Teacher(s)

Cabaraux Jean-François; Moens André coordinator;

Language

French

Prerequisites

Basic notions in chemistry, physics and physiology

The prerequisite(s) for this Teaching Unit (Unité d’enseignement – UE) for the programmes/courses that offer this Teaching Unit are specified at the end of this sheet.

Main themes

The course presents the characteristics of the domestic animals environment in the specialized breed systems by showing in what they can have an influence on their welfare, their health and their level of production.
The course evokes as well the influence of the animal presence on the general quality of the environment.

Aims

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	The objective of the course of ecology applied to domestic animals is to supply the useful information so that a veterinarian is capable: -       to analyze the diverse constituents of the environment susceptible to interfere with animal welfare, health and level of production;   to determine, on the basis of this analysis, if the environment satisfies the animal requirements.

The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.

Content

The course comprises a common part (20-12) and a complement part (10-0) including to options. The theoretical part of the common part is divided into two main parts 1.     The first part deals with general subjects in touch with all the species. It consists of 5 chapters: -       air pollution level inside the animal houses; -       lighting of animal houses, in connection with animal requirements, and the possible  sources of noise pollution; -       waste production and their use; -       factors interfering with the thermal comfort of animals; -       evaluation of buildings heat insulation and ventilation. 2.     The second part describes the specific modalities of housing the diverse categories of domestic animals and presents the contents of the legislations which relate to it. An approach of each species is presented. Practical exercisesintegrate the data of the various chapters. They are based on examination of plans of animal houses that have to be analyzed and interpreted Option 1 'complement on pets and laboratory animals housing' This part details the housing of horses, the legislation concerning dogs, cats and other pet animals housing and breeding; the legislation concerning laboratory animals housing and protection. Option 2 'complement on farm animals housing' This part deals with the housing of cattle, pig and poultry. The evolution of livestock housing and its equipment is presented with the relative legislations. The impact of housing modalities on animal health, welfare and productivity is presented.

Teaching methods

This course, both for the theoretical and practical courses is not the object of a public oral presentation. It is proposed to each student via an online support housed by the ULg and accessible to all students of the CfB following the bachelor degree in veterinary medicine. At the beginning of the 2d quadrimester, the students receive a login and a password allowing the access to the platform. A briefing is organized at the UCL to inform the students on the objectives and content of the course, including practical organization. An informatics room is booked at specific hours to allow a regular progression. A personalized follow up is set up by the organizers of the course. The students can ask questions (including technical ones) via a forum.

Evaluation methods

Written examination (multiple choices with negative points) organized simultaneously in all the concerned universities.

Online resources

WebCT

Bibliography

Un support informatique spécifique a été développé pour permettre et soutenir un apprentissage individuel. Tant pour le cours théorique que pour les travaux pratiques, l'étudiant peut aborder la matière à son propre rythme. Le cours en ligne est disponible à partir du 2q sur la plateforme WebCT de l'ULg. En plus du cours en ligne, l'étudiant dispose de notes de cours sous forme de syllabus. Trois tomes sont disponibles. Le premier correspond à la première partie du cours traitant de thèmes généraux et les deux autres décrivent plus en détails les modalités d'hébergement spécifiques soit aux animaux de production soit aux animaux de compagnie et de laboratoire.

Faculty or entity

VETE