WINTER 2004

10-234 STRUCTURE OF FARM ANIMALS

H.J. Swatland, Room 155 ANNU, Ext. 53670

Schedule of dates

Feb 16-20 - Winter Break Week - no classes

Apr 2 - Course evaluations & last lecture

Lectures

Mon, Wed & Fri12:30 

Labs/Tutorials(2 HOURS)

Section 1 Thursday 2:30- 4:20 pm

Section 2 Tuesday9:30-11:20 am

Section 3 Thursday 9:30-11:20 am

Section 4 Tuesday 11:30- 2:20 pm

Subject matter.This course provides an introduction to the carcass structure of cattle, pigs, sheep and poultry.Consideration is given to the whole range of animal structure from molecular biology to the commercial grading of the carcass.Animal growth and development are considered in relation to meat production.The course gives a detailed understanding of factors such as meat tenderness, adipose development in the carcass, abnormalities of meat quality such as PSE pork and dark-cutting beef, skeletal development and carcass composition.

Some years ago, all students in this course were required to obtain hands-on experience in animal slaughtering and meat cutting.But times have changed. (1) Federal hygiene regulations (HACCP) in licensed abattoirs have been tightened, requiring footwear to be disinfected, protective clothing and hard-hats to be worn, and all hair including beards to be covered. (2) Many students now have moral grounds for avoiding direct experience in slaughtering. (3) The university directs us to seek alternatives to killing animals. (4) Continuing cut-backs in personnel leave us short staffed in the abattoir. (5) Last but not least, we now have twice as many students in the class as there were a few years ago. Slaughtering can be dangerous. Situations relatively safe for a small group of students may be dangerous with a large group of students. Hence, we will regard the lab classes as tutorials. All students are expected to attend to watch a video on which exam questions will be based. Afterwards it may be possible for small groups of students to watch animals being slaughtered and to examine viscera.

http://www.aps.uoguelph.ca/~swatland/gasman.html

This web page contains a list of the key words used in the video tapes.These can be printed on any printer in advance of a tutorial and are useful for making notes from the video tapes.Most of the diagrams used on the Internet are the same as those used in the exams.Thus, students who become familiar with the material presented on the Internet will find many of the exam diagrams familiar.

Text-book.Structure and Development of Meat Animals and Poultry.Technomic Publishing, Lancaster, PA.

Exams.Two midterms and a final, with a 30-30-40% weighting. Because of the large class size, exams will have to be in the evening.

Type of exam.Machine-marked multiple choice exams, relating to:

- decision making questions

- identifying anatomical structures from diagrams

- problem solving

- memorization and understanding of terminology

- material covered in tutorials

- reading in text

* Please would students with special requirements (learning or physical disabilities, conflicts with University athletic events, family problems, etc) make contact with me at the earliest opportunity. Documentation is required.

Labs/Tutorials

1 First week of classes - NO TUTORIALS, Jan 6 & 8

2 Beef slaughter & digestive system, Jan 13 & 15

3 Pork slaughter & digestive system, Jan 20 & 22

4 Sheep slaughter & digestive system, Jan 27 & 29

5 Poultry viscera, Feb 3 & 5

6 Teeth & brain, Feb 10 & 12

- Winter break - - - -

7 Reproductive system, Feb 24 & 26

8 Heart, lungs & kidney, Mar 2 & 4

9 Forequarter skeleton, muscles & meat cuts. Mar 9 & 11

10 Hind quarter skeleton, muscles & meat cuts. Mar 16 & 18

11 Poultry skeleton, muscles & meat cuts. Mar 23 & 25

12 Grading.Mar 30 & Apr 1

Reading for tutorials: All of chapter 1

Pages 65-82 for skeleton

Pages 143-162 for muscles & meat cuts

Pages 169-196 for meat grading