Principles of Health Maintenance

Abstract

3“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is a familiar phrase that describes one approach to the culture of food animal resources. Health maintenance actually refers to a concept in which animals are reared under conditions that optimize growth rate, feed conversion efficiency, reproduction, and survival while minimizing problems related to infectious, nutritional, and environmental diseases, all within an economical context. Therefore, “;health maintenance” encompasses the entire production management plan for food animals, whether they be swine, cattle, poultry, or fish, either in the public (governmental) or private sector.