Conforto térmico em galpão cunícula em dias com e sem precipitação

Abstract

The concern about animal welfare and thermal comfort has been increasing every year. We should build facilities that provide environmental conditions that keep animals in comfort. The Temperature and Humidity Index (THI) is used to characterize the microclimate where the animals are raised, evaluating their thermal comfort. This study aimed to analyze the spatial distribution of THI in a rabbit shed comparing days with and without rain. The experiment was conducted in a rabbit house in the Department of Animal Science of the Federal University of Lavras, during two days during the summer. The rabbit house has dimensions of 5.80 x 7.70m and 3.40m of right foot, orientation East / West, roof with two waters and lantern. Three dry bulb temperature (tdb, oC), relative humidity (RH,%), and dew point temperature (tdp, oC) were collected at 6, 12, and 18 hours at 48 points in a grid of 1m². Then the THI was calculated for each sampling points in order to allow the use of geostatistics (semivariogram and interpolation by Kirgagem). So, it was possible to characterize the spatial variability of the THI and identify the spatial distribution inside the shed and to observe that during the day without rain, the animals were not in the thermal comfort.