• Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.232-238
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• 2020

This study used adult wistar-based rats to observe the sexual cycle as a morphological characteristic of vaginal epithelial cells by vaginal smearing, and investigated the fetal number through mating with male rats of the same strain. The target animal was a 12 to 13-week-old Wistar-based mature unlighted rat (weight 220 g to 240 g), room temperature 23 ± 2℃, 14 hours artificial lighting (05:00 to 19:00 hours), 10 hours Adapted individuals were used for rearing for at least 2 weeks under the conditions of the darkroom (19:00 to 05:00). The feed was managed for free feeding of pellet feed for animals and water. The vaginal smearing method was used for the experiments by observing the sexual cycle every morning and confirming that the normal sexual cycle of 4 or 5 days was repeated at least 2 cycles or more. As a result, the proestrus was found to have few red blood cells, the cells and nuclei were rather large and round, and many nucleated cells were identified. In the case of the estrus, the cells were large and the nuclei were not stained, and most of the keratinocytes were found. In addition, in the metestrus and diestrus, there were many white blood cells, and it was confirmed that nucleated epithelial cells and keratinocytes were significantly reduced. The pregnancy period was 21 ± 1.8 days, and the number of live births per delivery was 11.9 on average. The number of fetuses on the 8th and 10th days of pregnancy were 15.2 ± 0.4 and 15.4 ± 0.3, respectively. On the contrary, the number of fetuses on the 12th day of pregnancy was 12.9 ± 0.6, which was significantly (p < 0.05) decreased compared to the 10th day of pregnancy, and the number of fetuses was similar until delivery. As a result of investigating the change of body weight according to the birth weight and growth stage after delivery, the birth weight of female and male was 9.2 ± 2.0 g and 9.8 ± 2.5 g, respectively. After that, until the 16th day, the female and the male showed similarly moderate weight gain, and then showed a rapid weight gain until the 21st day of lactation. With reference to the results of this study, it is expected to be used as basic data for determining the mating time of rodents and controlling pregnancy and fetal number.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.38-43
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• 2022

A 5-month-old Holstein downer calf was presented, and bovine viral diarrhea virus was detected in the feces and the cerebrospinal fluid. Combined treatment of recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST) administration and standing rehabilitation had been performed for two months, and the calf could maintain the standing position for a while. However, the symptoms were not improved, and the calf died due to ruminal tympany and aspiration pneumonia. Megaesophagus, abomasal ulcer, and a normal-sized but softened cerebellum were observed in clinical necropsy. Improvement of symptoms was confirmed by rBST, but was not reached the complete recovery of gait and standing position.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.66 no.1
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• pp.167-177
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• 2024

Iris segmentation is an initial step for identifying the biometrics of animals when establishing a traceability system for livestock. In this study, we propose a deep learning framework for pixel-wise segmentation of bovine iris with a minimized use of annotation labels utilizing the BovineAAEyes80 public dataset. The proposed image segmentation framework encompasses data collection, data preparation, data augmentation selection, training of 15 deep neural network (DNN) models with varying encoder backbones and segmentation decoder DNNs, and evaluation of the models using multiple metrics and graphical segmentation results. This framework aims to provide comprehensive and in-depth information on each model's training and testing outcomes to optimize bovine iris segmentation performance. In the experiment, U-Net with a VGG16 backbone was identified as the optimal combination of encoder and decoder models for the dataset, achieving an accuracy and dice coefficient score of 99.50% and 98.35%, respectively. Notably, the selected model accurately segmented even corrupted images without proper annotation data. This study contributes to the advancement of iris segmentation and the establishment of a reliable DNN training framework.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.21.1-21.14
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• 2020

Background: Physical exercise is known to cause significant joint changes. Thus, monitoring joint behavior of athletic horses is essential in early disorders recognition, allowing the proper management. Objectives: The aims of this study were to determine the morphological patterns, physical examination characteristics and ultrasound findings of show jumping horses in training and to establish a score-based examination model for physical and ultrasound follow-ups of metacarpophalangeal joint changes in these animals. Methods: A total of 52 metacarpophalangeal joints from 26 horses who were initially in the taming stage were evaluated, and the horses' athletic progression was monitored. The horses were evaluated by a physical examination and by B-mode and Doppler-mode ultrasound examinations, starting at time zero (T0), which occurred concomitantly with the beginning of training, and every 3 months thereafter for a follow-up period of 18 months. Results: The standardized examination model revealed an increase in the maximum joint flexion angles and higher scores on the physical and ultrasound examinations after scoring was performed by predefined assessment tools, especially between 3 and 6 months of evaluation, which was immediately after the horses started more intense training. The lameness score and the ultrasound examination score were slightly higher at the end of the study. Conclusions: The observed results were probably caused by the implementation of a training regimen and joint adaptation to physical conditioning. The joints most likely undergo a pre-osteoarthritic period due to work overload, which can manifest in a consistent or adaptive manner, as observed during this study. Thus, continuous monitoring of young athlete horses by physical and ultrasound examinations that can be scored is essential.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.17 no.7
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• pp.973-979
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• 2004

The objectives of this study were to evaluate the digestible energy intake and energy expenditure in yearling horses on different training protocols (uphill- and level-track exercise training protocols). Twenty-four thoroughbred yearlings (12 males and 12 females, aged 27.0$\pm$0.9 months) were divided into two groups based on their training on two different tracks: the uphill (with a gradient of about 3%) training group (uphill training) and the level training group (level training). The digestible energy (DE) intake and energy expenditure (EE) during exercise were measured in both the groups. It was found that the DE intake in the uphill training and the level training groups was 5.1$\pm$3.1 and 36.9$\pm$4.8 Mcal/day, respectively. The EE during exercise in the two groups was 3.05$\pm$0.51 and 2.07 $\pm$0.56 Mcal, respectively. Thus, there was a significant difference in the EE (p<0.05), but not in the DE intake between the animals of the two training groups. The EE for a given intensity of exercise was greater in the uphill training group than in the level training group, but the DE intake was not affected by the exercise intensity. The DE intake was not generally affected by the intensity of exercise in this study, but a daily negative gain of body weight was observed in the uphill training group, particularly in the females. Thus, the energy requirement may be higher in yearlings undergoing uphill training than in those undergoing level training.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.37 no.4_spc
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• pp.730-741
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• 2024

Pig production is one of the viable enterprises of the livestock sub-sector of agriculture. It contributes significantly to the economy and animal protein supply to enhance food security in Africa and globally. This article explored the present status of pig production in Africa, the challenges, prospects and potentials. The pig population of Africa represents 4.6% of the global pig population. They are widely distributed across Africa except in Northern Africa where pig production is not popular due to religio-cultural reasons. They are mostly reared in rural parts of Africa by smallholder farmers, informing why majority of the pig population in most parts of Africa are indigenous breeds and their crosses. Pig plays important roles in the sustenance of livelihood in the rural communities and have cultural and social significance. The pig production system in Africa is predominantly traditional, but rapidly growing and transforming into the modern system. The annual pork production in Africa has grown from less than a million tonnes in year 2000 to over 2 million tonnes in 2021. Incidence of disease outbreak, especially African swine fever is one of the main constraints affecting pig production in Africa. Others are lack of skills and technical know-how, high ambient temperature, limited access to high-quality breeds, high cost of feed ingredients and veterinary inputs, unfriendly government policies, religious and cultural bias, inadequate processing facilities as well as under-developed value-chain. The projected human population of 2.5 billion in Africa by 2050, increasing urbanization and decreasing farming population are pointers to the need for increased food production. The production systems of pigs in Africa requires developmental research, improvements in housing, feed production and manufacturing, animal health, processing, capacity building and pig friendly policies for improved productivity and facilitation of export.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.200-206
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• 2012

The changes in physiologic parameters by swim exercise duration were examined in five female well-trained Jeju crossbred riding horses that had riding experience of more than three years without swim training experience. The horses were performed with swim exercise for 10 min (60.0 m/min) once a day for 14 days. Physiologic characteristics and haematic parameters were measured before swimming, immediately after swimming, and after a 10 min rest at first day ($D_0$), 7 days ($D_7$), and 14 days ($D_{14}$) of training. After 14 days of swim training, heart rate (p<0.05), blood glucose (p<0.05), lactate concentration (p<0.001), packed cell volume (p<0.01), and hemoglobin (p<0.01) measured immediately after swim and after 10 min rest showed significant lower values than those of $D_0$. The results illustrate the benefits of swim training for riding horses and the need for the establishment of swimming routines of appropriate duration and intensity to maximize the advantages of swim training.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.17-22
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• 2019

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Successful recovery of an animal from exercise is essential, especially prior to the next exercise session. This study was conducted to find an effective exercise-to-rest period ratio for the restoration of energy sources and replenishment of anti-oxidative status in tissue after exercise. MATERIALS/METHODS: Thirty-two rats were assigned to either non-training or training exercise groups for 5 weeks. After that period, the two groups were subdivided into four smaller groups: non-exercise (NE), exercise 0.5 hour and rest 1 hour (ER0.5:1), exercise 1 hour and rest 1 hour (ER1:1), exercise 2 hours and rest 1 hour (ER2:1). RESULTS: In the training group animals and compared to the NE group, the levels of plasma glucose after the rest period were significantly high in all ER groups but highest in the ER2:1 group. Similarly, the liver glycogen level was highest in the ER2:1 group. The plasma FFA level reached the highest level in the ER2:1 group but was similarly high in the ER0.5:1 group. Liver TG level was unchanged in the ER2:1 and ER1:1 groups but was significantly high in the ER0.5:1 group. Muscle TG levels were decreased in all three ER groups. Plasma protein levels were significantly high in the ER2:1 and ER0.5:1 groups. In both training animal and non-training animals, the liver protein levels did not change significantly between the NE and ER groups, irrespective of the exercise-to-rest ratio. In the training animal group, muscle protein level was significantly low in the ER2:1 and ER0.5:1 groups. The activity levels of superoxide dismutase and catalase, as well as the malondialdehyde concentration, were not significantly different between NE and ER groups, irrespective of the exercise-to-rest period ratio. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that animals provided with a 0.5:1 to 1:1 exercise-to-rest period ratio can restore their muscle energy sources and recover their anti-oxidative defense system.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.225-233
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• 2017

Chicken production remains the foremost endeavor in the Nigerian livestock industry. However, disease incidence has been a major constraint on the growth of this subsector. This study assessed health management practices and disease incidence in smallholder chicken production enterprise in Southwest Nigeria using data from a farm survey of 240 farmers selected using a multistage sampling technique from 5 of 6 states in Southwest Nigeria. The study showed that vaccination was given by 96.8% of the famers, 97.8% dewormed their chickens, and 92.9% disinfected the coops against diseases. However, 37% of the farmers regularly consulted veterinarians, 25.7% consulted them during disease outbreaks, and 34.2% occasionally consulted veterinarians. Infectious bursal disease (IBD), coccidiosis, and chronic respiratory disease (CRD) were the major diseases reported by 17.1%, 12.9%, and 7.1% of the farmers, respectively. Mortality rate was 37.8%, although this varied with disease. However, there was a growth of 157.4% in stock size between the establishment of the farms and the survey period.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Information and Commucation Sciences Conference
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• 2019.05a
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• pp.151-152
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• 2019

In this paper, we propose an improved learning method based on a small data set for animal image classification. First, CNN creates a training model for a small data set and uses the data set to expand the data set of the training set Second, a bottleneck of a small data set is extracted using a pre-trained network for a large data set such as VGG16 and stored in two NumPy files as a new training data set and a test data set, finally, learn the fully connected network as a new data set.