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Tympanic temperature transient response as an index of heat dissipation in swine
Abstract
Producers and researchers are interested in the energy utilization of animals involved in the meat production industry. Energy utilization of an animal is closely related to its ability to adapt to its environment. Assessing an animal's response to its environment has proven difficult due to the complex interplay of the environment and the animal. This report develops a measure of a dynamic overall heat transfer coefficient, or thermal index, based upon a noninvasive tympanic temperature measurement. The relative thermal index for swine was objectively determined from analysis of the transient response of tympanic temperature of six crossbred barrows exposed to three distinct thermal environments. The three environments (treatments) compared in a repeated Latin square design with subsampling were: 28$\sp\circ$C with a low air speed; 28$\sp\circ$C with a high air speed; and 18$\sp\circ$C with low air speed. The transient thermodynamic response of each pig was determined by analysis of the tympanic temperature spike associated with a meal event. Each suitable temperature spike was processed by a statistical exponential curve fitting algorithm generating the thermal index, K. Thermal index values occurred as subsamples within the Latin square design since multiple meal events were allowed for each treatment. Analysis of thermal index means from the repeated Latin square showed that an air temperature of 28$\sp\circ$C with low wind speed was a significantly different (P = 0.0205) thermal environment compared to the other two treatments. This result supported a preliminary analysis of the projected impact of the prescribed thermal environments based on steady state assumptions. The thermal index has been shown to be a measure of the overall heat transfer coefficient which relates the pig's rate of heat loss to its thermal environment by evaluation of the dynamics of the tympanic temperature record. The objectively determined thermal index provides a noninvasive integrated response of a pig to its thermal environment. Researchers can use this biologically based measure to link thermal conditions to performance in optimizing swine production.
Subject Area
Agriculture|Livestock
Recommended Citation
Eigenberg, Roger Allen, "Tympanic temperature transient response as an index of heat dissipation in swine" (1994). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9425279.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9425279