Scientific knowledge about companion animal nutrition has increased incrementally, following the phenomenon seen in several areas of knowledge. In the last decade may be the priority of research was directed to the use of nutrients in health promotion, prevention of degenerative diseases, improve quality of life and increased life expectancy of dogs and cats. This direction of research is largely explained by the importance that dogs and cats taken in people’s lives, making that the decisions of the owners about […]

This paper examines the role that oxidative stress plays in small ruminant medicine. We will examine how redox homeostasis is involved in some physiological functions and we will discuss the implications of the impairment of oxidative status on small ruminant health and production.

Small ruminant production is the main source of income of farmers living in arid and semiarid regions. Sheep and goats raised in these areas are generally confronted with severe nutritional deficits during food scarcity period which exacerbate disease and health problems and consequently low productive and reproductive performances. These areas are characterized by rainfall seasonality and scarcity resulting in a low fodder potential. Therefore, native rangelands are degrading due to overgrazing, high stocking rates and mismanagement. Options to improve small […]

Water is a nutrient of extreme importance for animals and must be considered vital in any rearing phase. The increasing scarcity of this precious natural resource has concerned different segments of society in order to find solutions for rational and sustainable use of this nutrient. Small ruminants, especially sheep and goats, have social and economic importance due to their great ability in adapting to adverse environmental conditions and using water efficiently. Thus, they might be a good alternative to mitigate […]

This work presents strategies that can be implemented in order to minimize the environmental impact of swine slurry on soil, water, and air. This reduction can be achieved through decrease in nitrogen excretion and ammonia emissions. The correct feed formulation according to animal requirements, the increase in diet digestibility and improvement in animal performance can reduce nitrogen excretion. The use of additives either in the diet or in the manure as well as some equipment rearrangements can reduce ammonia emission.

To keep the position in being a world-wide exporter of chicken meat, Brazil must meet international quality standards, always seeking alternative resources of improvement, without increasing production costs, including litter quality, requirements of animal welfare and environment affairs, such as the use and reuse of broiler litter. Researches are performed in the areas of animal welfare, environment, animal behavior and use of modern climatization technology improving the quality of the environment created to raise broilers, also trying to reduce the […]

Sows produce a larger number of fetuses than before and these fetuses possess genetic potentials to grow faster than before. Recent comparison shows that a porcine fetus is 40% heavier than 40 years ago. Thus the nutritional management of sows has been updated to reflect these genetic changes. Our recent study quantified nutritional needs for sows to support the growth of fetuses and mammary glands during gestation. Amino acid needs for fetal growth and mammary growth during late gestation (d […]

Significant progress in the area of animal production is due to the development of researches on genetics, environment, health, management and nutrition. The search for better management conditions that benefit animal welfare resulted in changes to the installation. The genetic improvement more productive animals has encouraged the number of searches to reduce the incidence of diseases, mainly of metabolic origin. The incorporation in products with higher bioavailability as industrial amino acid and organic minerals, the inclusion of products modifiers enteric […]

The nutritional value or quality of dietary proteins used for poultry feed formulation varies: amino acid availability is an important measure of protein quality. Determination of ileal digestibility values has become the preferred method for estimating amino acid availability. This review discusses the different approaches to the expression of digestibility results, including correction for endogenous loss and the derivatisation of standardised values. Sources of variation in values include, the assay protocol, anti-nutritional factors in feedstuffs and feed milling. Feed formulating […]

The recent technologies that have led to the new field of functional genomics (how the genome of an organism regulates homeostasis and responds to stimuli) are providing a clearer understanding of how organisms interact with their environment and in particular their diet. We are beginning to learn how the diet may have long-term influence on performance and health. A form of epigenetic regulation has been recently described called fetal “programming”. Fueled by epidemiological data the “fetal origins” hypothesis suggests that […]