The cecum is the main organ where the body breaks down dietary fiber and encourages nutrient fermentation, which has a sizable microbiological population. Several species' cecal microorganisms have been examined and studied, but no such research on the African ostrich has been documented. Hence, in this investigation, the diversity of microorganisms in the caecum of African ostriches at 7, 30, 60, and 180 days of age was examined using metagenomics sequencing technology. The results showed that the flora in the caecum of African ostriches was distributed in 9 phyla, 16 classes, 29 orders, 58 families and 128 genera. With increasing age, the abundance and diversity of microbes in the cecum first increased and then decreased, with the microbial abundance peaking at 60 days of age and microbial diversity being highest at 30 days of age. At the phylum level, Firmicutes and Proteobacteria were the most dominant phyla at 7, 60 and 180 days of age, while the dominant phyla at 30 days of age were Firmicutes, Tenericutes and Bacteroidetes. At the genus level, the dominant bacteria in the cecum of different ages were different. Acinetobacter, Escherichiacoli-Shigella, and Akkermania had the highest abundance at the age of 7 days. Anaeroplasma and Bacteroides were the most abundant at the age of 30 days, Acinetobacter and Pseudomonas were the dominant bacteria at 60 and 180 days old, respectively. There were different bacterial groups in the cecum of each age group. At 7, 30, 60, and 180 days of age, there were 28, 24, 8 and 6 different bacterial groups, respectively, and the number of bacterial groups gradually declined with age. In conclusion, African ostriches have complex and diverse cecal microorganisms, and as they mature, the microbial composition and dominating species will shift. This offers a theoretical foundation for future studies on how aging affects gut microorganisms and how they interact with the body.

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of low protein small peptide nutrition strategy replacing standard diet supplemented with antibiotics on growth performance, nutrient apparent digestibility and fecal microorganisms of growing pigs. Forty-eight healthy 'Yorkshire× Landrace' binary growing pigs with body weight of about 14 kg were selected, half male and half female. According to the litter source and body weight, they were divided into 4 treatments by random block method. Each treatment had 3 replicates, with 4 pigs in each replicate. The control group was fed 18.5% CP standard diet + 100 mg/kg aureomycin, the LP group 16.5% CP low protein diet, the LP+ A group low protein diet + 100 mg/kg aureomycin, and the LP+ SP group low protein diet+ 0.25% small peptide. The results showed that the addition of small peptides to low-protein diets significantly reduced the diarrhea index(P<0.05). Compared with the control group, the dry matter digestibility (P<0.05) and the crude protein digestibility (P<0.01) in LP group significantly reduced, while in LP+ SP group the dry matter digestibility (P<0.01) and the phosphorus digestibility (P<0.05) significantly increased. In comparison to LP group, LP+ A group had significantly increased digestibility of dry matter (P<0.05), LP+ SP group had significantly increased digestibility of dry matter and crude protein (P<0.01), and significantly increased digestibility of phosphorus (P<0.05). Compared with LP+ A group, the dry matter digestibility (P<0.01) and the phosphorus digestibility (P<0.05) in LP+ SP group were both significantly increased. No significant differences were observed in the Alpha diversity index of microorganisms in feces and the number of top four microbial species at the genus level(P>0.05)for the four groups. In summary, the reduction of dietary crude protein level by 2 percentage points had no significant effect on the production performance and fecal microorganisms of growing pigs, but it reduced their nutrient apparent digestibility. The low-protein small peptide nutrition strategy can replace the standard diet supplemented with antibiotics. In low-protein diets, small peptides can replace chlortetracycline.

The experiment aimed to study the effects of Dorper × Tibetan hybridization on the growth, slaughter performance and meat quality of the offspring. The study conducted hybridization experiments using Dorper sheep and Tibetan sheep as the paternal line and Tibetan sheep as the maternal line. The body weight and body measurement indicators of F₁ generation of Dorper-Tibetan sheep ( Duzang F₁) were determined and compared to those of Tibetan sheep. In each group, 9 individuals were randomly selected for slaughter experiment, and the indexes of meat quality were assessed. The results showed that the body weight, body length and chest circumference of Dorper × Tibetan F1 were significantly higher than those of Tibetan sheep (P<0.001). Additionally, the pre-slaughter live weight, carcass weight, meat weight, bone weight, slaughter rate, eye muscle area and backfat thickness of Dorper × Tibetan F₁ were all significantly greater than those of Tibetan sheep (P<0.001), while the coefficients of the liver, lung and kidney were obviously lower (P<0.05). Except for the shear force of longissimus dorsi (P=0.001) in F1 generation being lower than that of Tibetan sheep (P=0.001), there were no significant differences in the physical properties of the muscle between the two groups. The moisture, crude protein, and ash content of the longissimus dorsi in Dorper × Tibetan F₁ decreased significantly, whereas the crude fat content was significantly higher than in Tibetan sheep (P<0.001). Compared to Tibetan sheep, the longissimus dorsi muscle of Duzang F1 showed a decreasing trend in calcium, phosphorus, potassium, and iron content, while zinc and selenium levels increased (P<0.05). The proportions of threonine, valine, methionine, isoleucine, leucine, aspartic acid, and histidine in the longissimus dorsi muscle of Duzang F1 were significantly higher, while the proportions of tryptophan, glutamic acid, serine, and tyrosine were significantly lower (P<0.05). There were no significant differences in the total saturated fatty acid content in the longissimus dorsi muscle; however, the contents of the two main monounsaturated fatty acids, palmitoleic acid and oleic acid, were significantly higher, while the levels of various polyunsaturated fatty acids decreased significantly (P<0.05). These results indicate that Duzang F1 exhibits superior growth and slaughter performance compared to Tibetan sheep, with meat quality indices also being reasonable. The hybrid advantages are significant, making this crossbred combination an ideal choice for the agro-pastoral transitional zone of Qinghai.

This experiment was conducted to study the effect of differenct feeding methods on rumen emzyme activity,rumen microbiota composition and dirersity of Nanjing Yellow goat. Thirty-two three months old Nanjiang Yellow goats with good body condition and similar body weight were randomly divided into grazing group and housing group, with 16 goats in each group. The grazing group was allowed to graze naturally, while the housing group was fed a complete mixed ration. The trial consisted of a 7-day pre-test period and a 60-day experimental test. At the end of the test, rumen fluid was collected for high-throughput sequencing of rumen microbiota 16S rRNA and enzyme activity determination. The PICRUSt software was used to predict the metabolic functions of rumen microbiota in Nanjiang Yellow goats. The results showed that the activity of rumen α-amylase and pepsin in the housing group was significantly higher than that in the grazing group(P<0.01), while cellulase activity was significantly lower(P<0.01). There was no significant difference in α-diversity of rumen microbiota between the housing and the grazing group, but there was a significant difference in β-diversity(P<0.01). At the phylum level, the relative abundance of Patescibacteria and Desulfobacterota in the rumen microbiota of the grazing group was significantly higher than that in the housing group(P<0.05); at the genus level, the relative abundance of Butyrivibrio in the rumen microbiota of the grazing group was significantly higher than that in the housing group(P<0.01), while the relative abundance of Selenomonas was significantly higher(P<0.05), however, the relative abundance of Ruminococcus and Prevotellaceae_UCG-003 was significantly lower(P<0.05)than that in the housing group. At the KEGG2 level, carbohydrate metabolism was detected to be the most abundant metabolism-related pathway, and at the KEGG3 level, it was found that the metabolism-related enrichment pathways were mainly Selenocompound metabolism, Energy metabolism, and Metabolism of cofactors and vitamins. Spearman correlation, which was used to study the relationship between rumen enzyme activity and rumen microbiota abundance, revealed a significantly positive correlation between α-amylase and the genus Ruminococcus(P<0.05), and a highly significant negative correlation with Prevotellaceae_UCG001(P<0.01). Cellulose activity showed a highly significant positive correlation with the genus Butyrivibrio(P<0.01). In conclusion, different feeding patterns have a certain impact on the rumen microbiota structure and enzyme activity in Nanjiang Yellow goats, and the changes in rumen enzyme activities are correlated to rumen microbiota.

This experiment aimed to investigate the variation of environmental parameters in sheep caves and the impact of light control measures on the sheep cave environment, and to optimize the number and placement of points for environmental control. The experiment utilized a multi-functional gas analyzer for livestock and poultry (CN201410008619.7) to monitor harmful gas concentrations, light intensity, wind speed, temperature, and humidity continuously  in the context of reusing abandoned cave dwellings in the northern Shaanxi region. The experimental data collected while the sheep were inside the cave were used for analysis of gas concentration differences, comparison of gas fitting degrees inside the cave, and construction of regression equations for harmful gas concentration variations. Results showed there were significant differences (P<0.05) in methane and carbon dioxide gas concentrations at three points within the cave. Light control had an impact on the variation of harmful gas concentrations in the caves. The trend of changes in harmful gas concentrations varied considerably, with ammonia concentrations lower than those in non-light-controlled caves, and carbon dioxide and methane concentrations higher than those in non-light-controlled cave, but with consistent concentration change trends. Throughout the experiment, the sheep in both caves remained in a comfortable environment without obvious stress reactions, indicating the feasibility of utilizing abandoned cave dwellings for sheep husbandry.

Traditional free-range breeding of Hedian chicken in an under-forest pattern often leads to soil degradation and vegetation destruction. This study investigated the effects of planting Paspalum wettsteinii H. under the forest on soil physicochemical properties, soil microbial bacterial community composition, and soil microbial diversity within the 0~20 cm soil layer. It also analyzed the soil improvement effects of this practice on forest land used for free-range Hedian chicken breeding. The results showed that after one season of planting Paspalum wettsteinii H, soil organic matter, total nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, ammonium nitrogen, available phosphorus, and available potassium contents increased by 12.4%, 57.8%, 63.9%, 47.1%, 25.8%, and 23.7%, respectively, compared to the control group. Soil lead content decreased by 50.66% compared to the control group. The soil bacterial microbial diversity and richness were significantly higher than those of the control group, with the Chao1 index being 59.2% higher on average and the Shannon index being 10.7% higher on average, both reaching a highly significant level (P<0.01). Planting Paspalum wettsteinii H. under the forest reduced the abundance of Proteobacteria and Chloroflexi phyla while increasing the abundance of Acidobacteria phylum, making it the dominant bacterial phylum, whereas Actinobacteria was the dominant phylum in the control group. Planting Paspalum wettsteinii H. under the forest for one year can significantly enhance soil organic matter, total nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, ammonium nitrogen, available phosphorus, and available potassium contents. It also reduces soil heavy metal lead content, improves soil microbial diversity, and increases the relative abundance of Acidobacteria phylum, demonstrating a good soil improvement and restoration effect on forest land used for traditional Hedian chicken breeding.

To understand the sequence information of novel duck reovirus (NDRV) in Guangdong Province, suspected cases of reovirus infection in ducks from Foshan city and Zhaoqing city in Guangdong province were subjected to detection, isolation, identification and whole genome sequence analysis. Post-mortem examination of the suspected samples revealed irregular hemorrhagic patches in the livers of the infected ducks, as well as severe hemorrhage and necrosis in the spleens and bursa of Fabricius. A laboratory-developed detection method was employed to test the samples, and the NDRV was isolated using LMH cells. Subsequently, the isolated strains were subjected to whole genome sequencing and analysis. The results indicated typical cytopathic lesion on the 3rd generation LMH cells, confirming the presence of NDRV. Full-length amplification revealed that the two isolated NDRV strains had a total length of 23 419 bp, which could be divided into 10 fragments, designated as L1~L3, M1~M3 and S1~S4. Nucleotide and amino acid homology analysis demonstrated the highest homology with domestic NDRV strains, and lower homology with Muscovy Duck reovirus (MDRV) and Avain revirus (ARV). Furthermore, genetic evolutionary relationship showed that the 10 fragments of the two isolated strains were evenly distributed within the major branch of NDRV, confirming that the two isolated strains were both NDRV. This study enriches the sequence information of NDRV and provides a reference for the prevention and control of NDRV in Guangdong, as well as for the research of specific biological products.

This paper involves a field research on small and medium-sized livestock and poultry farms in Xingguo County. Based on statistical data and the emission coefficients of livestock and poultry manure, the quantity of livestock and poultry manure and its pollutant content were estimated. The agricultural load of manure pollutants was assessed using alert values and risk levels, and the potential for biogas production from manure was predicted. The results showed the amount of livestock and poultry raised was 81,900 pig equivalent, with swine accounting for 80.31%, cattle for 13.65%, sheep for 3.54%, rabbits for 0.05%, and poultry for 2.45%. The production of livestock and poultry manure was 111,700 tons in pig equiverlent, with chemical oxygen demand of 3 643 t, biochemical oxygen demand of 3 490 t, ammonia nitrogen of 300 t, total phosphorus of 236 t, and total nitrogen of 653 t. The total estimated biogas production from fermentation was approximately 1.57×10⁶ m³. The overall risk level of farmland pollution caused by livestock and poultry manure was assessed as level I, with no pollution observed. The study indicates that the excretion of livestock and poultry manure has not caused pollution to farmland in the short term, and at the current stage, it is more important to adhere to the principles of reduction, harmlessness, and resource utilization, and advocate the concept of healthy livestock breeding in animal husbandry.