New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, New Brunswick

Transcription

1 EQUINE METABOLISM STALL AND COLLECTION HARNESS 1 GEORGE W. VANDER NooT, PAUL V. FONNESBECK ANn RALPH K. LYDMAN 2 New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, New Brunswick ETABOLISM harnesses for horses as M described by Lindsay et al. (1926), Howell (1930), and Grandier (1960), were designed for use without the benefit of a metabolism stall and required almost constant attention for proper functioning. The design and construction of metabolism equipment for individual quantitative collection of feces and urine was necessary for use in equine nutritional studies. The equine metabolism stall, harness, and collection units described herein allow for separate collections of feces and urine in which contamination is eliminated, the amount of volatile loss of urine is reduced, and the needed attention for proper functioning is minimized. The stall accommodates lightlegged horses of various sizes and weights. The harness, to which the horse can be acclimated in 1 day, is employed for the attachment of the collection units. The urine and feces collection units are designed specifically for use with geldings. Design of Unit Stall. The approximate size of the metabolism stall (figure 1) is 5 ft. x 9 ft. with a 5-in. x 5-in. post at each corner. The concrete floor is laid with a pitch (~-inch per foot) from front to rear with herringbone grooving to facilitate drainage to the main drain in the rear alleyway. The concrete is overlaid with 2-inch oak planking. The partitions between stalls (figure 1 and figure 2, E) consist of 2-in. x 6-in. fir planks mounted alternately with 2-inch spacer blocks to allow for air circulation. The planks and spacers are inserted in 2-inch U channels which are mounted on facing sides of the corner posts. A 3-ft. x 4-ft. aluminum sheet (figure 2, C) is fastened to the top front side of each partition to prevent destruction of the planking by the horse and to prevent horses in adjoining stalls from seeing each other. x Paper of the Journal Series. New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, Rutgers--The State University, Department of Animal Sciences, New Brunswick, N. J. 2 The authors wish to express appreciation to the Agricultural Engineering Department for preparation of drawings for the metabolism unit. 691 Within the stall a removable partition (figure 1 and figure 2, B) confines the horse during the collection period in a standing position only to an area approximately 3 ft. wide, but still allows the horse free access to the manger and watering device. To install this removable partition (a 3~-inch, 4-ft. x 8-ft. plywood sheet), a 2-in. x 4-in. post is bolted to the ceiling and fastened to a 3~-inch right-angle cleat permanently anchored to the rear floor of the stall. The partition is then slipped into a ~-inch slot in the manger and bolted to the 2-in. x 4-in. post. Approximately 18 inches from the floor and halfway down its length, a 1-inch hole is drilled in the partition to allow the drain hose to pass from the urinary funnel to the collection bottle. To prevent the horse from backing out of the stall or upsetting the feces collection container, two boards (2-in. x 6-in. fir planking) are mounted (figure 1, end view) in U channels, at the rear of the stall about 12 inches from the floor. Manger. The manger (figures 3 and 4), an independent unit of the stall, is mounted on 2-inch casters which travel (backward and forward) on rails in the floor. To anchor the manger in a desired position, 3-inch carriage bolts are inserted (from inside the manger) through a slotted piece of angle iron mounted approximately 36 inches from the floor on the partition between stalls. This piece of angle iron is 2 in. x 3 in., approximately 2 ft. 8 in. long, and slotted to within 1 inch of each end; when mounted, the slotted portion faces the manger. One-inch metal straps are mounted over the face of the manger in the form of an H to keep the amount of feed wasted by the horse to a minimum. The automatic waterer is permanently mounted on a platform provided in the manger assembly and is connected to the water main by means of a flexible hose. A standard water meter (not illustrated) may be inserted between the water main and flexible hose to measure water consumption. A plywood sliding door on the front side of the manger facilitates the cleaning of the manger floor. All wood exposed to the horse is covered with metal flashing to prevent destruction.

2 692 VANDER NOOT ET AL. OVERHEAD BEAM -L ANGLE IRON BRACE ~ 1'-8" 2" 9" g 5'--6" REMOVABLE 2"X 4" ~ ~ ~ ~ CORNERPOST~ MANGER I,..-.MANGER PARTITION SUPPORTS END RETAINING PLANKS I I2" "U" CHANNEL GUTTER~, ~ l~ ~MANGER ROLLER IN TRACK LATERAL FLOOR SUPPORT-,~, : ~ : ;~... ~....,,p.:,..,..:.=:...,...,,~-.::...:~... ~... C~OONCRETEFLOOR ~OAK PLANK FLOOR END VIEW REMOVABLE 7 --"--, -URINE PARTITION ~'?'-~.DRAIN '... ' ""~,, HOSE -WATER VALVE ~,"-'",AD JUSTABLE :LENG"TH l H WATER HOSE MANGER --f'~ -FECES CONTAINER FEED RETAINING BARS j MANGER TOP ~ LWOOD TRACK FOR METAL FLASHING MANGER ROLLERS PLAN VIEW Figure I. Plan view of metabolism stall showing overall dimensions and rear end view.

3 EQUINE METABOLISM STALL 693 Figure 2. Metabolism stall showing feces chute (A), removable partition (B), aluminum sheet (C), urine collection bottle (D) and partition between stalls (E). Harness. The harness is constructed of canvas cotton webbing secured at all fixed positions with tubular rivets and at all movable positions with adjustable slides or snaps (figures 5 and 6). Heavy-duty webbing was used for girth, back and chest straps (Type II, l ~ - i n c h width), and light-duty webbing for the neck, shoulder, diagonal and rump straps (Type I, l ~ - i n c h width) and side straps (Type I, 1-inch width). Adjustable slides, snaps, rings, and dees were selected to conform to the dimensions of the webbing.

4 694 VANDER NOOT E T AL. Figure 3. Manger showing general construction, front view, with horse in position. Collection Units. The principle of Howell (1930) was adapted to fabricate the urine collection funnel from fabric-reinforced sheet rubber with epoxy resin glue. The funnel is suspended and held open by means of three 1-inch dees secured to the sheet rubber by rubber loops (figures 5 and 6). The funnel drains through a ~ - i n c h plastic hose (5 ft. long) to a polyethylene collection bottle (figure 2). The feces collection unit consists of an apron of vinyl-coated nylon sheeting attached to the rump straps of the harness, which acts as a chute to the heavy-duty galvanized container. This chute can be tied into a bag while the horse is exercised during collection periods.

5 E Q U I N E METABOLISM STALL 695 CROSS SECTION PARTITION ~NGER PnNEL8 CROSS SECTION PARTITION POST Figure 4. Manger, showing detajils of construction and mounting. Figure 5. Harness and collection units in position on horse.

6 696 VANDER NOOT ET AL. Neck S l r ~ ~ ~ ~,, 2" Ring Back Strap 1~" D~e Left Diagonal ~. Figure 6. Details of harness and collection units. Summary A metabolism stall, harness, and collection units by which a quantitative separate collection of feces and urine of horses can be made without contamination, with a reduction in volatile losses of urine, and with a minimum of attention is described and illustrated. Literature Cited Grandier, J. C. C Harness for supporting a urine collection bag. Can. Vet. J. 1:543. Howell, C.E Metabolism harness for horses. Proc. Am. Soc. An. Prod. D Lindsey, J. B., C. T. Beals and.[. G. Archibald The digestibility and energy values of feeds for horses. J. Agr. Res. 32:569.