In Sweden, there has been a continuous increase in the volume of housing construction for dairy cattle. Since 2004, the number of new, rebuilt and extended dairy cow houses undergoing preliminary inspection by the authorities has grown. The livestock farms have mostly focused on cow units instead of calf and heifer sheds; which has led to a need for information in this area. The purpose of the study was to improve advisors? knowledge about bovine building construction and function; to enable them to provide more qualified advice to conventional and organic milk producers who sustain larger herds.

The purpose of this study was to compile when and why piglets die during the suckling peri-od. Piglet mortality is an important factor influencing the profitability of piglet production. There are many factors that play a role and interact whit each other. This study summarizes when the piglets die during the suckling period and reasons why the piglets die. The infor-mation given is crushed, illness, management/environmental, genetic influence and piglet birth weight/farrowingprocess.

I ett internationellt perspektiv har Sverige hög amningsfrekvens, men under 2000-talet har amningsfrekvensen sjunkit och stora regionala skillnader ses. Kvinnorna rekommenderas att helamma sex månader. Mödravårdcentralen (MVC) informerar om bröstmjölkens hälsoeffekter som till exempel att bröstmjölken skyddar barn mot allergier. Forskning visar att överviktiga och feta kvinnor har kortare amningsduration, men få studier behandlar svenska förhållanden. Syfte: Syfte med fördjupningsarbetet är att studera samband mellan mammans BMI relaterat till amningsduration och mammans skattning av barnets hälsa de tre första levnadsåren.

The concentration of acute phase proteins in serum is altered as a response to inflammation, infection or trauma. this makes these proteins potential biomarkers of unspecific pathological processes. In cattle, haptoglobin and serum amyloid A are the two acute phase proteins that show the largest increase in serum concentration as a result of inflammatory processes. The haptoglobin concentration has been shown to correlate to clinical signs as well as inflammatory processes found at post mortem examination. This feature could be useful prognosis of the individual as well as for monitoring the health status of a herd or identifying carcasses that shold be examined closer at the slaughter-house.

Today, there are more than 12 000-14 000 farms worldwide using an automatic milking system (AMS). Studies have shown that transition to AMS affects the udder health of cows adversely, recognized primarily as elevated somatic cell counts. There are several reasons for this, for example the greater variation in milking frequency seen in AMS. On one hand, short milking intervals may lead to bad teat condition of the cows due to the stress the milking procedure exposes the teats to. Too long milking intervals, on the other hand, seem to predispose for milk leakage, which is, in turn, a risk factor for the development of mastitis.

This study deals with the contribution of the genetic variant lactase persistence among Neolithic people from the Baltic Island Öland. Skeletal remains from twelve individuals went through DNA sequencing in order to find the mutation that allows adult individuals to digest milk sugar. The twelve individuals were chosen from two different Neolithic sites, where the archaeological and isotopic data suggest that the individuals from Köpingsvik were hunters and gatherers and the individuals from Resmo were early farmers. The individuals with the genetic variant lactase persistence can be described with selection and genetic flow.  Only five individuals produced results and the mutation was found in two of the subjects. All the individuals who were successfully sequenced came from Resmo, whereasno individuals from Köpingsvik yielded any results.

After parturition the energy demand for milk production is greater then the energy provided from the diet. The cow mobilises therefore body tissues to compensate for the energy loss. Live weight and body condition scores decreases as a consequence of the mobilisation. The aim of this study was to analyse the relationship between body condition score, live weight and subcutaneous fat depth measured by ultrasound and the changes during the lactation. Possible differences between Swedish Holstein (SLB) and Swedish Red and White Cattle (SRB) were also investigated.

Difficult calvings and stillbirths are problems in Swedish dairy production that result in large expenses for the farmers and welfare issues concerning the animals. A common opinion is that the live weight of SRB and SLB is increasing, and whether increased weights have caused the increase in calving problems has been discussed. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the relative birth weight (calf/cow) and calving difficulty and stillbirth, respectively. The importance of breed and parity for the relative weight has been investigated, and comparisons with previous studies have been made to evaluate whether the relative weight has changed over the last decades or not. The study was based on 807 calvings, registered during the period 1993-2003 in the experimental dairy herd of the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (Jälla).

It becomes more important to consider different behaviour traits in the selection for dairy cows to be suitable in the production systems of today. The purpose of this investigation was to study the genetic background to behavioural traits and the heritabilities for temperament, rank order, aggressiveness, feeding behaviour and for learning behaviour. Moreover, the genetic correlations to other traits were studied. To be included in a breeding programme a trait needs to have enough genetic variation, a moderate to high heritability or to be correlated to another measurable trait. Behaviour is a quantitative trait affected by many genes and the environment.

SecRePac is a household appliance that simplifies sorting of packaging such as milk, juice and yogurt containers. By shredding the packages SecRePac reduces its volume uptake both in the home and at the recycling station. This leads to minimization of both transports to the recycling stations and truck transport for emptying the containers at the recycling station.The greenhouse effect deteriorates and becomes worse and worse leading to extreme climate changes and natural disasters such as floods as an example. Carbon dioxide emissions are the major reason for this and at least 30 percent of all these emissions come directly from transports. In the EU carbon emissions has decreased in the past few years.

Nötcenter Viken is a Swedish nucleus herd for dairy cattle. The goal for the farm is to select suitable mothers for the next top generation of bulls. Today the selection for udder health is based on a pedigree index and phenotype data. The pedigree index is based on the cow?s father and grandfathers breeding values.

We all know that water is very important for both animals and humans. When we are weaning the piglets from the sow we must guarantee that the piglets can start to drink more water instead of sow milk. The first thing to check is always the quality of the water that is to be used. To secure that, you must take a water sample. If the water is inadequate it can bring a lot of problems and diseases.

Total mixed rations (TMR) and TMR complemented with individual grain feeding to dairy cows are a growing practice in Sweden. This is because the heard sizes of the farms are increasing. Some farmers and farm advisors in Sweden have great knowledge and practical experience of working with TMR. In the same time there are many advisors that do not know how to handle TMR and farms that have a group based feeding of their animals. In this MSc thesis, the knowledge of farmers that use TMR and advisors with lots of experience of TMR are gathered, with the aim to create a guide book for advisors that are about to start or just have started working with TMR.

Blåsljud är vanligt förekommande hos hund. Bakgrunden kan antigen vara patologisk eller fysiologisk. Det patologiska blåsljudet hörs ofta i samband med aorta- eller pulmonalisstenos. Etiologin bakom uppkomsten av fysiologiska blåsljud är komplex. Den mest grundläggande faktorn är ett turbulent blodflöde som skapar vibrationer tillsammans med olika anatomiska delar i hjärtat.

Peat litter is a soft material with high absorbency. About hundred years ago many farmers in Sweden used peat litter to their dairy cows. After the World War II the use of peat litter decreased and the farmers used more straw. Nowadays (year 2007), when it is harder to find straw and sawdust to buy, peat litter is advancing again. The purpose with this study is to investigate peat as a litter to dairy cows.