The Gyr breed has been selected in Brazil for 40 years, mainly for total milk yield. The lactation persistency is closely related to the profitability of a milk production system. More persistent cows need less inputs, they get less sick, have more stayability and behave better reproductively. The results indicated that it is possible to make a selection for lactation persistency and that the second measure considered is better suited to the behavior of milk yield in Gyr breed.

The Guzera breed is in second position among Zebu breeds for milk production and is also used as a dual-purpose breed in some Brazilian production systems. The genetic correlations suggest that selection to increase milk yield will lead to selection in the same direction for body weight at different ages. The Guzera breed has the genetic potential to meet different selection objectives, either beef or milk production, or to produce dual-purpose animals as indicated by principal component analysis and cluster analysis.

The broilers are prone to immunological stress under unsuitable environmental conditions, the low immunity resulting in inflammatory bowel diseases. This study reveals a protective mechanism of Artemisia argyi alcohol extract as a potent antioxidant and demonstrates that AAAE can be efficiently applied in poultry and animal production to promote health.

Nano forms of selenium have greater bioavailability and lower biotoxicity than inorganic forms, but an enormous concern about the application of the chemical form of nano-selenium may inhibit extensive use. Chemical synthesis of nano minerals can have harmful environmental and animal consequences. Green nanotechnology is an environmentally sustainable, safe, biocompatible and cost-effective approach. The present experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of green synthesised nano-selenium on performance of broiler chickens.

The raising of sheep is performed mostly exclusively on pasture; however, these rearing systems are subject to irregular availability of forage, and, consequently, reduction of the herd, and irregular supply of meat products. Thus, in an attempt to resolve this, it is necessary to adopt nutritional tools that are able to shorten the production cycle. Wheat bran, sorghum and mesquite pod meal can completely replace maize in the concentrate in the diets for feedlot lambs.

The demand for dairy products from low-input pastoral systems is increasing. However, in autumn and winter, cows lose body condition due to low pasture availability and harsh weather. We compared Normande versus Holstein Friesian cows’ performance to determine the suitability of these breeds to these conditions. Normande cows had a shorter period of body reserves mobilisation and a greater recovery of insulin sensitivity during early lactation. Compared with Holstein Friesian cows, Normande cows can avoid large body reserves mobilisation, likely because of their lower milk yield potential.

The rapid assessment of colostrum in Merino ewes would provide valuable information regarding estimated immunoglobulin G (IgG) transfer and survival potential of lambs. Our research demonstrated that compared with laboratory tests, a hand-held refractometer was a crude measure of colostrum quality in ewes, and provided valuable information regarding estimated IgG transfer and lamb survival potential to 72 h. The use of a refractometer would be a cost-effective, easy-to-use tool for on-farm research or intensively managed flocks.

This study is very important because it is a study that evaluated and validated the body condition score of primiparous zebu cows with weight and fat thickness measurements by carcass ultrasonography, using several measures cited in the literature. It is a methodology accessible to the producer, requires technical training but at a low cost in relation to the ultrasound of the carcass. There are not many studies such as this for this category and animal breed, having thus great scientific importance.