Metabolism facility

The QASP metabolism facility is a fully enclosed, secure building adjacent to the individual pens. It is designed to augment nutrition studies which may require the use of metabolism crates as part of the experimental protocol using the available 16 cattle, 40 sheep, and 16 pig metabolism crates, or the 96 pens for housing smaller livestock. The partitioning can be removed to make 48 larger pens to house multiple or larger small livestock.

Metabolism facility outside

It comprises two animal holding sections of 450 square metres. One section is equipped with evaporative cooling, the other has ambient air with flowthrough ventilation and roof vented extraction. A central multi purpose area of 285 square metres separates the two animal housing sectors which can be totally closed off from each other. This service area contains a cold room, office / write-up room with internet connection and WiFi, chilled water fountain, shower and toilets, sample preparation room, bulk bin storage, large sink and bench areas on either side, as well as chemical and acid storage cabinets. Two in-ground Mettler Toledo weigh scales are available here for weighing of bulk quantities of feed stuffs without the need for manual lifting of feed bins.

The metabolism building is accessible via a specifically designed laneway in order to promote low stress animal handling. As such, the facility is accessible from the feedlot, the individual pens and the main yards. At the rear of the metabolism facility there is a small holding area with yards, crush facility and laneways.

16 cattle metabolism crates

At a glance

16 steel cattle metabolism crates
Adjustable to handle 200kg to 800kg animals
Sufficient space for cattle to lie down
Central urine collection tray
Auto drinkers with individual water intake data meters
Feed bins with controlled intake adjustment
Dedicated crush and entry holding yard
Evaporative cooling

There are 16 large cattle metabolism crates which allows for an ideal experimental design to complement use of the large individual animal pens. Most commonly, after an initial experimental trial or holding period, cattle in the 32 large individual animal pens are then be separated into two groups of 16 animals and sequentially rotated through the metabolism crates.

The cattle metabolism crates are housed within a large shed with evaporative cooling, located adjacent to the individual pens in a custom designed facility. The crates can be modified as required to fit different breeds and sizes of animals as they are adjustable to suit animals ranging from 200 kg to 800 kg. Animal urine and faeces can be easily collected and separated with a urine tray located in the middle of the crate and a faeces tray at the back. A urine transfer and chemical neutralising system is incorporated within the metabolic crates to reduce the chance of any lost data and experimental variation.

To provide high levels of animal welfare, cattle have sufficient space to easily lie down in the metabolism crates. Rubber matting is used on the floor during animal transfer to reduce the chance of slip injury.

The feeders have been designed to have a controlled intake with individual water intake data meters. The drinkers have been constructed and placed to avoid any water from contaminating urine collection.

There are crush facilities at the rear of the building and any individual animal can be easily and safely moved to the crush using custom designed anti-slip raceways lining the internal perimeter of the room.

Large pens for housing smaller livestock

At a glance

48 individual pens (1.8m × 2m each)
Pens further subdividable to provide 96 pens
Designed to house smaller livestock such as pigs, goats, sheep and calves
Weigh scales and metabolism crates are available and can be custom modified

Goat

Within the animal metabolism facility there is a large section housing a total of 48 individual pens. The pens each measure 1.8m × 2m and are designed to house smaller livestock such as pigs, goats, sheep and calves. The 48 pens are situated in 4 rows and can be modified and customised in order to provide solutions to meet the requirements of each researcher.

Each of the four rows of pens is connected to a large flush tank designed to release varying volumes of water which washes away the waste using gravity, as the pens are on a decline from the tanks. This reduces the build-up of ammonia and significantly decreases the amount of time required to clean the area each day. This process can be fully automated and set to a custom programmed frequency to significantly reduce labour input.

Scales and metabolism crates are available and can be custom modified according to the requirements of the experiment.

Feed preparation area

At a glance

2 feed preparation benches
Lockable preparation /store room
Cold room
Sample preparation room
Chemical storage facilities
Two Mettler Toledo weigh scales
Bathroom facilities including showers
Write up area with internet connections

Between the cattle metabolism facility and the smaller livestock holding facility there is a large feed processing and storage area. In addition to 2 large feed preparation benches, there is also a lockable preparation room, a large cold room, and chemical storage facilities. This area has forklift access with a dedicated bulk feed storage silo.

The top half of the side walls consist of insect mesh to provide fresh air, with ventilator fans installed into the roof to increase airflow.

For the comfort of staff and researchers, this facility also has bathroom facilities including showers and refrigerated drinking water supply. Within the building there is also a write up area in an office with multiple desks and internet connections.