Characteristics of meat, pet, and research rabbit farms in Brazil: An overview based on twelve farms

<p>Rabbit production has great growth potential in a country where animal production is very important. However, there is little data about this industry in Southern and Southeast Brazil. The aim of this study was to describe Brazilian rabbit farms that provide meat, pets and animals for learning or research. Three pet farms, four meat farms and five research rabbit farms were visited, and the production and farm characteristics data were collected between June 2018 and March 2019. A total of 1170 rabbits and 617 cages were evaluated. Most farms had 21 to 60 (58.3%) does. Considering all farms, the farmers reported an average rate of conception of 71.8%, prolificacy rate of 6.7 kits per parturition, average interval between parturitions of 65 d and 6.3 parturitions/doe yr. The mean mortality rate for breeding rabbits was 10.4%, compared to 1.7% for growing rabbits (rabbits post-weaning until slaughter or sale). The average area of a cage was 0.43±0.1 m², with an average stocking density for growing rabbits of 3 rabbits/m². The most common cage system used by farmers was a flat-deck (66.7% of farms) system with a wire cage (91.7%). Metal (41.7%) and clay (33.3%) feeders were the most common types of feeders, and automatic nipple drinkers were present in 75% of the farms. Dirt accumulation was observed in 11.2% of the cages and 5.7% of the drinkers, but not in feeders. A total of 4.1% of the cages were considered unsafe, and 0.8% had problems with the drinkers. The farms studied ranged from small to medium in size, used an extensive reproductive rhythm and followed basic production techniques. Animal health and management aspects need to be reviewed by the farmer if the rabbit production conditions are to improve.</p>

Case of syngamosis in partridges of a backyard farm

Sick and dead 2-months-old partridges (Alectoris chukar) were presented to the unit of Avian Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. The birds were reared at a specially constructed wire cage, which covered 600 m2 of the ground, including self-growing flora, in the region of Diavata, in the countryside of Thessaloniki. The farm consisted of young partridges, adult pheasants and wild passerines. Two months after placing the birds, 5 partridges were found dead. During the clinical examination of the submitted sick partridges, severe respiratory distress was observed, while some birds had anemic combs and others were breathing with open beaks and had their necks stretched. The necropsy revealed the presence of numerous gapeworms in the lumen of the trachea, forming the typical " Y" shape, since male and female Syngamus trachea are locked in copulation. The mucosa of trachea was, also, thickened, irritated and congested. No lesions to other organs were observed and the microbiological examination of liver, spleen and air-sacs samples was negative. Meanwhile, faecal samples were collected from the farm for parasitological examination. A sedimentation method was used and eggs of S. trachea were found. Syngamosis was determined to be the cause of the partridges' death. The gapeworms are considered potentially dangerous, especially for backyard, game-birds and free-living birds, while the control of the disease is complicated. This fact, along with the selective appearance of the clinical signs and the mortality only in the partridges of the farm are the remarkable points discussed in this article.

Standard Operating Procedures for aluminium box, wire cage, and pitfall trapping, handling, and temporary housing of small wild rodents and marsupials

Many researchers and educators need to provide Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to their Animal Ethics Committee (AEC) for the purpose of trapping, handling, and temporarily housing small mammals. We devised general SOPs that are compatible with most existing ones for Australia and had these SOPs reviewed by a panel of Australian experts. The SOPs may be used as guidelines by researchers who need to provide such protocols to their organisation or AEC, or in teaching.

Ecology and natural history of Akodon lindberghi (Rodentia, Sigmodontinae) in southeastern Brazil

We studied the ecology and natural history of the globally threatened and poorly known Akodon lindberghi Hershkovitz, 1990 in Parque Nacional da Serra da Canastra (PNSC) and Juiz de Fora (JF), southeastern Brazil. From November 1998 to September 2001 a total of 131 individuals were captured in wire-cage live-traps and 52 by pitfalls traps. They were all marked and released at the site. The largest abundances were registered during the dry season, and most of the captures occurred in open habitats. The mean body mass of the two populations was significantly different (18.1 g at PNSC versus 13.1 g at JF; H = 46.2678, g.l.=2, p<0.001). In PNSC, individuals were reproductively active from August to February, and juveniles were present from May to August. The results suggest that the changes in vegetation structure caused by deforestation and intensive agricultural activities could increase the predation rate, affecting the mean body mass of the population.

Trapping small mammals for research and management: how many die and why?

Trapping programs are an essential part of mammal conservation and management, but trapping carries a risk of death for the study animals. Little information is available on mortality levels and its potential to influence studies. We examined the mortality levels recorded during 68 wildlife surveys within New South Wales, recording mortality rates associated with Elliott aluminium box and wire cage trapping for terrestrial mammals and harp traps for bats. We noted 232 deaths from 13623 small ground mammal captures in box traps, one death from 459 mammal captures in wire cage traps, and 44 deaths from 12,274 bat captures in harp traps. Mortality ranged from 0-13.3%, 0-0.6% and 0-9.1% of captures for box, cage and harp traps, respectively. No deaths were reported for 47% of surveys. Antechinus spp. comprised almost 95% of all trap deaths. Thirteen surveys provided detailed information for small ground mammal trapping, recording 111 deaths from 3651 small mammal captures. Box trap mortality in these surveys ranged from 0-7.5%, deaths being attributed to cold temperatures (generally winter) and multiple captures of individuals. Harp trap mortality stemmed from overheating, overcrowding and predation. Post-capture handling also contributed to mortality. No specific level of trap death can be ?expected? during a study as circumstances vary, but all efforts should be made to minimise the risk of deaths. This study found that mortality above 4% is unusual, resulting mainly from one-off ?extreme? mortality events. Minimising unnecessary recaptures and avoiding weather extremes should reduce mortality of small mammals during trapping studies, but will not prevent all deaths.