive survey of farms located in our study area. The economic performances of farming systems were assessed on 48 farms on the basis of (i) overall gross margin, (ii) production costs and (iii) analysis of the sensitivity of gross margins to fluctuations in the price of inputs and outputs. The environmental dimension was analysed through (i) characterisation of farmers’ crop management practices, (ii) analysis of farm land use diversity and (iii) nitrogen farm-gate balance. Local mixed crop-livestock farms did not have significantly higher overall gross margins than specialised farms but were less sensitive than dairy and crop farms to fluctuations in the price of inputs and outputs considered. Mixed crop-livestock farms had lower costs than crop farms, while beef farms had the lowest costs as they are grass-based systems. Concerning crop management practices, our results revealed an intensification gradient from low to high input farming systems. Beyond some general trends, a wide range of management practices and levels of intensification were observed among farms with a similar production system. Mixed crop-livestock farms were very heterogeneous with respect to the use of inputs. Nevertheless, our study revealed a lower potential for nitrogen pollution in mixed crop-livestock and beef production systems than in dairy and crop farming systems. Even if a wide variability exists within system, mixed crop-livestock systems appear to be a way for an environmental and economical sustainable agriculture.

Increasingly more studies are raising concerns about the increasing consumption of meat and the increasing amount of crops (cereals and oilseeds in particular) used to feed animals and that could be used to feed people. The evolution of this amount is very sensitive to human diets and to the productivity of feed. This article provides a 2050 foresight on the necessary increase in crop production for food and feed in three contrasting scenarios: diets with no animal products; current diets in each main region of the world; and the average diet of developed countries extended to the whole world. We develop empirical aggregate production models for seven world regions, using 43 years and 150 countries. These models realistically account for the contribution of feed from food plants (i.e. plants that would be edible for humans) and of grassland to animal products. We find that the amount of edible crops necessary to feed livestock in 2050 is between 8% and 117% of today's need. The latter figure is lower than that in comparable foresight studies because our models take into account empirical features occurring at an aggregate level, such as the increasing share of animal production from regions using less crop product per unit of animal product. In particular, the expected increase in animal production is estimated to occur mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia, where the amount of feed from food crops required per unit of animal product proves to be lower than that in other areas. This 117% increase indicates that crop production would have to double if the whole world adopted the present diet of developed countries.

Involuntary soil intake by cows on pasture can be a potential route of entry for pollutants into the food chain. Therefore, it appears necessary to know and quantify factors affecting soil intake in order to ensure the food safety in outside rearing systems. Thus, soil intake was determined in two Latin square trials with 24 and 12 lactating dairy cows. In Trial 1, the effect of pasture allowance (20 v. 35 kg dry matter (DM) above ground level/cow daily) was studied for two sward types (pure perennial ryegrass v. mixed perennial ryegrass–white clover) in spring. In Trial 2, the effect of pasture allowance (40 v. 65 kg DM above ground level/cow daily) was studied at two supplementation levels (0 or 8 kg DM of a maize silage-based supplement) in autumn. Soil intake was determined by the method based on acid-insoluble ash used as an internal marker. The daily dry soil intake ranged, between treatments, from 0.17 to 0.83 kg per cow in Trial 1 and from 0.15 to 0.85 kg per cow in Trial 2, reaching up to 1.3 kg during some periods. In both trials, soil intake increased with decreasing pasture allowance, by 0.46 and 0.15 kg in Trials 1 and 2, respectively. In Trial 1, this pasture allowance effect was greater on mixed swards than on pure ryegrass swards (0.66 v. 0.26 kg reduction of daily soil intake between medium and low pasture allowance, respectively). In Trial 2, the pasture allowance effect was similar at both supplementation levels. In Trial 2, supplemented cows ate much less soil than unsupplemented cows (0.20 v. 0.75 kg/day, respectively). Differences in soil intake between trials and treatments can be related to grazing conditions, particularly pre-grazing and post-grazing sward height, determining at least in part the time spent grazing close to the ground. A post-grazing sward height lower than 50 mm can be considered as a critical threshold. Finally, a dietary supplement and a low grazing pressure, that is, high pasture allowance increasing post-grazing sward height, would efficiently limit the risk for high level of soil intake, especially when grazing conditions are difficult. Pre-grazing and post-grazing sward heights, as well as faecal crude ash concentration appear to be simple and practical tools for evaluating the risk for critical soil intake in grazing dairy cows.

Dirty udders and teats result in a higher workload in terms of cleaning before milking and may constitute a risk for udder health. The aim of this prevalence study on 23 farms with very low within-farm variation in cubicle measures and other cubicle characteristics was to identify potentially influencing housing and management factors concerning teat and teat tip soiling. Information about udder soiling, housing and management was collected through direct recording and farmers’ interviews. Height at withers, shoulder width and diagonal body length were measured in 79% to 100% of the cows in each herd. On the basis of the 25% largest animals, compliance with recommendations for cubicle measures was calculated, which was generally rather low. Stepwise regression was used to find predictors for the percentage of dirty teats and of dirty teat tips. The final model on dirty teats explained 58.5% of the variance and contained four factors (F = 6.34, P = 0.0023). Less soiled teats were found on farms that conducted teat dipping after milking (t = −3.21, P = 0.0048), had increased daily cubicle maintenance time (t = −2.58, P = 0.0187), deep-bedded cubicles (t = −2.42, P = 0.0265) and decreasing compliance concerning cubicle length (t = 2.33, P = 0.0317). The final model on teat tip soiling explained 46.0% of the variance and contained three factors (F = 5.39, P = 0.0075). Less soiled teat tips were associated with increasing height of bedding material (t = −2.89, P = 0.0094) and decreasing compliance concerning resting length (t = 2.12, P = 0.0470). Difficult to explain was the association found between increased passage soiling and decreased teat tip dirtiness (t = −1.86, P = 0.0790). Thus, even under relatively restrictive cubicle conditions, a certain increase in teat and teat tip soiling was found with increasing cubicle length. However, at the same time, measures relating to good management may positively affect teat and teat tip cleanliness. In addition, deep-bedded cubicles yielded advantages in this regard. Both regression models for teat and teat tip cleanliness contained similar but not identical predictive variables. This indicates that dirtiness of each particular area may originate from slightly different though related causes. The low correlations found between udder, teat and teat tip cleanliness should be considered in future studies.

We determined whether plant diversity and sequence of plant ingestion affected foraging when cattle chose from plants that varied in concentrations of alkaloids, tannins and saponins. We hypothesized cattle that ate high-alkaloid grasses (endophyte-infected tall fescue (TF) or reed canarygrass (RCG)) would prefer forages high in tannins (birdsfoot trefoil, BFT+) or saponins (alfalfa, ALF+), because tannins and saponins can bind to alkaloids, presumably reducing their absorption. We further hypothesized that forages with tannins or saponins consumed before, rather than after, foraging on high-alkaloid grasses would promote greater use of those grasses presumably by binding to alkaloids, thereby reducing their absorption. In Phase 1, cattle (n = 32) grazed on either high (+) or low (−) alkaloid grass (TF or RCG) pastures for 30 min each morning at 0600 h and were then offered a choice of BFT+, BFT−, ALF+ and ALF− for 60 min each day for 12 days. In Phase 2, cattle (n = 32) were first offered a choice of BFT+ or ALF+ for 30 min at 0600 h and then placed on grass (TF+ or −, or RCG+ or −) pastures for 60 min for 12 days. In both phases, we had four spatial replications of four treatments with 2 per calves assigned to each of the 16 replications per treatment combinations. Scan samples of individuals at 2-min intervals were used to determine incidence of foraging on each plant species (%). Cattle grazed more on RCG than on TF in Phases 1 (62% v. 27%; P = 0.0015) and 2 (71% v. 32%; P = 0.0005). In Phase 1, cattle that first foraged on RCG+ or TF− subsequently preferred ALF over BFT, whereas cattle offered RCG− or TF+ foraged on ALF and BFT equally. Foraging by cattle on RCG was cyclic during Phase 1, whereas cattle foraging on TF markedly decreased incidence of use of TF from 41% to only 16% by the end of the 12-day trial (P = 0.0029). Contrary to the cyclic (RCG) or steadily declining (TF) use of grasses in Phase 1, cattle steadily and dramatically increased foraging on both RCG and TF throughout Phase 2, when they first grazed BFT+ or ALF+ followed by high-alkaloid grasses (P = 0.0159). Our findings suggest that in plant species the sequence of ingestion influenced foraging behavior of cattle and that secondary compounds influenced those responses.

Since they were first described in 1993, it was found that recombinant variable fragments (rVHHs) of heavy-chain antibodies (HCAbs) from Camelidae have unusual biophysical properties, as well as a special ability to interact with epitopes that are cryptic for conventional Abs. It has been assumed that in vivo raised polyclonal HCAbs (pHCAbs) should behave in a similar manner than rVHHs; however, this assumption has not been tested sufficiently. Furthermore, our own preliminary work on a single serum sample from a llama immunized with a β-lactamase, has suggested that pHCAbs have no special ability to down-modulate catalytic activity. In this work, we further explored the interaction of pHCAbs from four llamas raised against two microbial enzymes and analyzed it within a short and a long immunization plan. The relative contribution of pHCAbs to serum titer was found to be low compared with that of the most abundant conventional subisotype (IgG1), during the whole immunization schedule. Furthermore, pHCAbs not only failed to inhibit the enzymes, but also activated one of them. Altogether, these results suggest that raising high titer inhibitory HCAbs is not a straightforward strategy – neither as a biotechnological strategy nor in the biological context of an immune response against infection – as raising inhibitory rVHHs.