peer reviewed

Objective: The objective of this study is to determine whether there is a relationship between hair whorl position and temperament in Chinese Yellow cattle using a questionnaire. Also, the effect of the raising environment is investigated. Materials and methods: A total of 122 Chinese Yellow cattle were surveyed in 3 village areas and four grassland areas in the northern area of China. For each cattle, an investigator asked the care-person about each item of a temperament questionnaire and determined the facial hair whorl position of each cattle. The location of hair whorl was categorized as low, middle, or high in relation to the eyes. Results: The overall distribution was 20.5% high, 58.2% middle, 13.1% low, 6.6% double, and 1.6% no hair whorl. There was no significant difference between the grassland and village area cattle in the distribution of whorl position. The scores of grassland areas were significantly higher than those of village areas in terms of Retentive memory, Sensitivity, and Timidity and lower in Docility and Fortitude. The scores for the high position tended to be higher than those for the middle plus low positions in terms of Adaptability and Obedience. On the other hand, there was a tendency for a score for the high position to be lower than the other posi¬tions in Excitability. A significant interaction between area and whorl position was observed in Friendliness to cattle. Conclusion: These findings suggest that hair whorl location may be useful in predicting the tem¬perament in cattle, but temperament can be influenced by environment and/or handlings. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2020; 7(3.000): 477-481]

Brazil is one of the largest milk producers in the world and most establishments are small producers of family farming. Milk is a perishable product and due to its nutritional characteristics provides a favorable environment for the growth of bacteria. The objective of this research was to evaluate the consumption habits of milk in family farms, identifying the consumption forms, evaluating the risks and the perception of risk by the producers, besides evaluating the sanitary management adopted in the properties with respect to the diseases transmitted by the milk and milk products. One hundred eleven producers from the city of Realeza-PR were interviewed. Almost half (48.64%, 54/111) had a small production with up to 10 lactating animals. Most of the producers had animals with a low productivity, and the average milk production per animal was less than 10 liters. The milk produced was consumed internally by 93.67% (104/111) of those interviewed, and 7.2% (8/111) claim to ingest raw milk without any previous heat treatment. Some producers (18%, 20/111) still made dairy products, like cheese and dulce de leche. Although 82.87% (92/111) reported having knowledge about the transmission of diseases through milk, only 49.54% (55/111) named the diseases. Not all producers conducted tests in the herd for disease control. The present study also found that only 4 people interviewed (3.6%, 4/111) associated the consumption of raw milk with some illness and reported having some symptoms, such as vomiting, nausea, skin allergy, colic and gas. Thus, it is necessary to inform and guide producers about the risks associated with raw milk consumption, so that not only the health of the producer is assured, but also the family and the population that may acquire this product informally.