A livestock squeeze chute features a side-gate frame delimiting a side-access opening for lateral access to an animal secured in the chute's head gate. An openable/closeable side-gate is movably coupled to the gate frame to enable selective obstruction of a lower area of the side-access opening. An upper barrier is movably coupled to the side-gate for movement into and out of a closed state at least partially obstructing an upper area of said side-access opening. A hinged connection by which said side-gate is both pivotably and removably coupled to said gate frame comprises a set of male stub shafts and a cooperating set of female receptacles, by which said side-gate is pivotally movable at a first elevation, and fully removable when lifted to a greater second elevation. When both are removed from the frame, the barrier is set an angle forming a supportive prop for the gate.

A pet kennel is disclosed as it may be manufactured to appear as furniture. An example of the pet kennel may include a housing having a floor, a top, and four sides, wherein the floor and the top are wooden, and at least one of the sides has metal rods in a wooden frame. The example pet kennel may also include a containment area formed within the housing, the containment area sufficiently large to fit multiple animals. At least one divider may be installed to separate the containment area into distinct living space. The at least one divider may be removed to provide a common living space. The at least one pet kennel may also include at least one door to the containment area, and a lock on the at least one door.

A method and control arrangement for controlling an automated crowd gate that operates to form a side of a holding area and moves in relation to an entrance of a destination in order to cause animals located in the holding area to move towards the destination, wherein location data defining individual positions of one or more animals located in the holding area is obtained from a real-time location system, location data, a current position of the crowd gate is obtained, and an operation of the crowd gate is controlled based on the obtained position of the crowd gate and the obtained location data of the animals.

Modern broilers are selected for fast growth and a large proportion of breast tissue, contributing to a top-heavy phenotype, leg disorders, and inactivity as birds reach market weight. Therefore, the objective was to motivate broilers to move through environmental enrichment. Twelve hundred Ross 308 broilers were housed in pens of 30 for 6 wk; 600 birds were exposed to a novel laser enrichment device (LASER) and 600 were control. Each device projected 2 randomly moving red laser dots onto the floor 4 times/day for 4-min “laser periods”. Seven LASER and 7 control pens, with 5 focal birds/pen (n=70), were randomly selected to be video-recorded d0-8 and once weekly for the remainder of the trial. Videos were analyzed to measure broiler time-budget and behaviors such latency to feed and distance walked during laser periods. Focal birds were gait scored weekly on-farm. A test of the Human-Approach Paradigm was carried out on wk 1 and 6 on all pens. LASER birds were more active on d0, 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, and 8, moving 254% more on d7 (P≤0.05). Time spent active was increased in LASER treatment by 114% on wk 2; 157% on wk 3; 90% on wk 4; and 82% on wk 5. LASER birds spent more time at the feeder on d0, 1, 2, 5, 8, and on wk 1 and 5, with 84% more time at feeder than control on d5 (P≤0.05). LASER birds walked further during laser periods on d0-8, reaching 646.5 cm greater (d1), and on wk 2, 3, 4, and 5, with an increase of 367.5 cm on wk 2 (P≤0.05). Over wk 1-6, 60.54±7.4% of focal birds in the laser treatment were at the feeder during or within 5 mins following laser periods. The laser enrichment device was successful in stimulating broiler physical activity and feeding and did not negatively impact walking ability. Key words: broiler, environmental enrichment, well-being, lameness, behavior

An animal control unit comprising: a housing comprising at least two electrodes and an electronics module configured to controllably deliver an electrical stimulus to an animal wearing the animal control unit via said at least two electrodes, wherein the housing is shaped such that it rests on the upper side of the animal's neck when in use; a collar to which the housing is attached, the collar being configured for fitment around a neck of the animal to moveably retain the housing in a first position; and a biasing means configured to provide a self-righting force such that the housing is biased towards the first position during movement, and wherein at least one of said electrodes is a strip electrode comprising a strip portion shaped to rest along a natural contour of the animal's neck.

A method and control unit for controlling a moveable crowd gate of a holding area at an entrance of a milking parlour at a farm where the control unit obtains information from at least one sensor regarding animals present in the holding area, determines a stress level among the animals in the holding area, based on the obtained information, and controls movement of the crowd gate, via an actuator configured to adjust position of the moveable crowd gate, based on the determined stress level.

A portable livestock handling apparatus features a set of arc-shaped wall panels carried on a rearmost section of a towable chassis, and pivotally interconnected to one another for swinging movement between deployed positions forming continuous arcuate extensions of one another to collectively define an arcuate wall span of the tub, and stowed positions folded up alongside one another to occupy a compact area on the chassis. The rearmost chassis section is longer on one side than the other, and features a chassis extension extendable from the rear end of the chassis to connect to one of the deployed panels. This elongated side and extension form the only ground-level connections between the chassis and the tub wall to minimize tripping hazards.

A portable livestock handling apparatus features a set of arc-shaped wall panels carried on a rearmost section of a towable chassis, and pivotally interconnected to one another for swinging movement between deployed positions forming continuous arcuate extensions of one another to collectively define an arcuate wall span of the tub, and stowed positions folded up alongside one another to occupy a compact area on the chassis. The rearmost chassis section is longer on one side than the other, and features a chassis extension extendable from the rear end of the chassis to connect to one of the deployed panels. This elongated side and extension form the only ground-level connections between the chassis and the tub wall to minimize tripping hazards.

In a headlock system having a plurality of n headlock cells, each of the n cells being adapted to enclose at least one animal; n is an integer greater than 1; a system for locating the position of at least one animal, the system comprising: at least one identification means adapted to transmit at least one identification signal associated with said at least one animal; at least one locating means adapted to generate at least one location signal associated with said at least one animal; and, a data processing system in communication with said at least one identification means and said at least one locating means, adapted to analyze said signals, said analyzed signals comprising the position within a predetermined region in said headlock system of each of said at least one animals as a function of time.

This invention relates to laying nest having a rack drive expulsion system. As disclosed herein, the invention preferably comprises a laying nest for hens comprising a box and a rack drive floor expulsion system. The floor pivotably moves between first and second positions by virtue of a gear rack that is fixedly connected to and disposed within the box, and a gear wheel that is rotatably connected to the floor. Accordingly, the expulsion system provides for the selected removal of hens from the laying nests as desired.