Morphological feeding and animal welfare

Module Morphological evaluations of farm animals and animal welfare

1) knowledge and understanding: The course aims to acquire the methods of evaluating the morphological characteristics of animals in livestock production in order to estimate the production potential associated with them and to provide general information on the main regulations regarding animal welfare, and also on some aspects of this topic (transport, slaughter, castration, diagnostic systems).

2) ability to apply knowledge and understanding: The student will acquire skills on the traditional and modern methods of detecting the main functional parameters relating to the productive and reproductive aspects of livestock species, depending on the productive aptitudes of the different genetic types, and a broad knowledge of the main regulations regarding animal welfare, including transport, slaughter, castration, diagnostic systems.

3) Activities at livestock farms. The students, in groups, will be involved in short internships at some livestock companies for demonstrations and checks on the main topics of the course, from morphological assessments to animal welfare.

4) autonomy of judgment: During the lessons the student is encouraged to acquire his own independent ability to make judgments on the meaning and cultural and professional relevance of the topics covered. In particular, the ability to collect and interpret data useful for determining autonomous judgments is stimulated through the individual presentation of topics provided by the teacher and the carrying out of group exercises; carrying out group educational visits; the drafting of papers by the student following bibliographical research. Independence of judgment therefore develops progressively and requires a personal commitment from the student which will be evaluated during the exam.

5) Communication skills: The ability to communicate information, ideas and solutions to specialist and non-specialist interlocutors is stimulated through the involvement of students in guided discussions and the presentation of papers, with critical evaluation by the teacher during the final exam .

6) Learning ability: The student must acquire the ability to learn and study independently and to keep himself continuously updated on the new knowledge emerging from the research. This ability is stimulated and evaluated, involving the student in the drafting of in-depth reports and presentations to be presented in front of the teacher during the final exam.

Traditional/frontal teaching

Knowledge of General Zootechnics

Not mandatory

Topics Text references
1 Skeleton and mammary system (anatomy and physiology) • Descriptive terminology of skeletal structure • Anatomy and physiology of mammary system Text 2: chapter 5; chapter 8; Teacher's handouts

2 Morphological, functional and constitutional types*; Zoognostic terminology; Zoometric measurements and indices; Zoognostic regions • Morphological, functional and constitutional types * • Anatomic region terminology • Measures and indices Text 1: chap. 1; chapter 3; chapter 4; chapter 6; chapter 7; Teacher's handouts

3 Morphological and functional evaluation of the dairy cow*; Morphological and functional evaluation of beef cattle*; Notes on the morphological and functional evaluation of equines, sheep, goats and pigs • Judging dairy cows and beef * • Text 1: chap. 11; chapter 12; chapter 8; Teacher's handouts

4 Classification of carcasses and cuts of beef (EU, USA and Canada systems)* • Evaluation of animal age • Carcass classification and principal meat joints (EU, USA and Canada systems)* Text 1: chap. 11; chapter 12; chapter 8; Teacher's handouts

5 Current legislation*; Farriery technique; Integrated wellness diagnostic system; Castration; Law in force* • Technique of farriery • Welfare integrated diagnostic system* • Technique of castration • Lecturer's notes

6 Experiences on agricultural companies on the morphological evaluation of animals and their relative well-being

1) D. Balasini – Zoognostica – Edagricole;
2) Bortolami-Callegari-Beghelli – Anatomia e Fisiologia degli animali domestici – Edagricole;

3) Ronchi-Savoini-Trabalza Marinucci - Manuale di nutrizione dei ruminanti da latte (Chap. 7) - EdiSES Università

4) teacher's handouts

Verification of learning takes place through an oral interview and through a paper indicated by the teacher. The evaluation of the student's preparation will take place on the basis of the following criteria: learning ability and level of depth of the topics covered; synthesis and exposure properties; student's reasoning ability; ability to develop papers on topics provided by the teacher.

1. Morphological and physiological types

2. Morphological evaluation of dairy cows and beef cattle. 

3. Morphological evaluation of sheep and horses.

4. Role of morphological evaluations in genetic improvement plans.

5. Animal welfare evaluation indices.

6. Current animal welfare regulations.

7. Animal welfare: what interventions can improve animal welfare on livestock farms.

8. Classification of carcasses with respect to morphological evaluations of meat animals.