Welfare Asssessment And Audits Flashcards
Five broad approaches used by scientists are based on:
- Feelings
- Animal Choices (Preference)
- Nature of the Species
- Freedoms for Animals
- Functioning or Homeostasis
What is animal welfare?
Widespread variation in definitions within science, philosophy, and general community
Considerable confusion & controversy created that hinder attempts to scientifically study it
Difficult to measure, directly or indirectly, without a working definition
Objective assessment (facts) needed to assess risks associated with specific practices (e.g. housing, nutrition, transport, etc.)
Approaches to assess animal welfare: Feelings based
Animal welfare is defined in terms of emotion
Emphasis on ↓ negatives (e.g. fear, pain), ↑ positives (e.g. comfort, pleasure) – Difficult to understand and quantify emotions – Expect further developments and significant contributions in this area in the next few years
Approaches to assess animal welfare: Animal Choices (Preference) based
Multiple studies in multiple species
– One focus on housing for pregnant sows
• Example: “Y” set up for gestation crates
Approaches to assess animal welfare: Nature of the Species based
Raise animals in natural environments to allow
them to behave in natural ways
Who defines “natural”? What are the welfare risks if natural conditions aren’t provided?
Many natural behaviors in the wild are responses to anti-welfare situations (predation, starvation, environmental hardships) & domesticated animals should be spared these
Approach with least scientific credibility
Approaches to assess animal welfare: Freedoms based
UK Brambell Committee (1960) Five Freedoms
All intensively housed species must be free
to: 1. Stand up 2. Lie Down 3. Turn Around 4. Groom 5. Stretch limbs out fully
Approaches to assess animal welfare: Freedoms based – updated
UK Farm Animal Council (1992) proposed these new five freedoms for welfare protection:
1. Freedom from hunger & thirst 2. Freedom from discomfort 3. Freedom from pain, injury, and disease 4. Freedom from fear and distress 5. Freedom to express normal behavior
Approaches to assess animal welfare: functioning
Functioning- or homeostasis- based on animal’s attempts
and success at coping with their environment
– Attempts to cope include
• Body repair system
• Immune system
defenses
• Physiological stress
responses
• Behavioral responses – usually = 1st response!
• Homeostasis exists if successful coping with no functions biological costs to – health – growth efficiency – food or fiber production – reproduction
Approaches to assess animal welfare: Homeostasis- based
– Can measure animal’s response (physiological,
behavioral) – animal management matters here – Can measure cost of response (health, growth,
production, conception rates) – animal management
matters here, too – Best approach so far for scientific assessment of animal
welfare
“Fitter” animals can
– Respond and survive better
– Contribute better genes to the next generation
Potential threats to homeostasis are perceived by the Central
Nervous System (CNS) and elicit some combination of these 4 general defensive responses:
- Behavior change – usually the first response
- Acute, autonomic nervous system responses – short-term, fast
- Neuro-endocrine responses – longer duration, sustained
- Immune system responses – multiple combinations of high/low (ex: getting a cold during exam weeks)
Acute Stress Overview
Short term=An immediate threat for a
limited time
• Loud noise (humans and animals) • Being restrained for a veterinarian (animal) • Medicating (for animals)
- Benefits to the body: survival by inducing
“Flight or Fight” response
Chronic Stress Overview
• Long term = something ongoing
• Financial Worries (people) • School (people) • Jobs (people) • Long Transportation (animals) • Long Term Isolation (both)
Causes damage to the immune, reproductive, and digestive systems.
The People Factor
Behavior of the stockperson (farm manager, herd
manager, daily workers, etc.) matters!
– Example: hitting the animal is stressful…but yelling can
be equally stressful
• Negative behavior of the stockperson increases
animal fear increases difficulty handling animals • Using “ProHand” – a training program for stock
people to teach animal handling and attitudes –
program has (+) effects:
– ↑milk production 5%, ↑piglet growth rate 5%, or ↓
losses by 1 piglet/litter
Five Sources of Animal Stress
• Environmental = noise, confinement, lack of shelter from the elements or an “unnatural” environment
• Chemical = substances given to an animal when ill AND substances regularly administered, like painkillers and antibiotics
• Biochemical = poor nutrition (inadequate OR excessive)
• Physical = incorrect or lack of physical activity, pain, parasites, and infection
• Psychological = isolation, excessive travel, excessive
changes, or a new addition to the family
Companion Animal stress causes
• Reduced Welfare/ Stress Conditions – Poor housing/ harsh training/ chaotic environments
• Stressors
– noise, immobilization, training, novelty, transport,
inadequate housing
Companion animal stress response
– Behavior change, cardiovascular change, endocrine
response (hormone response), intestinal changes, and
other body changes – Can measure ↑ cortisol in blood & saliva, and changes in heart rate
What is a hormone?
Neuroendocrine system = Brain-nerve-
hormone connection • Cortisol/corticosterone= hormones that are
released during times of stress, measure in:
-Blood -Feces -Saliva
Stressors for horses and effects
Changes in housing and confinement
Results show increases in stress hormones and
effects on multiple body systems – ex: stomach
ulcers, premature births, miscarriages
Stressors for llamas and alpacas and effects
Handling, restraint, transport
Results show increases in stress hormones and
effects on multiple body systems – ex: stomach
ulcers, premature births, miscarriages
