Experimental balance to estimate efficiency in the use of nitrogen in rabbit breeding

Calvet, S.; Estellés, F.; Hermida, B.; Blumetto, Oscar; Torres, Álvaro Pastor

doi:10.4995/wrs.2008.615

Cited by 16 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 18 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Table 1 shows the productive results obtained during the three trials in terms of animal age, initial and final weight, as well as water and feed consumption. These results were similar to those obtained at the same experimental farm by Calvet et al (2008) in a previous study. It may therefore be concluded that the animals were not affected by the chamber in terms of productive results.…”

Section: Equationsupporting

confidence: 82%

Technical Note: A flux chamber for measuring gas emissions from rabbits

Estellés¹,

Calvet²,

Blumetto³

et al. 2010

World rabbit sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Estación Experimental Las Brujas. Instituto Nacional de Investigación Agropecuaria. Ruta 48 -km. 10. Rincón del Colorado. 90200 cAnElonEs. Uruguay. ABSTRACT:Atmospheric pollution related to gas emissions from livestock production has become an issue of increasing interest. International commitments bind countries to provide annual reports on national emissions, however there is a lack of information regarding the estimation of emissions from rabbit farms. There are several methodologies available to measure gas emissions, the fl ux chamber technique being one of the most commonly used. In this study, a fl ux chamber was designed to measure emissions from small farm animals and their manure, as well as the methodology to calculate ventilation fl uxes appropriate for each experiment. After the chamber was constructed, two experiments were carried out to test its operation, design and construction. Firstly, carbon dioxide emissions from fattening rabbits were measured for 24 and 48 h. Emissions from fattening rabbit manure were then measured for one-hour periods. The operation of the fl ux chamber was satisfactory during both experiments and notes were taken of possible improvements in performance through future research. Recommendations for its use are also summarized.

show abstract

Section: Equationsupporting

confidence: 82%

Technical Note: A flux chamber for measuring gas emissions from rabbits

Estellés¹,

Calvet²,

Blumetto³

et al. 2010

World rabbit sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In the production of fattening rabbits, approximately 60% of the nitrogen intake is excreted as urine and faeces (Calvet et al, 2008), and a part of the excreted nitrogen is lost as ammonia, with 3 main consequences. Firstly, ammonia is a pollutant contributing to acidifi cation and eutrophication in the environment (Krupa, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of the indoor environment and gas emissions in rabbit farms

et al. 2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

ABSTRACT:There is a need to characterise gas concentrations and emissions from rabbit production. A study was conducted in order to determine ammonia, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide concentrations and emissions on 3 rabbit farms in the Spanish Mediterranean area. Gas emissions were measured for 187 d in 2 different production stages (reproductive does and fattening rabbits). Gas concentrations were measured every 2 h. Indoor temperature, relative humidity and ventilation fl ow were measured hourly. As a result, indoor temperature and relative humidity varied throughout the year, following a sinusoidal daily variation pattern. Maximum gas concentrations (14.3, 7041 and 5.10 mg/m 3 of NH 3 , CO 2 and N 2 O, respectively) did not exceed the maximum recommended thresholds considering human health and animal welfare. Ammonia emissions were on average 55.9 and 10.2 mg/h per reproductive doe and fattening rabbit, respectively, and were affected by temperature and relative humidity. The average carbon dioxide emission was 12588 mg/h per animal for does and 3341 mg/h for fattening rabbits. Nitrous oxide emission from does was 10.3 mg/h per animal, whereas for fattening rabbits the emission was negligible. Daily variation patterns of all measured parameters were observed and characterised in this study.

show abstract

“…(Coufal et al, 2006). Besides broilers, mass balances were also calculated for other livestock animals, such as rabbits (Calvet et al, 2008) and pigs (Dourmad et al, 1992), and for the global animal production (Van der Hoek, 1998).The main objective of this paper was to quantify the N components from a commercial broiler barn using the approach of a complete mass balance. By measuring the N content of all the inputs and outputs, it was possible to distinguish between the portion of N in the litter and the volatilized N in the air.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantification of nitrogen balance components in a commercial broiler barn

Bobrutzki¹,

Ammon²,

Berg³

et al. 2013

CZECH J ANIM SCI

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Characterizing the respective nitrogen (N) use efficiency requires understanding the N flow of inputs and outputs from a commercial broiler barn. In this study, an N mass balance was performed for one entire growing cycle. The objectives were to quantify, sample, and analyze all N components entering and leaving the barn. The N from feed, chickens, and bedding material was considered as inputs, the outputs included the N accretion in mature broilers, the total N emissions (N TNE ), the N accumulation in litter, and the N of mortality. Of particular relevance was the determination of an appropriate method to mirror the heterogenic texture of the litter. Litter samples were collected weekly according to a defined procedure. The major N input was feed N, accounting for 99% of the total N input. After the 36-day growing cycle, the N outputs were portioned as follows: 59% (1741.3 kg N) in mature broilers, 37% (1121.3 kg N) accumulated in litter, and 4% in NTNE (114.3 kg N). The N accumulations in broiler tissue and litter agree well with other studies. The measured emissions were consistently lower compared to other references, due to the fact that these references were mainly based on studies where broilers were raised on built-up litter. In contrast to in situ quantified N emissions in this study, other published values were assumed to be the difference of N between inputs and outputs. This study illustrates that extensive sampling of litter is a prerequisite for calculating litter masses. The accurate specification of the litter texture proved to be crucial within the mass balance approach. With this information, the feasible improvements within management practices can be identified.Keywords: ammonia; emissions; mass balance; litter sampling In Europe, the livestock sector strongly influences the nitrogen (N) cycle because large amounts of nutrients, water, and energy are related to the actions of that sector (Steinfeld and Wasenaar, 2007;Erisman et al., 2008). Broiler operations have become larger and more concentrated in recent years due to a growing demand for broiler meat, the production of which is the second largest worldwide (Niu et al., 2009). As a result, the concentration of nutrients in the form of waste products such as manure (litter) and gaseous emissions (Gous, 2010) has increased. The nutrient of the greatest concern in gaseous emissions is nitrogen (N) in the form of ammonia (NH 3 ). Ammonia is formed from the breakdown of nitrogenous waste products in broiler manure (undigested proteins and uric acid) by exogenous enzymes produced by microorganisms (Atapattu et al., 2008).One abatement strategy of NH 3 involves the optimization of dietary composition (protein level) by providing the best feed conversion ratio for broilers and minimizing the excretion of manure (Elwinger and Svensson, 1996;Ferguson et al., 1998;Robertson et al., 2002). Additionally, feeding additives can improve the feed conversion rate of broilers (Ritz et al., 2004;Schiavone et al., 2008). Ammonia is removed from the ...

show abstract

Experimental balance to estimate efficiency in the use of nitrogen in rabbit breeding

Cited by 16 publications

References 18 publications

Technical Note: A flux chamber for measuring gas emissions from rabbits

Technical Note: A flux chamber for measuring gas emissions from rabbits

Characterization of the indoor environment and gas emissions in rabbit farms

Quantification of nitrogen balance components in a commercial broiler barn

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About