Grasslands which have been actively managed for a long time and which in modern times have not been subject to cultivation such as fertilization are called semi-natural grasslands. These rare and species-rich areas hold an ecological, biological and historical value and if the management stops these areas will likely diminish. More effective agricultural systems and a declining number of grazing animals have in Sweden, among other countries, made semi-natural grasslands less valuable as foraging areas. Shrubs and fast growing plants rapidly colonize abandoned semi-natural grasslands, threatening biodiversity. The objective of this experiment was to determine the effects of breed and season on diet composition, with special reference to four competitive species found in wet areas ? in cattle grazing heterogeneous semi-natural grasslands ? and thereby contribute to improved management of these areas.

The aim of this paper was to study incoming complaints to The County Administrative Board in Västra Götaland during 2011 and examine if it was possible to see a connection between warranted and unwarranted complaints and informer, animal species and type of inadequate. In Västra Götaland, a complaint is classified as warranted if the inspection leads to a reprimand, whether it regards what was reported or not. Data were collected during three weeks through The County Administrative Board´s record system Platina and a total of 456 complaints were studied. The parameter ?complainant? was categorized into four groups according to The County Administrative Boards own division; public with the subgroups anonymous and non-anonymous, animal health staff and others.

The tick-borne disease bovine anaplasmosis is primarily caused by Anaplasma marginale. A variety of wild animals act as reservoirs for A. marginale, but the understanding of their role in the epidemiology of A. marginale is yet poor. This cross-sectional study was conducted to establish if proximity of wildlife affect the prevalence of bovine anaplasmosis in cattle.

To reconstruct a building is a long-term investment for farmers and it is important that people with different qualifications are involved at an early stage for making the system adapted to the animals as well the animal keeper. Therefore, ethologists who can contribute with their expertise are needed to design the system and get it to function well for the animals.A Swedish farmer who planned to rebuild her stall for tied dairy cattle to a loose-housing system for recruitment heifers for milk production asked me as an ethologist to find a system which can be fit to her existing tie-stall barn for 30 dairy cows, considering the animal needs in terms of movement, social interactions and play behaviors, and to theoretically compare the system with other systems with respect to the behaviors mentioned.The theoretical comparison between different systems was made through a scientific literature review.In agreement with the animal keeper I set out to fit a system with feeding cubicles, a system with cubicles and a system with deep straw bedding to the barn. After measurements were taken and preliminary drawings were outlined it was found that only the feeding cubicle system was possible to fit to the barn.The space provided will limit the animals to perform some playing behaviors. To decrease aggressive interactions between animals even thought a limiting area it is possible to provide partitions between resources animals compete around to prevent that more than one animal can get success to the resource at a particular place at one time. To increase the animal movement in the system the water trays were moved to the outer wall instead of kept in contact with the stalls.Although this report provides guidelines for rebuilding, other competences regarding building construction and a pre-test of the suggested building solution according to Swedish legislation are needed before the rebuilding can start.The results are directed mainly to the owner of the barn, but the literature review can be used by other cattle farmers and might bring increased understanding of the possible effects of different building solution on the animals..

In Kenya the Maasai pastoralists have based their livelihoods on dairy production and the production goal is to maintain a sufficient milk supply throughout the year. The pastoral dairy production has two vital characteristics; breeding and milking. Traditionally, breeding is the men?s responsibility, while milking is the duty of women. Depending on this partition of chores between men and women, they also have different management routines, ambitions and strategies regarding the milk production.

Live exports of animals began during the late 19th century and are nowadays a valuable alternative to the slaughter industry in Australia. About four million sheep and half a million to one million cattle are exported annually from Australia to the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Most of these animals are exported for slaughter, but some cattle are exported with the purpose of breeding. One factor that has been the driving force for the live export industry is that countries through tariffs and other barriers have favored the import of live animals rather than the import of meat.The export means that animals with a great cognitive ability are exposed to a long chain of production from the farm to the market and there are many factors that can affect the welfare of the animals in a negative way. Some of the most serious are high temperatures and a high stocking density, although seasickness, noises and handling can also have a negative impact on the welfare of animals.

Studien genomfördes i Shompole i södra Kenya. I det här området är invånarna herdar som förlitar sig på kor, får och getter som sin enda inkomstkälla. De föder upp boskap under extensiva förhållanden, med naturligt bete som huvudsaklig födokälla för sina djur. Sex besättningar av den typen ingick i studien som genomfördes från mitten av december 2009 till mitten av februari 2010, vilket gav totalt 65 observations-dagar. Syftet med studien var att samla in födo- och förflyttningsbeteende hos nötkreatur, får och getter på bete.

ICA vill utveckla sitt miljöarbete i vattenfrågor. Denna rapport syftar till att öka medvetenheten hos ICA om verksamhetens miljöpåverkan genom att analysera vattenfotavtrycket ? vanligen kallat Water Footprint ? för ett livsmedel. Vattenfotavtryck är ett verktyg inom miljösystemanalys som används för att kartlägga sambandet mellan produktion och konsumtion av produkter och vattenanvändning. Studien visade att vattenfotavtrycken är ungefär 14 500 liter/kg och 16 500 liter/kg för svensk respektive irländsk nötfärs.

The purpose of this paper is to study how the wooded hay meadow of the forest district of northeastern Scania is preserved today, and what local history it has, to thereby achieve a better understanding of the dynamics of the landscape and the complex of problems involved in keeping a historical element of the cultural landscape alive. To accomplish this, literature concerning the subject has been studied, experts have been consulted and an example, the old farm Sporrakulla in Östra Göinge municipality, has been studied. The paper states that the wooded hay meadow constitutes an important part of the history of northeastern Scania, where it provided leaf fodder and hay for the farmers keeping cattle. Today, however, only a few wooded hay meadows remain. One of these is the studied example at Sporrakulla, where juridical protection like Natura 2000 and financial support of maintenance like miljöersättningar make sure that the wooded hay meadow will remain.

If you keep cattle in a herd outside all year round on big varying grounds, their possibilityto perform their natural behaviour increases. This way of keeping cattle requires that youprovide them with their other needs, like shelter and a dry and clean resting place.According to the animal welfare authority´s regulations on livestock farming, only animalsthat are suited to stay outside during the cold season are allowed to be kept outside. Theyshould also have access to a shelter or another building that gives them protection from theweather and wind and provides a dry and clean resting place.Research has shown that as long as cattle do not get exposed to precipitation and wind theywill manage low temperature well. Some of the things that will affect how well the animalshandle different climates are the isolation ability of the fur, the animals´ body size and thefeed intake. A dry lying place that is both insulating and moisture absorbent is also of greatimportance.

Heat stress negatively influences the performance of dairy cattle such as lactation and reproduction. Heat stress can cause production losses as well as welfare problems. Years of research have shown that heat stress is a huge problem for dairy cattle in both the tropics and temperate zones but no such research have so far been done in northern European countries. It seems like shade is an important tool when improving pasture conditions and therefore deserves more attention. The aim with this study was to investigate whether there is a need of providing shade for grazing dairy cows during the summer in Sweden. Two groups of lactating Swedish Red dairy cows (n=15 per group) were kept on pasture.

During recent years the use of TMR (total mixed rations) has increased in Swedish lamb production. For many years TMR has been used for cattle and hence the information and knowledge is vast, while the knowledge concerning sheep and TMR is more limited. The aim of this thesis is to present an overview of the scientific knowledge on the subject, and also to compile practical experience from sheep farmers using TMR. The thesis begins with a literature review where different aspects relevant to the usage of TMR are dealt with. It is concluded that there are differences between sheep and cattle that must be taken into account.

This study deals with a Swedish company in a food industry that got affected by product failure, which led to consumer trust crisis followed by media and was needed to be managed. Situation had a negative impact on company?s trademark, which acquired long recovery work by the company. Study is following a case example of Findus problems with having horse meat in their meat product that was supposed to contain beef meat. Study aims to research how the company dealt with situation, through crisis communication and recovery strategies.

In the Swedish abattoirs there are assistants that judge the slaughtered animals in regard to diseases and injuries. All diseases and injuries assign different codes. This master?s thesis is about code 42 which means injuries of different kinds like for example bruises etc. These injuries have risen during the transport from the farm to the abattoir lairage or during the stay at the lairage before slaughter.

The manor Fållnäs gård is situated at the northern end of the bay Fållnäsviken, c. 12 km north-west of Nynäshamn, Sweden. A 300 cm long sediment core collected in the bay has been analyzed regarding pollen stratigraphy. AMS 14C dating of terrestrial macrofossils indicates that the sequence covers the last c. 5400 years.The aim has been to study vegetational changes, especially human impact, in the surroundings of Fållnäs gård.