Ruminants Production

Code: ZOO14010I

3 ECTS

Duration: 15 weeks/78 hours

Scientific Area: Animal Science

Teaching languages: Portuguese

Languages of tutoring support: Portuguese

Regime de Frequência: Presencial

Presentation

Sustainable Development Goals

Erradicar a fome - Acabar com a fome, alcançar a segurança alimentar e melhoria da nutrição e promover a agricultura sustentável.

Educação de qualidade - Assegurar a educação inclusiva, e equitativa e de qualidade, e promover oportunidades de aprendizagem ao longo da vida para todos.

Produção e consumo sustentáveis - Assegurar padrões de produção e de consumo sustentáveis.

Proteger a vida terrestre - Proteger, recuperar e promover o uso sustentável dos ecossistemas terrestres, gerir de forma sustentável as florestas, combater a desertificação, deter e reverter a degradação da Terra e deter a perda da biodiversidade.

Learning Goals

The skills to be acquired are developed in two areas: scientific and professional. On the scientific view, it is intended to provide the student with the concepts and knowledge for the elaboration of alternative critical thinking about modern animal production. The aim is to create conditions for the student to be able to identify and understand less efficient productive situations and to elaborate working hypotheses that study possible inefficiency's factors. On the professional view, it is intended that the student can perform more everyday tasks in animal husbandry according to low-stress handling procedures. Also, to evaluate productive realities, and to develop critical thinking that nurtures different approaches and promotes alternative productive responses.

Applied ethology. Management, Facilities and Animal Welfare. Breeds and types of cattle, sheep and goats. Abiotic and biotic factors that affect the organization of cattle and small ruminants production systems. Characterization of the production cycle of ruminants. Feeding and reproductive management and productivity ratios. Disease prevention and health management. Types of supplementation, energy, protein and mineral. Particularities in the feeding concerning ages and objectives, replacement and fattening animals. The crossbreeds in ruminant production systems. Measures of productive efficiency and prospects for genetic improvement.

Teaching Methods

Conditioned by the time limits of the course, option for distribution of the programmatic contents that would accomplish the double objective of presenting the subjects and later consolidating them, revisiting them throughout the program, was made. In this way, it is possible to highlight the importance of functional interdependencies and a better understanding of the subjects. Some of the themes explained in other CU, are also recovered to consolidate the new topics.