Determining respiratory or circulatory health condition in animals for improved management

• US 8,929,971 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2012
• Issued: 01/06/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: J. T. Haynes
• Original Assignee: MWI Veterinary Supply Incorporated
• Inventors: Haynes, John T., Pratt, William C.
• Primary Examiner(s): FERNANDEZ, KATHERINE L
• Application Number:
  US13/620,366
• Publication Number:
  US 20130046170A1
• Time in Patent Office: 844 Days
• Field of Search: 600/437, 600/427, 600/443, 600/529, 600/407, 600/410, 600/411, 119/174, 119/712, 119/840, 119/51.01, 128/922, 128/923
• US Class Current: 600/407
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/508 for non-human patients
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 7/003 Detecting lung or respiration noise
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/08 Detecting organic movements or changes, e.g. tumours, cysts, swellings A61B8/02 - A61B8/06 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0858 involving measuring tissue layers, e.g. skin, interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/12 in body cavities or body tracts, e.g. by using catheters catheters per se A61M25/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4281 characterised by sound-transmitting media or devices for coupling the transducer to the tissue
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4422 related to hygiene or sterilisation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/56 Details of data transmission or power supply
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/565 involving data transmission via a network
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 13/24 Weighing mechanism control arrangements for automatic feed or discharge
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 23/3735 using a digital network
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/40 for processing medical images, e.g. editing
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/922 including image analysis

Abstract

A method and system for managing at least one animal is disclosed. The method can include imaging, such as ultrasound imaging, a lung of a live animal, such as a ruminant or bovine. The imaging can be performed to determine a degree of respiratory damage from past respiratory illness. After imaging, information regarding respiratory damage can be used to select at least one aspect of the treatment, care or disposition of the animal. For example, the information can be used to select the amount or type of feed provided to the animal at a feedlot. The information also can be used to select how long the animal should be housed at the feedlot prior to slaughter. If an animal is diagnosed with a respiratory illness, information about its degree of respiratory damage from past respiratory illness also can be used to select the appropriate medical treatment or lack of treatment.

Claims

1. A method for managing at least one animal, comprising:

entering characteristic data including at least weight for an animal in a computer system, wherein the characteristic data is associated with a unique identifier for the animal in the computer system;

imaging at least one lung of the animal to produce a first image;

determining a degree of respiratory damage in the animal based upon the first image;

assigning the animal a respiratory damage designation corresponding to the animal'"'"'s degree of lung damage that is associated with the unique identifier for the animal;

recording the respiratory damage designation in an electronic database;

determining in the computer system, from at least in part the characteristic data and the respiratory damage designation, a projected target condition for the animal;

determining for the animal an estimated time required to reach the projected target condition, from at least in part the projected target condition and feed ration information;

selecting the animal for a group based at least in part on the estimated time required to reach the projected condition;

feeding the animal with the group in a feed pen for a feeding period;

administering a first feed additive to the group by dispensing the first feed additive into a first feed ration by a computerized feed additive delivery system;

comparing the first image to at least one other lung image to determine whether the first image indicates active or past disease; and

selecting at least one additional aspect of treatment, care, and/or disposition of the animal based at least in part on whether the first image indicates active or past disease.

2. The method according to claim 1 where comparing the first image to at least one other lung image comprises comparing grayscale intensity of the image to grayscale intensity of a plurality of images from other animals.

3. The method according to claim 1 where determining whether the first image indicates active or past disease comprises evaluating scarring, fibrosis, necrosis, other lung lesions caused by past respiratory illness, or combinations thereof.

4. The method according to claim 1 where selecting at least one additional aspect of the care, treatment, or disposition of the animal comprises determining whether to treat the animal for a respiratory illness diagnosed after assigning the respiratory damage designation.

5. The method according to claim 4 where determining whether to treat the animal comprises determining whether to administer a drug to the animal, the method further comprising:

administering the drug to the animal; and

adjusting the estimated time required to reach the projected condition based upon a drug withdrawal period for the drug prior to selecting the animal for a group.

6. The method according to claim 1 where selecting at least one additional aspect of treatment, care or disposition of the animal comprises selecting how long the animal should remain at the feedlot prior to slaughter.

7. The method according to claim 6 where the animal is sent to slaughter without spending any time at the feedlot.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising determining an estimated time to reach a target condition for the group in the feed pen based at least in part on feed ration information, a projected feed intake, a projected gain, production value, and production costs.

9. The method according to claim 1 where the computerized feed additive delivery system is operable for delivering feed additives into animal feed rations on a customized basis.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising determining for the animal a projected feed intake and a projected gain from at least in part the characteristic data, the projected target condition, and feed ration information.

11. The method according to claim 1, where the computer system comprises a feedlot business system (FBS) computer capable of performing feedlot accounting functions and passing data back and forth between the FBS computer and one or more various computers used in the computer system, the method further comprising:

calculating total feed consumption for all animals in the group;

calculating a pro rata share for each animal in the group;

comparing the total feed consumption to an actual amount fed to the animals in the group;

allocating the actual amount fed to the group on a pro rata basis to each animal in the group to provide a pro rata feed allocation; and

storing the pro rata feed allocation in the FBS computer.

12. The method according to claim 1, further comprising determining a revised estimated time to reach the projected target condition for the animal based at least in part on actual feed intake, a projected gain, a production value, production costs, and combinations thereof.

13. The method according to claim 1, further comprising dispensing the first feed additive at a determined optimum time prior to shipment of the group from the feedlot for determining optimum economic value for the group.

14. The method according to claim 13 where determining the optimum economic value includes projecting marketing dates of animals, utilizing projected production costs of animals compared to projected market value of such animals, and using that data to select individual animals or groups of animals for shipment to slaughter on a date to substantially maximize economic return of the selected individual animal or group.

15. The method according to claim 1, further comprising dispensing the first feed additive into the first feed ration at a time prior to an estimated time required to reach a projected condition of the group to facilitate substantially optimizing an economic value of the group.

16. The method according to claim 1, further comprising dispensing a subsequent feed additive into a subsequent feed ration by the computerized feed additive delivery system, wherein the first feed additive and the subsequent feed additive are different.

17. The method according to claim 16 where at least one of the first feed additive and the subsequent feed additive is a growth promotant.

18. The method according to claim 16, further comprising discontinuing dispensing at least one of the first feed additive or the subsequent feed additive to provide a withdrawal period for the discontinued feed additive.

19. The method according to claim 1, further comprising discontinuing dispensing the first feed additive into the first feed ration for the group to provide a withdrawal period for the feed additive.

20. The method according to claim 1 where the first feed additive is a growth promotant.

21. The method according to claim 20 where the growth promotant is an ionophore.

22. The method according to claim 1, further comprising using the computerized feed additive delivery system to dispense multiple feed additives into the first feed ration for administering the multiple feed additives to the group during the feeding period.

23. The method of claim 1, further comprising selecting animals from the group for further processing or management, wherein selecting animals for further processing or management includes one or more of the following:

selecting a time to administer a feed additive growth promotant to the animals;

selecting a growth promotant for administering to an individual animal at a processing location;

selecting a feed additive for feeding to the animals;

selecting a feed ration for feeding to the animals;

selecting a health treatment for administering to an individual animal at a processing location;

selecting a health feed additive for feeding to the animals;

selecting a product for feeding to the animals for improving the quality grading and value of the beef from the animals;

selecting a product for administering to an individual animal at a processing location for improving the quality grading and value of the beef from the individual animal;

selecting animals for shipment to slaughter when a drug withdrawal period has expired for a drug requiring a withdrawal period;

selecting animals for health condition treatment or management; and

selecting and removing animals for shipment to slaughter utilizing at least in part an estimated time required to reach an optimum economic value of the animals.