1. A hog farrowing box for use within a farrowing building in cold environments, the farrowing box comprising:
a front, back and sides attached together defining an inner chamber, an open top and a bottom;
said inner chamber being divided into a creep area and a nest area;
said nest area having at least one movable nest area rod, moveable between a nesting position and a nursing position;
the front of said farrowing box having an entrance to permit free ingress and egress of a female hog and restrain piglets, said entrance having a roller positioned to prevent bruising on the female hog’s large pre-farrowing underline and udder.
2. The farrowing box of claim 1 further comprising a heat system wherein said heat system comprises two heat lamps.
3. The farrowing box of claim 2 wherein heat from said heat system is located opposite the entrance to permit the female hog to lay facing the opening and give birth to the piglets near the heat system.
4. The farrowing box of claim 2 wherein said heat lamps are separated by a solid plywood barrier from the female hog and piglets.
5. The farrowing box of claim 4 wherein said plywood barrier is sloped downward from the back of said farrowing box to the front of said creep area.
6. The farrowing box of claim 5 wherein said plywood barrier contains holes through which to run wiring to said heat lamps.
7. The farrowing box of claim 2 wherein wire mesh is placed horizontally under said heat lamps from the back of said farrowing box to the front of said creep area.
8. The farrowing box of claim 7 wherein the wire mesh is \xbc inch wire mesh.
9. The farrowing box of claim 2 wherein said heat system maintains the temperature in said creep area from 70\u201390\xb0 F. and in said nest area from 50\u201370\xb0 F.
10. The farrowing box of claim 9 wherein said heat system is controlled by a thermostat.
11. The farrowing box of claim 1 wherein the entrance has a removable door to permit free ingress and egress of piglets to defecate, urinate, and move to the feed and water stations after the piglets are approximately 14 days old.
12. The farrowing box of claim 1 further comprising bedding wherein said bedding is comprised of first, second, and third layered materials.
13. The farrowing box of claim 12 wherein said second layer is shell and bone builder dry limestone adapted to insulate the female hog and piglets from the cold and keep said inner chamber dry.
14. The farrowing box of claim 13 wherein said second layer is an approximately 4 inch layer.
15. The farrowing box of claim 12 is Ag Lime #3 placed on the ground to act as a disinfectant and barrier to pathogens on the floor.
16. The farrowing box of claim 15 wherein said first layer is an approximately \xbd inch layer.
17. The farrowing box of claim 16 wherein said first layer is placed under a 4 inch layer of said second layer.
18. The farrowing box of claim 12 wherein said third layer is stem straw placed within said inner chamber to permit the female hogs to build a nest within a center location of the farrowing box.
19. The farrowing box of claim 18 wherein said third layer is placed said second layer.
20. The farrowing box of claim 1 wherein the farrowing box further comprises anti-crushing boards and a creep area placed away from the nest in the center location to prevent the female hog from crushing the piglets.
21. The farrowing box of claim 1 wherein the farrowing box provides approximately 42 square feet per female hog and piglets.
22. The farrowing box of claim 1 wherein said rods in said nest area extend from each side of the entrance to the back, said rods placed close enough to the bottom to permit the female hog to straddle said rods and turn around, said rods positioned to prevent two female hogs from lying within said inner chamber together.
23. The farrowing box of claim 1 further comprising insulation covering the open top wherein said insulation is a styrofoam panel heat loss barrier.
24. The farrowing box of claim 23 further comprising a clear plastic vapor barrier.
25. The farrowing box of claim 21 wherein the vapor barrier is approximately 6 ml plastic.
26. The farrowing box of claim 1 further comprising an insulative gate covering the entrance.
27. The farrowing box of claim 26 wherein the insulative gate is carpeting.
28. The farrowing box of claim 26 wherein said insulative gate is overlapping plastic sections.
29. The farrowing box of claim 1 further comprising a center brace adapted to be gripped by a front end loader and lifted.
30. A hog farrowing box comprising:
a front, back and sides attached together defining an inner nesting chamber;
rods extending from the front to the back, the rods placed close enough to the bottom to permit the female hog to straddle the rods and turn around, the rods positioned to prevent two female hogs from lying within the inner chamber together.
31. The hog farrowing box of claim 30 further comprising an entrance on the front to permit free ingress and egress of a female hog and restrain piglets.
32. The hog farrowing box of claim 31 further comprising a door at the entrance that can be removed to permit free ingress and egress of the piglets.
33. The hog farrowing box of claim 31 further comprising a roller positioned at the entrance to prevent bruising on the female hog’s large pre-farrowing underline and udder.
34. The farrowing box of claim 30 wherein the rods are moveable between a nesting position where the rods are positioned wide to not obstruct the female hog from preparing a nest and a nursing position to prevent two female hogs from lying within the inner chamber together.
35. A hog farrowing box comprising:
a front, back and sides attached together defining an inner nesting chamber;
an entrance on the front to permit free ingress and egress of a female hog and restrain piglets;
a roller positioned at the entrance to prevent bruising on the female hog’s large pre-farrowing underline and udder.
36. The hog farrowing box of claim 35 further comprising a door at the entrance that can be removed to permit free ingress and egress of the piglets.
37. The hog farrowing box of claim 35 further comprising rods extending from the front to the back, the rods placed close enough to the bottom to permit the female hog to straddle the rods and turn around, the rods positioned to prevent two female hogs from lying within the inner chamber together.
38. The hog farrowing box of claim 37 wherein the said rods are moveable between a nesting position where the said rods are positioned wide to not obstruct the female hog from preparing a nest and a nursing position to prevent two female hogs from lying within the said inner chamber together.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A method of monitoring electrical activity of a heart, comprising:
receiving a signal that represents electrical activity within a heart of a patient via electrodes;
processing the signal to monitor a characteristic of P-waves within the signal; and
detecting degradation of an atrial myocardium of the heart based on the characteristic.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein processing the signal to monitor a characteristic comprises processing the signal to monitor one of amplitudes of the P-waves, variabilities of amplitudes of the P-waves, and dispersions of widths of the P-waves.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein processing the signal to monitor a characteristic comprises:
determining a first average value of the characteristic for a first subset of P-waves and a second average value of the characteristic for a second subset of the P-waves; and
comparing the first and second average values, wherein detecting degradation of an atrial myocardium comprises detecting degradation of the atrial myocardium based on the comparison.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein comparing the first and second average values comprises:
determining a percent change from the first average value to the second average value; and
comparing the percent change to a threshold value.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein processing the signal to monitor a characteristic comprises:
measuring a plurality of features of each of the P-waves; and
comparing measured values for the features of each of the P-waves to a template stored in a memory, wherein detecting degradation of an atrial myocardium comprises detecting degradation of the atrial myocardium based on the comparison.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting degradation of an atrial myocardium comprises one of detecting atrial ischemia based on the characteristic, identifying impending angina based on the characteristic, and identifying a risk of atrial fibrillation prior to an occurrence of atrial fibrillation based on the characteristic.
7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
storing an indication of the detection within a memory; and
providing the indication to a user via a programming device upon interrogation by the programming device.
8. The method of claim 1, further comprising activating an alarm based on the detection.
9. The method of claim 1, further comprising controlling delivery of therapy to the patient based on the detection.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein controlling delivery of therapy comprises one of switching from an atrial-tracking pacing mode to a VVI pacing mode based on the detection, decreasing a maximum tracking rate for an atrial-tracking pacing mode based on the detection, increasing aggressiveness of rate responsive atrial pacing based on the detection, controlling delivery of a drug by a drug delivery device based on the identification, and controlling delivery of neurostimulation based on the identification.
11. An implantable medical device comprising:
electrodes to detect a signal that represents electrical activity within a heart of the patient; and
a processor to monitor a characteristic of P-waves within the signal, and detect degradation of an atrial myocardium of the heart based on the characteristic.
12. The device of claim 11, wherein the processor monitors one of amplitudes of the P-waves, variabilities of amplitudes of the P-waves, and dispersions of widths of the P-waves.
13. The device of claim 11, wherein the processor determines a first average value of the characteristic for a first subset of P-waves and a second average value of a second subset of the P-waves, compares the first and second average values, and detects degradation of the atrial myocardium based on the comparison.
14. The device of claim 13, wherein the processor determines a percent change from the first average value to the second average value, and compares the percent change to a threshold value.
15. The device of claim 11, wherein the processor measures a plurality of features of each of the P-waves, compares measured values for the features of each of the P-waves to a template stored in a memory, and detects degradation of the atrial myocardium based on the comparison.
16. The device of claim 11, wherein the processor detects one of atrial ischemia based on the characteristic, impending angina based on the characteristic, and a risk of atrial fibrillation prior to an occurrence of atrial fibrillation based on the characteristic.
17. The device of claim 11, further comprising:
a memory; and
a telemetry circuit, wherein the processor stores an indication of the detection of the detection within the memory, and provides the indication to a user via the telemetry circuit and a programming device upon interrogation by the programming device.
18. The device of claim 11, further comprising an alarm, wherein the processor activates the alarm based on the detection.
19. The device of claim 11, wherein the processor performs one of controlling delivery of therapy to the patient based on the detected degradation, controlling delivery of pacing pulses to a ventricle of the heart and switching from an atrial-tracking pacing mode to a VVI pacing mode based on the detected degradation, controlling delivery of pacing pulses to a ventricle of the heart and decreases a maximum tracking rate for an atrial-tracking pacing mode based on the detected degradation, controlling delivery of pacing pulses to an atrium of the heart and increasing aggressiveness of rate responsive atrial pacing based on the detected degradation, controlling delivery of a drug by a drug delivery device based on the detected degradation, and controlling delivery of neurostimulation based on the detected degradation.
20. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that cause a programmable processor to:
monitor a characteristic of P-waves within a signal that represents electrical activity within a heart of a patient; and
detect degradation of an atrial myocardium based on the characteristic.
21. The computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the instructions that cause a programmable processor to monitor a characteristic comprise instructions that cause a programmable processor to monitor one of amplitudes of the P-waves, variabilities of amplitudes of the P-waves, and dispersions of widths of the P-waves.
22. The computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the instructions that cause a programmable processor to monitor a characteristic comprise instructions that cause a programmable processor to:
determine a first average value of the characteristic for a first subset of P-waves and a second average value of a second subset of the P-waves; and
compare the first and second average values, and
wherein the instructions that cause a programmable processor to detect degradation of the atrial myocardium comprise instructions that cause a programmable processor to detect degradation of the atrial myocardium based on the comparison.
23. The computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the instructions that cause a programmable processor to monitor a characteristic comprise instructions that cause a programmable processor to:
measure a plurality of features of each of the P-waves; and
compare measured values for the features of each of the P-waves to a template stored in a memory, and
wherein the instructions that cause a programmable processor to detect degradation of the atrial myocardium comprise instructions that cause a programmable processor to detect degradation of the atrial myocardium based on the comparison.
24. The computer-readable medium of claim 20, wherein the instructions that cause a programmable processor to detect degradation of an atrial myocardium comprise one of instructions that cause a programmable processor to detect atrial ischemia based on the characteristic, instructions that cause a programmable processor to identify an increased probability of an occurrence of angina based on the characteristic, and instructions that cause a programmable processor to identify a risk of atrial fibrillation prior to an occurrence of atrial fibrillation based on the characteristic.
25. The computer-readable medium of claim 20, further comprising instructions that cause a programmable processor to control delivery of therapy to the patient based on the detection.
26. The computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein the instructions that cause a programmable processor to control delivery of therapy comprise one of instructions that cause a programmable processor to switch from an atrial-tracking pacing mode to a VVI pacing mode based on the detection, instructions that cause a programmable processor to decrease a maximum tracking rate for atrial-tracking pacing mode based on the detection, instructions that cause a programmable processor to increase aggressiveness of rate responsive atrial pacing based on the detection, instructions that cause a programmable processor to control delivery of a drug by a drug delivery device based on the detection, and instructions that cause a programmable processor to control delivery of neurostimulation based on the detection.
27. An implantable medical device system comprising:
a therapy delivery device to deliver a therapy to a patient; and
a monitoring device to monitor a characteristic of P-waves within a signal that represents electrical activity within a heart of the patient, detect degradation of an atrial myocardium of the heart based on the characteristic, and control delivery of therapy by the therapy delivery device based on the detection.
28. The system of claim 27, wherein the therapy delivery device is a drug delivery device, and the monitoring device controls delivery of a drug by the drug delivery device based on the detection.
29. The system of claim 28, wherein the therapy delivery device is a neurostimulator, and the monitoring device controls delivery of neurostimulation by the neurostimulator based on the detection.
30. A method of monitoring electrical activity of a heart, comprising:
receiving a signal that represents electrical activity within a heart of a patient via electrodes implanted within the patient;
processing the signal to monitor a characteristic of P-waves within the signal; and
identifying a risk of atrial fibrillation prior to an occurrence of atrial fibrillation based on the characteristic.
31. The method of claim 30, wherein processing the signal to monitor a characteristic comprises processing the signal to monitor one of amplitudes of the P-waves, processing the signal to monitor variabilities of amplitudes of the P-waves, and processing the signal to monitor dispersions of widths of the P-waves.
32. The method of claim 30, wherein processing the signal to monitor a characteristic comprises:
determining a first average value of the characteristic for a first subset of P-waves and a second average value of the characteristic for a second subset of the P-waves; and
comparing the first and second average values, wherein identifying a risk of atrial fibrillation comprises identifying a risk of atrial fibrillation based on the comparison.
33. The method of claim 30, wherein processing the signal to monitor a characteristic comprises:
measuring a plurality of features of each of the P-waves; and
comparing measured values for the features of each of the P-waves to a template stored in a memory, wherein identifying a risk of atrial fibrillation comprises identifying a risk of atrial fibrillation based on the comparison.
34. The method of claim 30, further comprising:
storing an indication of the identification within a memory; and
providing the indication to a user via a programming device upon interrogation by the programming device.
35. The method of claim 30, further comprising activating an alarm based on the identification.
36. The method of claim 30, further comprising controlling delivery of therapy to the patient based on the identification.
37. The method of claim 36, wherein controlling delivery of therapy comprises one of switching from an atrial-tracking pacing mode to a VVI pacing mode based on the identified risk, increasing aggressiveness of rate responsive atrial pacing based on the identified risk, and controlling delivery of a drug by a drug delivery device based on the identification.