Reports of Meetings

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REPORTS OF MEETINGS

Report on “Animal Choices” Occasional Meeting organised on behalf of the British Society of Animal Science, The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and the International Society for Applied Ethology and held in the University of Leeds, England on 19th September 1996. The idea for this Occasional Meeting came from a discussion with Alistair Mews who was Head of the Farm Animal Division of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) until his death in 1994. Alistair made many significant contributions to farm animal welfare and this meeting was a fruitful and enjoyable step in the path to the humane treatment of farm animals. The title of Animal Choices could be broadened to include Human Choices as well because the proceedings covered not only the underlying biology and psychology of animal motivation and how they behave when given choices but also dealt to some extent with the choices animal keepers have, in deciding the best way in which to keep and feed the animals in their charge. The meeting started with a session on animal awareness and decision making, and also covered methods which can be used to monitor animal preferences in an objective manner. The ability of animals to choose optimally was discussed with respect to environmental choices, social choices and nutritional choices and there was a final paper on engineering choices into animal environments. All of the invited speakers who presented these topics have prepared written papers and these were published in an Occasional Publication of the British Society of Animal Science early in 1997. A highlight of the meeting was a lecture by Dr. Paul Hemsworth from Melbourne, Australia, entitled Human/Animal Interactions in Agriculture and their Impact on Animal Welfare and performance. Dr. Hemsworth was the 1996 winner of the RSPCA/BSAS Prize for Animal Welfare and during the course of the meeting he was presented with the Prize by the Chairman of the RSPCA, Mr Roy Forster. In addition to the invited papers there were more than 30 posters submitted by people attending

the meeting and these were on display for the whole of the conference. There was a structured discussion of the posters in which groups of posters were compared and contrasted and the presenters and other delegates had ample opportunity to discuss the work presented on the poster boards. Further, the meeting divided into workshops of some 15 people, each charged with discussing a particular topic relevant to the overall subject of the meeting. In the final session representatives of each workshop presented a summary of the group’s discussion and some conclusions and then there was a general discussion of the whole subject. Finally a proposal was made to establish a new competition for systems, buildings, or management approaches to improve the welfare of farm animals and a small steering committee was set up to investigate the possibilities of sponsorship for such a competition. The 100 delegates attending the meeting came from diverse backgrounds and covered a wide range of age and experience. It was particularly satisfying to see a large number of research students and other young people attending, and also to welcome a significant number of people from other countries, particularly from other European countries. The Proceedings contain the invited papers. In addition, summaries of the poster presentations are in the same volume. The invited papers are: Animal Awareness (K.M. Kendrick); Models of decisionmaking and how they affect the experimental assessment of motivational priorities (G. Mason and J. Cooper); Measuring preferences and the problem of identifying proximate needs (A.B. Lawrence and A.W. Illius); Human-animal interactions in agriculture and their impact on animal welfare and performance (P.H. Hemsworth); Environmental choices of farm animals (C.J. Nicol); Social choices in farm animals: to fight or not to fight? (M. Mend1 and H.W. Erhard); Nutritional choices in farm animals: to eat or what to eat? (I. Kyriazakis and B.J. Tolkamp); Engineering choices into animal environments (C. Wathes).

Professor J.M. Forbes, Department of Animal Physiology and Nutrition, University of Leeds, UK.

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12th Scientific Meeting of the European Embryo Transfer Association, Lyon 13-14 September 1%. One of the highlights of the 1996 meeting was the special celebration lecture by S. Willadsen, the winner this year of the pioneer award of the AETE. He gave a very personal, critical and beautifully illustrated review of the developments in the field of deep-freezing, cellular manipulation and culture as well as nuclear transplantation of sheep and cattle embryos. Giovanna Lazzari presented an outstanding lecture on the in vitro embryo production in cattle. She described the importance of this technology on cattle breeding to the present. She further analysed several aspects that have emerged as primarily technical problems or more general issues depending on the type of embryo that is produced. Her data on cattle embryo production for commercial purposes in the laboratory at Cremona from 1992-1995 were of particular interest. Nearly 100,000 oocytes were processed through in vitro maturation, fertilisation and early embryo culture. About 13,000 of the embryos obtained were frozen (average 3.4 frozen embryos per donor, range 2.0-6.5). The main problems that still impair a more widespread use of this biotechnology are the low freezability of embryos grown completely in vitro and the abnormalities during pregnancies obtained with in vitro produced embryos (extended gestation length and foetal oversize). D. Rath reviewed the state of the art of gender preselection of spermatozoa in domestic animals. The purity of the flow cytometric sorting technique based on re-analysis now varies between 85-95%, and offspring have been produced after in vitro fertilisation, surgical or deep uterine insemination with sexed semen in several species. Sperm sorting techniques will be introduced into animal breeding systems within a foreseeable period and will allow prediction of the sex of the offspring before fertilisation. L. Guilbault reported on the control of follicular dominance and the synchronisation of follicular waves to improve superovulation in cattle. Because of the tremendous variation in response, superovulation is still one of the weakest links in the embryo transfer work. During recent years it appeared that a large portion of the variation in the superovulatory response can be attributed to intra ovarian influences

created by the dominant follicle. Ultrasound-guided aspiration of the dominant follicle one or two days before superovulation resulted in an increase (6.8 vs. 5.3 and 8.9 vs. 6.0 embryos/donor) in the number of transferable embryos compared with animals superovulated in the presence of a dominant follicle. Guilbault and co-workers developed a new superovulatory regimen based on synchronisation of follicular waves with GnRH which could be applied at any stage of the oestrous cycle. This program, which is still in a developmental stage, could have a considerable impact on the ET industry since day to day operations related to the in duo or in vitro production of embryos would no longer be dependent upon the stage of the oestrus cycle of donor animals. The syndrome of abnormal pregnancies and oversized calves was discussed by J.F. Beckers. He reported on pregnancies obtained after extreme in uitro conditions (i.e. in vitro maturation, fertilisation, culture of bovine donor embryos, and in vitro maturation, enucleation and artificial activation of the recipient oocytes, the nuclear transfer procedure and the subsequent in vitro culture of the reconstituted embryos). In agreement with information recorded in the literature about in vitro and in uiuo embryonic mortality as well as placental, umbilical cord and new-born examinations, he showed that most of the alterations are mainly localised in the foetal extra-embryonic compartment of the placenta. However, the reasons for these abnormalities are still unclear. C. Guyader-Joly presented a co-culture system using Vero cells (derived from Green Monkey kidney) for in vitro produced bovine embryos. After transfer of cultured embryos pregnancy rates which do not differ from those resulting from transfer of in uiuo embryos were obtained. This established cell line, highly controlled to be free of viruses and other contaminants, offered a safer hygiene basis for the production of bovine in vitro fertilised embryos. H. Callesen organised and chaired an extremely fruitful round table discussion on superovulation in cattle. Regarding the future development of this powerful biotechnique he concluded that the research activities concerning superovulation should not be completely lost in attempts to replace it by in vitro production of embryos or other embryo technological methods. On the other hand, future research on superovulation must follow basic approaches such as

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studies on oocyte and follicular development and use of alternative regimens for superovulation. Less emphasis should be placed on, for example, gonadotrophin preparations and injections protocols. The next meeting of the AETE will take place at Lyon, France on the 12th-13th September 1997. Professor Dr. B. Meinecke, Institute for Reproductive Medicine, Veterinary University of Hannover, Germany. Grass and Forage for Cattle of High Genetic Merit. A Conference of the British Grassland Society held at Malvern, UK on 25-26 November 1996. 200 delegates attended this meeting which reviewed the place of grazed grass and conserved forages in the feeding of cattle of high genetic potential. A strong panel of 30 speakers drawn from research, consultancy and producers included representatives from the USA, France, Ireland, New Zealand and The Netherlands as well as the UK. Simultaneous sessions catered for the special interests of milk and beef producers. Discussion among the delegates during the conference was positive and forward looking, being particularly optimistic about the potential of grass and forage based systems in the context of pressures from world prices and cost of equipment and facilities for systems of milk production aiming for very high yields, public perceptions of animal welfare and green issues. These were seen as important reasons why herd management and feeding should be designed to increase the potential nutrient intake of grazed grass and conserved forage. It was also felt that, with good management the high merit animal could maintain a relative advantage over a wide range of production systems. Further details of the sessions on the dairy cow are set out below. Setting the scene Genetic selection has had a dramatic effect on the potential productivity of dairy cows and it is likely that the development of more comprehensive breeding goals and indices and improved systems of testing and evaluation will continue to influence dairy cattle breeding in the future. Measures of genetic merit should not be based solely on milk yield or

solids but should incorporate other factors that could, for example, affect longevity or regular breeding. Geoff Simm, Scottish Agricultural Colleges (SAC), drew attention to the long running debate on the importance of genotype x environment interactions. Recent research at Langhill suggests that this might become important at least in relatively low input systems. It appears that cows of very high genetic merit for yield have a particular ability to milk at the expense of body condition to compensate for any deficiency of nutrient intake at peak of lactation. This could give difficulties in feeding systems dependent on high intakes of conserved forage. Nutritional requirements of the high merit cow and the constraints of feeding grasses and legumes were set out by Chris Reynolds, CEDAR. Grass and especially grass silage based rations impose limits on nutrient intake which restrict production. Substitution of grass with alternative forages generally improves intake but if legumes are fed the potential negative impact of excess RDP must be considered. Can grass provide? Sinclair Mayne, ARINI, suggested that the high merit cow could be managed at grass to increase food intake by using grazing techniques designed to maximise intake/bite. This implied using lower stocking rates and presenting tall, dense, leafy swards to the cow in a rotational grazing system. Even in these situations high merit cows in early lactation will require some supplementation to avoid excessive loss of body condition. John Bax, SAC, reported on a comparison of high and low intensity dairy systems at Crichton Royal, then farmer speakers from Ireland and Wiltshire gave details of their own systems which were heavily reliant on the successful utilisation of grazed grass. Conserved forage Richard Dewhurst, IGER, demonstrated the wide range of voluntary intakes of silage encountered in practice and reported progress towards analytical schemes which describe a significant part of this variation. The importance of managing the whole lactation cycle, particularly with animals of high production potential was recognised as dry period

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feeding can have an important effect on forage intake in early lactation. He was followed by two farmer speakers. Mary Quicke, Devon, observed that whilst high genetic value cows need proper feeding, she did not buy into genetics to produce expensive milk. There was a need to work out how far these high merit cows will go on grazed grass and conserved forage. She wanted to know how far to go with early lactation cows whilst maintaining condition score and getting them in-calf again. Andrew Sanders, Shropshire, gave a talk on his low cost system and the economic consequences of the quota system.

Experiences of others This section of the conference showed the contrasts between production methods in different countries. Prof. Colin Holmes gave a New Zealand perspective on milk production at world prices, with almost complete reliance on grazed pastures. Genetic improvement has been an essential component of increases in productivity since 1950. He was followed by Larry Muller (USA) who discussed the consequences of the cost/price squeeze on New England producers since 1980. The result has been a reconsideration of the systems based on forage maize conservation and grains, and the introduction of intensive grazed pasture systems - initially by smaller producers but now by some of the larger scale producers. Ad Van Vuuren reported Dutch experience in which high milk production had resulted from offering excellent quality forages combined with specific, tailored, concentrate mixtures to early lactation cows. In early lactation the supply of amino acids and glycogenic nutrients receive extra attention. The dairy section was completed by a presentation by Seamus Crosse, Moorepark, on the economic benefits of high merit dairy stock.

The future In a final plenary session David Johnson, ARINI, speaking on forages for the future, said that considerable commercial resources were being directed towards the production of new forage grasses, with the main emphasis on Lolium spp. Primary breeding objectives include not only herbage yield but also persistency, winter hardiness and disease resistance. New varieties with improvements in these character-

istics are commercially available at present and further improvements can be expected. John Oldam, SAC, discussed whether high genetic merit animals could survive and breed in all management systems which are likely to be realistic in British dairy farming in the future, and what the consequences might be of continued application of the genetic improvement programmes. Tom Kelly, Genus, concluded the conference with a look at the economic environment for milk production at the start of the next century. Complete sets of the papers, including both dairy and beef theatre sessions and poster papers, produced for this conference are available from: The British Grassland Society, No. 1 Early Gate, University of Reading, Reading RG6 2AT, UK. Price g12.50 (including post and packing). Dr. C. Thomas, Scottish Agricultural Auchincruive, UK.

World Holstein Conference

College

Friesian

Federation

(WHFF)

The 5th World Conference of the WHFF was held in Japan with 700 participants from 25 countries. Of special interest to EAAP was the growing linkages between the WHFF and a sister organization of EAAP, the International Committee for Animal Recording (ICAR). Common interests include linear trait recording and data transfer for both of which are being developed. A joint guidelines ICAR/WHFF Task Force is working on these and other issues. The WHFF also has a working group studying the question of longevity trait recording. The WHFF Board plan their next meeting at the same time as the next ICAR and INTERBULL Sessions in New Zealand in January 1998.

TOPICAL REVIEW OF GOAT PRODUCTION IN EUROPE AND EAAP Scientists working on goat production sometimes have personal complexes compared with colleagues studying other economically important species. They tend to explain this feeling by the fact that often their work with goats is part-time and also they are frequently isolated. But it is also a fact that goat