Pigs kept for meatproduction are often surgically castrated to prevent aggression and boartainted meat. Castration without analgesia and anesthesia is painful and causes a lot of stress to the pig. There are alternatives such as to surgically castrate the male pigs with analgesia and/or with anesthesia, immunocastrate or keep them as intact males. In Sweden the most common practice is to surgically castrate the pigs before they are seven days old. The impact on the pig is that the incision causes pain and stress, which may lead to changes in behaviour, reduced appetite, reduced growth and a higher risk of infections.

Rearing in organic pig production differs from conventional rearing; pigs have outdoor access and larger space allowances. Regardless of production system all pigs are transported before Slaughter and during transport pigs are crowded together in a new environment and in a space smaller than they are used to. As pigs in organic herds are reared at even larger space allowances than conventional pigs, such crowding could possibly have a stronger impact on pig behaviour and well-being. Six pig producing herds, three conventional and three organic, were visited and pigs from each herd were enclosed during 12 minutes in a test area corresponding to the crowding on a transport vehicle. During the crowding, pigs? behaviour was observed, before and after enclosure in the test area skin lesion scores were recorded, and also measures of heart girth (for weight estimation) was done.

Projektet är dels ett examensarbete dels ett uppdrag för det svenska snöskoterföretagetSnowolverine AB. Uppdragsgivaren har konstruerat ett rörramschassimed reducerad vikt jämfört med konkurrerande produkter, samttagit fram en digital modell som visats för investerare i och i press. En nysvensk snöskoter välkomnas av marknaden men den digitala modellens formgivninghar fått negativ respons. För att den första produkt som företagetlanserar skall bli konkurrenskraftig måste de konsultera designkompetens.Uppdraget har varit att ta fram ett koncept för en sportsnöskoter, som svararmot marknadens önskemål och profilerar det nystartade företaget. De undersökningarsom genomförts innefattar: Marknadsanalys med fokus påkonkurrenter, en webbaserad kvantitativ brukarundersökning, testkörningaroch utvärdering av konkurrerande fabrikat.

The purpose with this study was to analyze the possibilities to produce organic lambs and to hihglight the most common difficulties in such a production system. A description of current organic and conventional lamb production systems was conducted, both from Sweden and from some other countries. The Department of Animal Environment and Health at SLU in Skara performed the project together with The County Board of Agriculture in Västra Götaland and Värmland and The Swedish Animal Health Service. The project lasted from 2002 to 2004. The student report contains the years 2002 and 2003. In the year of 2003 there were 210 000 adult sheep in Sweden, of which 16 400 adult sheep were certified by KRAV. Of the different countries in Sweden, Västra Götaland and Gotland had the largest number of sheep, 14 and 13 per cent of the total number.

Several bulls in Sweden are culled because of lameness. Studies of beef bulls have shown that osteochondrosis is an important underlying cause of hind limb problems (Persson, 2003; Dutra, 1998). Osteochondrosis in horses, dogs, swine, poultry and man are well documentated in the literature, but there are few studies in cattle. The prevalence of osteochondrosis in dairy bulls in Sweden is unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the presence and localisation of osteochondrosis in the hindlimbs of dairy bulls. This study consists of 48 one-year-old bulls divided into four groups related to which farm they came from.

Bedövning eller inte vid rituell slakt är en ständigt aktuell fråga, vars lagstiftning och regler skiljer sig mellan olika länder och religiösa grupper. Syftet med denna litteraturstudie är att med utgångspunkt från djurets lidande utreda vilken rituell slaktmetod som ger högst djurvälfärd; slakt utan bedövning eller slakt med bultbedövning, elektrisk head-only-bedövning eller post-cut stunning. Tillvägagångssätten skiljer sig mycket mellan och inom de olika slaktmetoderna, och innefattar alla eller några av de kritiska punkterna; fixeringen, själva bedövningen, snittet samt tiden mellan snitt alternativt bedövning och förlorande av medvetandet. Fixering kan orsaka djuret lidande i form av stress eller rädsla, varför en så kort fixeringstid som möjligt med djuret i upprätt position är att föredra ur djurvälfärdssynpunkt vid såväl bedövad som obedövad slakt. Vid bedövning är det viktigt att utrustningen är i gott skick och slaktaren kompetent för att inte utsätta djuret för onödigt lidande.

Product development is a risky business; many products never yield profit, but it is also ne-cessary for a company?s survival in a competitive business where the costumers change their requests constantly. Consumer-led product development is developed from the wish to fill the consumer?s needs and expectations and thereby be more likely to succeed. Lindell?s Gårdsslakteri AB is a local Slaughter and meat processor in Västergötland.

The castration of piglets is performed routinely all around the world. Most castrations are done without anaesthesia and analgesia, despite the fact that this procedure has been proved to induce acute pain and stress for the piglets. The procedure regarding castration of piglets is currently a hot topic of debate and an important political issue. The underlying issue is the boar taint which are highlighted in the heating of the meat after Slaughter, which in turn can lead to reduced meat sales as it can be perceived as unpleasant for many consumers. The purpose of this study is to examine alternative drugs which may be selected in order to replace the practice of castration of piglets without anaesthesia, in light of improved animal welfare.

BAKGRUND:Tamm (1986, s1-2) skriver att barns uppfattning om döden har utvecklats under många år.Tidigare hade barnen en enklare syn på döden och de fick ofta höra sagor under sin uppväxtsom handlade om döden. Idag är döden i barns närmiljö inte lika framträdande och mångavuxna väljer att inte tala om döden med barn. När någon i ett barns närhet dör händer det attbarnet inte får delta vid begravningen, vilket gör att de inte får någon erfarenhet. Detta kanvidare leda till att barn ser på döden som något skrämmande.Slaughter (2005, s183) skriver att barns uppfattning om döden utvecklas mycket frånförskoleåldern och uppåt, då de främst ser döden som ett annat sätt att leva på än det vanliga.SYFTE:Vårt syfte med undersökningen är att vi vill ta reda på hur barn i årskurs 3-5 uppfattar och resonerarkring döden.METOD:Undersökningen genomfördes genom en kvalitativ ansats som bygger på intervju av barn iårskurs 3 ? 5.

Detection of leukocytes in semen from boars is part of the routine control of semen quality. Leukocytes in semen can cause damage to spermatozoa that leads to impaired fertilization. In the artificial insemination (AI) industry there are standard routines for the quality control of the boars and of the neat semen before use. Since 2001, Quality Genetics has not done the leukocyte examination on semen samples from boars which are used for the production of pigs for Slaughter. The purpose of this study was to investigate the occurrence of leukocytes in semen from AI-boars. The questions addressed were whether there are boars that have leukocytes in their semen and how frequently it occurs and, moreover, if there are differences between breeds, or even between individuals whose semen was checked before use in AI-dose production compared to those which were not. The study included a total of 135 AI-boars, of which 67 were Hampshire, 35 Yorkshire and 33 Landrace, all belonging to Quality Genetics AI-station in Hållsta.

Djurvälfärd vid tidpunkten för slakt är en fråga som engagerar allmänheten. De flesta nötkreatur i Sverige bedövas med bultpistol inför slakt, med syftet att befrias från onödigt lidande. Undersökningar visar dock att bedövningskvaliteten i många fall inte är tillräckligt hög efter skottet. Den här litteraturstudien syftar till att undersöka hur en god bedövningskvalitet säkrast kan uppnås vid bultbedövning, det vill säga vilka vapen, vilken träffpunkt och vilken skjutkraft som har visat sig ge bäst resultat, samt hur situationen ser ut i dagsläget. Tidigare studier har visat att mellan 8,7 och 31,8 procent av djuren inte uppnår en god bedövningskvalitet efter skottet och statistiken ser ännu sämre ut för tjurar och äldre djur. Vilka indikatorer som används för att bedöma bedövningskvaliteten varierar lite mellan olika slakterier men den vanligaste och förmodat säkraste indikatorn är att titta på djurets eventuella kornealreflexer. Skottets träffpunkt finns reglerad i lagstiftningen men studier har visat att även avvikelser från denna punkt kan ge en god bedövningskvalitet om vapnet som används har tillräckligt hög kapacitet.

Sweden signed, in 1992, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and has thus assumed responsibility for the indigenous biodiversity. That also means that Sweden has a conservation responsibility for the Swedish Friesian (SLB) (SJV, 2007a). In a survey conducted by the Board of Agriculture (SJV) in 1996, it appeared that there were around 780 cows and heifers of the SLB breed (SJV, 1997). SJV did in 2006 a plan for the development of livestock genet-ic resources and the number of cows of SLB was estimated at approximately 200. This meant that the SLB was in need of being conserved and SJV assumed it would be categorized as threatened.The primary objective of conservation of a breed is to reduce the loss of the original genetic variation (Lacy et al., 1995).

Sweden signed, in 1992, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and has thus assumed responsibility for the indigenous biodiversity. That also means that Sweden has a conservation responsibility for the Swedish Friesian (SLB) (SJV, 2007a). In a survey conducted by the Board of Agriculture (SJV) in 1996, it appeared that there were around 780 cows and heifers of the SLB breed (SJV, 1997). SJV did in 2006 a plan for the development of livestock genet-ic resources and the number of cows of SLB was estimated at approximately 200. This meant that the SLB was in need of being conserved and SJV assumed it would be categorized as threatened.The primary objective of conservation of a breed is to reduce the loss of the original genetic variation (Lacy et al., 1995).

This bachelor-level thesis in historical osteology deals with several aspects of the life-cycle of an RomanIron Age farm in southern Scania. Excavated in the 1980's by Lars Larsson, the farm was located near aplace called Långåker in the Dybäck area, on a cape which stretched out into a minor bog. Our work concerns why the Iron Age people settled the area, how well fragmented bone survives in a bog, what they produced at the farm and how life on the farm finally ended. From the roughly 10 % of the total number of fragments we where able to identify we can conclude, that he species that are present of the farm areusual Iron Age species (dog, sheep/goat, cattle and swine). We also have a relitivly large number of wildanimals in our material (2%).

During pre-Slaughter handling of pigs the animals are often subjected to methods that induces stress and are a threat to the wellbeing of the animals, such as mixing of groups, loud noise and transportation. A new law will be implemented in 2006 in Sweden that prohibits mechanical noise exceeding 65 dB in abattoirs. The purpose of the research presented in this paper was to examine the effects of noise and transportation on pig behaviour. The activity and aggressiveness of the pigs were examined with behavioural studies during transportation and during three different noise levels: 55, 75 and 95 dB. Before the noise treatments took place the groups were mixed and half of them were transported for approximately 2 hours. In the study 432 pigs were used.