Assessing attitudes toward farm animal welfare: A national survey of animal science faculty members

Posted in: Welfare by admin on January 1, 2004 | No Comments

In order to assess the attitudes about farm animal welfare, a survey was developed and given to animal science faculty members in the United States. The survey was initially developed and tested using 34 faculty members from a Midwestern public university. The questionnaire was then sent to animal science faculty across the United States. The response rate was 45 % with 446 respondents. The following percentage of respondents agreed that the most popular methods of raising livestock provide adequate levels of animal welfare: layer birds (51%), meat birds (58%), swine (66%), dairy (84%), sheep (86%), and beef (87%). More than 90% of respondents agreed with general principles of animal welfare and that unnecessary fear and distress should be avoided. However, only 32% of the respondents were concerned with the distress that some routine husbandry procedures cause (e.g., castration without anesthetic). Level of concern was assessed with regards to various industry practices/outcomes. For example, 83% of respondents are concerned about flooring in intensive housing and agreed that it affects lameness; whereas only 16% were concerned about early weaning pigs. Gender and political ideology were significantly related to attitudes scores. Women with more liberal political views were more concerned about animal welfare. With more information about attitudes towards farm animal welfare from various stakeholders (animal scientists, veterinarians, producers and consumers), animal welfare scientists will gain insight into areas where more research is required and where gaps exist in accessibility of knowledge.

The impact of applied ethologists and the International Society for Applied Ethology in improving animal welfare

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

Understanding and improving animal welfare has been a focus for applied ethologists since the International Society for Applied Ethology (ISAE) was founded 35 years ago. Even though there have been changes in the living conditions for farm and laboratory animals, the rate of progress seems slow. Advances in animal welfare seem to be more likely if the issues are of public concern, if there are economic advantages, and when networks exist to aid in the transfer of information and to organize relationships between commercial and legislative sectors. The development of animal welfare science and animal ethics as academic disciplines has also been a slow process. Applied ethologists have been leaders in this pursuit. The subjective experiences of animals have been the focus of both applied and fundamental research. The advancement of animal welfare science needs to be a collaborative approach. However, the advancement of animal welfare science needs to go beyond the applied ethologists and become more of a collaborative approach. The ISAE is composed of experts in animal behaviour. Members of the society provide advice on animal welfare issues for policy makers, retailers, commodity groups, etc. The membership of the ISAE is expanding and becoming more diverse, which provides great opportunities for more influence on animal welfare issues. One of the society’s goals should be to increase its profile and develop materials and regionally based pools of experts that are more available to those in need. The development of scientific reports that have international input could also aid in debates about animal welfare. Members of the ISAE are likely to continue contributing to animal welfare science research.

Annual Meeting Keynote Address: Animal agriculture and emerging social ethics for animals

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

Within the past 30 years, the treatment of animals in various areas of human use has emerged as a new social ethical issue. Society’s moral concern has outgrown the traditional ethic of animal cruelty that began in biblical times and is law in civilized societies. There are five main factors, which have caused the emergence of this new social concern. Most importantly, is the emergence of industrial agriculture, which has replaced husbandry-based agriculture. The rise of industrial agriculture has threatened the contract between humans and animals and has resulted in an increase in animal suffering. The existing laws against animal cruelty do not cover the routine suffering that food animals must endure. Therefore, in order to express social concerns regarding animals, a new ethic for animals was required. The ethic for humans has been used as an example for the development of the ethic for animals. The development of laws that ensure the rights of animals has surfaced as a possible vehicle for reform. Otherwise, traditional methods of animal husbandry should return in order to correct the problems created by industrialization.

Coping capacity of dairy cows during the change from conventional to automatic milking.

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

In a conventional milking system, two to three times a day, cows are driven into the milking parlor. However, dairy barns are now converting to an automatic milking system (AMS), which allows the cows to voluntarily enter the parlor when they so choose to. The aim of this study was to determine the physiological impact on cows when switching from a conventional to an automatic milking system. The variables recorded were milk composition and yield, heart rate, cortisol (via feces). The first time cows entered the AMS, but were not milked, their heart rate rose approximately 35 beats per minute more than levels recorded in the conventional milking parlor. The first milking was performed on the eighth visit to the AMS and by this time the heart rate had returned to levels seen in the conventional milking parlor. There was a decrease in milk yield during the transition. Milk yields dropped between 8 to 96% (average of 68%) of yields from the previous milking in the conventional parlor. The concentration of cortisol metabolites in the feces remained unchanged during the transition between the two systems. To test the relationship between how the cow was coping and the activity level of the adrenal cortex, and ACTH challenge was performed. Cows that had higher cortisol levels, which means the adrenal cortex is more active, were the cows that had during the first milking in the AMS had lower heart rate elevations, and whose milk yield were only minimally depressed. These results illustrate that there is a wide variation in how the cows copes with the transition between a conventional to an automatic milking system.

Health and production measures for smallholder pig production in Kikuyu Division, central Kenya

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

Breeding for improved welfare in pigs: a conceptual framework and its use in practice.

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

There is increasing concern about welfare of farm animals, both in society, in livestock production and in animal science. Welfare of animals can be defined as the kind of feelings the environmental conditions bring about in the animals. These feelings depend on the needs of the animals and their degree of satisfaction. Needs of animals, and so their welfare, are partly genetically determined. Therefore, welfare can be changed by breeding. The aim of this study was to investigate how welfare of pigs under modern intensive farm conditions can be improved by genetic selection, with emphasis on the precise definition of the breeding goal and determination of the animal characteristics on which selection can be based in practice. The existing thermoregulation model was used to develop a conceptual framework that describes welfare of growing pigs and production sows with respect to each of their needs as a curvilinear function of the respective environmental conditions. The framework assumes that welfare in terms of feelings is reflected by the physiological and behavioural mechanisms the pig has to activate in order to cope with various environmental conditions it encounters. Based on those physiological and behavioural responses to changing conditions, five welfare zones can be distinguished for each need. Breeding goals for welfare were defined in terms of the transition points between these welfare zones, such that future pigs would better cope with unfavourable or unfamiliar farming conditions, therewith quickening the domestication process, to some extent. However, as long as genetic parameters for these transition points are not available, more common welfare-related characteristics like temperament, stress resistance and robustness can be included in the breeding goal, as an alternative.For selection among potential breeding candidates, transition points between welfare zones can be determined in sib tests, thereby also collecting the data for estimating genetic parameters. As a cheaper alternative, breeding candidates could be tested under hard conditions and selected on their coping success. In addition, various behavioural tests and operant conditioning tests (to test a pig’s motivation to change its actual environment) can be carried out. Under common conditions on the farm, problems associated with coping (like incidences of diseases, injuries and stereotypies) and/or other relevant traits (e.g. saliva cortisol, longevity and even production traits) should be recorded routinely and used as selection index information. Selection for improved welfare should lead to more tolerant pigs that are better able to cope with possible unfavourable farm conditions by a more efficient use of the adaptation mechanisms they already possess. It should, however, not result in lowering husbandry standards. More research is needed to assess genetic correlations among various welfare aspects and with production traits to prevent undesired side effects in future populations of pigs.

Effects of feeding level and the presence of a foraging substrate on the behaviour and stress physiological response of individually housed gilts.

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

It is thought that restricting feed intake in sows impairs welfare, but it is done to prevent excessive weight gains and to avoid reduced reproductive performance. This study combined the effects of feeding level with the presence of a foraging substrate and examined the gilts’ behavioural and physiological responses. Ninety-six individually housed gilts were assigned to one of four treatments: no substrate/restricted-feeding, no substrate/unrestricted-feeding, substrate/restricted-feeding and substrate/unrestricted-feeding. The substrate provided was wood chips. To measure feed intake, the amount of feed given to the unrestricted feeding treatments was measured. Body weights were measured at the beginning and end of the experiment to determine weight gains. At the same time, the gilts backfat thickness was measured using ultrasound. From week 8 to 12, observations were conducted to determine postures, chewing behaviours, pen and floor manipulations. Saliva samples were taken over a 24 h period during week 11. Urine samples were collected during weeks 2, 7 and 12 for analysis of adrenaline, noradrenaline and creatinine levels. Unrestricted-fed gilts had a higher feed intake, which led to higher body weight and larger increases in backfat thickness. Unrestricted-fed gilts had higher feed intake levels when a foraging substrate was provided. Unrestricted-fed gilts stood less and exhibited fewer oral behaviours. Gilts that were provided with a foraging substrate manipulated the floor twice as much than gilts without substrate. Gilts without substrate were observed to manipulate the pen and perform oral behaviour more frequently than those gilts with substrate. Feeding level and substrate provision did not affect adrenaline levels because the gilts were not exposed to any acute stressors. Cortisol and noradrenaline levels were lower in sow provided a foraging substrate. The authors concluded that unrestricted feeding is more effective in improving welfare, but in terms of stress, providing a foraging substrate may also improve welfare.

Behavioural responses of dairy cows toward novel stimuli presented in the home environment.

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

This study examined the behavioural responses of dairy cows toward novel stimuli presented in the home environment with minimal situational novelty. The study also investigated whether any consistency could be found across responses toward different novel stimuli. Four different stimuli were presented each day in a balanced order: usual food (30min provision of 8kg total mixed ration), novel food (30min provision of 5kg of carrots), novel object (30min exposure to a white plastic container) and an unfamiliar person (5min exposure to person dressed in hooded white overalls). Novel food induced increased duration and frequency of sniffing, increased self-grooming, and longer durations of standing compared with the novel object. A novel person induced a higher frequency of sniffing than a novel object. Such results suggest that diary cows, when exposed to novel food or people compared with a novel object, show increased behavioural responses characterized by increased exploration, arousal and behavioural conflict. A correlation analysis carried out on the responses to different novel stimuli showed that correlations were low and non-significant. Therefore, no evidence for consistent inter-test responses across the novel stimuli presented in the home environment was found.

The effects of blindfolding on behaviour and heart rate in beef cattle during restraint.

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

In the first experiment, beef heifers were either blindfolded or not (control) during restraint in a novel restraint facility. Two people (on each side of the animal) touched on the ears, neck, sides and rump of each animal during restraint. Heifers had the same heart rate at the end of the treatment. However, heart rate tended to decrease more for blindfolded heifers during restraint than for those who were not blindfolded. Based on the results from electronic strain gauges that were attached to the head gate, the blindfolded heifers struggled less than the control animals. Heart rate and exertion forces decreased over four days of testing for both treatment groups. In a second experiment, the reactions beef calves that were restrained on a calf tilt table while either blindfolded or not (control), were recorded. To simulate ear tagging and vaccination, one person touched the calf’s ear, and another person touched the neck. Blindfolded calves moved less than the control calves. The number of vocalizations did not differ between treatments. The authors suggest that blindfolding may be worthwhile during routine procedures, as the blindfolded cattle struggled less and tended to have lower heart rates.

Evaluation of on-farm methods for testing the human-animal relationship in dairy herds with cubicle loose housing systems – test-retest and inter-observer reliability and consistency to familiarity of test person.

Posted in: Welfare by admin on | No Comments

A variety of on-farm tests for the assessment of the human-animal relationship were evaluated. At the herd level, cows were tested in a voluntary animal approach (VAA) test, where the number of cows and their latencies to interact with a stationary human was recorded. The reactions of cows to an approaching person were also recorded during the avoidance (AV) test. In the first study, both tests were conducted on the same day on 12 commercial dairy farms, with two people recording responses simultaneously. The cows were tested with both familiar and unfamiliar people. The inter-observer reliability was high for both tests. The shortest latency for touching the unfamiliar test person was found on the first test day. There was high test-retest reliability for the AV test, and no effect of familiarity of test person was found. The objective of a second study was to determine the correlation between the two behavioural tests. On ten commercial dairy farms with loose housing cubicle systems, both behavioural tests were conducted on the same day at four different times. There was a high correlation found for the VAA and AV tests at herd level. The human-animal relationship at the herd level can be evaluated on-farm using the AV test. The motivation for the animal’s approach behaviour during the VAA test was not as clear.