The objective of this study was to identify environmental and management factors that are associated with the frequency of fatigued, injured, and dead pigs on arrival and in resting pens during lairage at a commercial Midwest abattoir. The terms transport losses or total losses refer to pigs that die or become nonambulatory at any stage of the marketing process. In this study, fatigued, injured, and dead pigs were summed into a variable termed total losses. Relative humidity (%), temperature ( degrees C), wind speed (m/s), and dew point ( degrees C) data were collected on 12,333 trailer loads of pigs. Week, sort from barn (first or third pig removal from barn), farm, normal vs. split load type (from 1 or multiple barns), load crew, driver, trailer, and wind direction were used as fixed effects in the model for the analysis of losses per load using generalized mixed models for Poisson distributions. Seven temperature-humidity indices (THI) were calculated and compared as model covariates. Load time per pig, trailer density (pigs per trailer x average BW/trailer space; kg/m(2)), wait time before unloading at the abattoir, and wind speed were used as model covariates. The log of the number of hogs per trailer was used to standardize the response variable. The linear covariate density accounted for the greatest portion of variance (based on F-value) followed by the fixed effect sort from barn, the fixed effect load type (pigs from 1 or multiple barns within a farm), load time per pig linear covariate, and THI. Pigs transported to the abattoir from June through July experienced fewer losses (P < 0.001) when compared with pigs that were transported from November through December. Keeping other factors constant, the log of total losses (%) per load increased by 0.0102x + 0.000541x(2) per unit of THI and 0.0191 kg/m(2) of density. Similarly, of 9 farms, the poorest-performing farm in regards to total loss percentage experienced 0.93% more losses per load when compared with the farm with the least loss percentage. This study demonstrates that multiple environment and management factors influence the incidence of market hog transport losses.

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The objective of this paper is to review the scientific literature to identify on-farm factors that contribute to market weight pig transportation losses. Transportation of market weight pigs is an essential element to the multisite pork production model used in the United States. In 2011 alone, approximately 111 million market weight pigs were transported from the finishing site to the abattoir. For pigs, the marketing process can present a combination of potentially novel, physical, and/or unfamiliar experiences that can be stressful. If the pig cannot cope with these sequential and additive stressors, then an increased rate of transportation losses could occur with a detrimental effect on pork carcass value. Current yearly estimates for transport losses are 1 million pigs (1%). A variety of market weight pig and farm factors have been reported to detrimentally affect transportation losses. By understanding how pigs interact with their environment during marketing, researchers, producers, and personnel at the abattoir may begin to identify, prioritize, and attempt to minimize or eliminate these stressors. This process will ultimately decrease transportation losses, improve pork quality, and increase profitability.aBtsraCt: The objective of this paper is to review the scientific literature to identify on-farm factors that contribute to market weight pig transportation losses. Transportation of market weight pigs is an essential element to the multisite pork production model used in the United States. In 2011 alone, approximately 111 million market weight pigs were transported from the finishing site to the abattoir. For pigs, the marketing process can present a combination of potentially novel, physical, and/ or unfamiliar experiences that can be stressful. If the pig cannot cope with these sequential and additive stressors, then an increased rate of transportation losses could occur with a detrimental effect on pork carcass value. Current yearly estimates for transport losses are 1 million pigs (1%). A variety of market weight pig and farm factors have been reported to detrimentally affect transportation losses. By understanding how pigs interact with their environment during marketing, researchers, producers, and personnel at the abattoir may begin to identify, prioritize, and attempt to minimize or eliminate these stressors. This process will ultimately decrease transportation losses, improve pork quality, and increase profitability.

The objective of the current study was to examine phenotypic fertility performance and survival, and to gain insight into underlying factors that may contribute to greater fertility performance in 2 divergent genetic groups (GG) of Holstein-Friesian, selected using the Irish Economic Breeding Index (EBI). The GG were evaluated across 3 spring calving pasture-based feeding treatments (FT) over 4 yr. The 2 divergent GG were (1) high EBI; representative of the top 5% nationally (elite), and (2) EBI representative of the national average (NA). In each year, 90 elite and 45 NA cows were randomly allocated to 1 of 3 FT: control, lower grass allowance, and high concentrate. No interaction between GG and FT was observed for any of the measures of fertility investigated. The elite cows achieved significantly greater pregnancy rate to first service (+14.9 percentage points), and significantly greater pregnancy rates after 21, 42, and 84 d of breeding (+17.3, +15.2, and +9.6 percentage points, respectively) compared with NA. The number of services per cow was fewer for elite (1.57) compared with NA (1.80). The interval from mating start date to pregnancy was significantly shorter for elite cows compared with NA. The elite cows maintained greater mean body condition score than NA throughout the study (2.91 vs. 2.72), and had greater body condition score at calving, artificial insemination, and drying off compared with NA. The elite cows had greater mean circulating concentrations of insulin-like growth factor-1 compared with NA. No significant effect was observed of GG on commencement of luteal activity, or progesterone profile variables. Greater survival to the start of fifth lactation was observed for elite cows. The elite cows were 43% less likely to be culled than NA by the beginning of the fifth lactation. The results highlight the success of the Economic Breeding Index to deliver reproductive performance and longevity consistent with industry targets across a range of seasonal pasture-based FT. The results also clearly demonstrate the potential of appropriate genetic selection to reverse negative fertility trends incurred during previous decades of selection for milk production alone.

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and nitrogen (N) efficiencies were modeled for 2 genetic groups (GG) of Holstein-Friesian cows across 3 contrasting feeding treatments (FT). The 2 GG were (1) high economic breeding index (EBI) animals representative of the top 5% of cows nationally (elite) and (2) EBI representative of the national average (NA). The FT represented (1) generous feeding of pasture, (2) a slight restriction in pasture allowance, and (3) a high-concentrate feeding system with adequate pasture allowance. Greenhouse gas and N balance models were parameterized using outputs generated from the Moorepark Dairy Systems model, a stochastic budgetary simulation model, having integrated biological data pertaining to the 6 scenarios (2 GG × 3 FT) obtained from a 4-yr experiment conducted between 2013 and 2016. On a per hectare basis, total system GHG emissions were similar for both elite and NA across the 3 FT. Per unit of product, however, the elite group had 10% and 11% lower GHG emissions per kilogram of fat-and protein-corrected milk and per kilogram of milk solids (MSO; fat + protein kg), respectively, compared with the NA across the 3 FT. The FT incorporating high concentrate supplementation had greater absolute GHG emissions per hectare as well as GHG per kilogram of fat-and protein-corrected milk and MSO. The elite group had a slightly superior N use efficiency (N output/N input) and lower N surplus (N input -N output) compared with the NA group. The high concentrate FT had an inferior N use efficiency and a higher N surplus. The results of the current study demonstrate that breeding for increased EBI will lead to a general improvement in GHG emissions per unit of product as well as improved N efficiency. The results also illustrate that reducing concentrate supplementation will reduce GHG emissions, GHG emissions in-tensity, while improving N efficiency in the context of pasture-based dairy production.