Captive bears are prone to developing dental pathology for reasons including longevity in captivity, inappropriate diet, trauma, and stereotypical bar biting. If not detected, this can cause pain and suffering, with negative welfare consequences. As animals cannot verbally express feelings, objective methods are required to detect pain. Some methods of pain assessment can be invasive and impractical but behavioural observations offer a non-invasive alternative. Behavioural assessment for the detection of pain has been described in some domestic species but little published research has applied this to wild animal species. Eight Malayan sun bears (Helarctos malayanus) required dental extractions under anaesthesia. Their behaviour was observed, alongside a control cohort with no visible disease, pre-operatively and at one, two and four weeks post-operatively, when it was assumed the pain had resolved from the original pathology and surgery performed. Behavioural indices measured included general activity, social behaviours, stereotypies, eating-related behaviours and oro-facial behaviours hypothesised to be affected by dental pain. Bears that had received treatment took significantly longer to eat hard sugarcane pre-operatively compared to four weeks post-operatively, and took longer to eat soft porridge one week post-operatively compared to four weeks post-operatively. Untreated bears tended to be more active outdoors one week postoperatively compared to the treatment cohort. Results suggest that using hard foods and assessing the duration of eating behaviours could be useful to indicate dental pain in sun bears. General behavioural assessment of dental pain in sun bears is unlikely to be effective as a single diagnostic tool, but may be combined with other methods of assessment, and further research into this area is warranted.

It is sometimes necessary to restrain kangaroos (Macropus spp) for veterinary treatment or in the course of scientific research, but the associated stresses may induce capture myopathy in wild kangaroos. Judicious use of injectable sedatives can reduce the risk of capture myopathy. Zoletil®, a proprietary mixture of tiletamine and zolazepam, is reported to have a wide safety margin, a small dose volume, and be quick acting for a range of animals. We investigated the dose-response relationship of Zoletil® in 26 western grey kangaroos (Macropus fuliginosus ocydromus). All kangaroos were recumbent within 5-10 min of intramuscular injection with mean (± SD) Zoletil® of 4.55 (± 0.98) mg kg−1. Mean (± SD) time to recovery varied between individuals, 2.07 (± 0.41) h over all occasions, and was independent of dose rate. For animals that were assessed on multiple occasions, mean (± SEM) time to recover was reduced from 2.25 (± 0.09) h on the first occasion to 2.15 (± 0.10) h on the second occasion and 1.81 (± 0.11) h on the third. Since kangaroos sedated with Zoletil® are vulnerable to predation and injury during recovery, we believe they should be supervised until they are able to fend for themselves.

Severely depressed pigs exhibit differences in a number of important parameters that may affect gas euthanasia, including decreased respiration rate and tidal volume. Hence, the objectives of this study were to assess the efficacy and animal welfare implications of gas euthanasia of suckling pigs with varied disease severity (severely depressed [DP] vs other [OT]). A 2 × 2 factorial design was utilised with two gas types (carbon dioxide [CO2]; argon [Ar]) and two flow rates (G = gradual, 35% box volume exchange per min [BVE min−1]; P = prefill + 20% BVE min−1). Sixty-two pigs were enrolled and tested as DP/OT pairs in each gas treatment combination. Pigs identified for euthanasia were assigned a subjective depression score (0 = normal to 3 = severely depressed). Pigs scored 3 and ≤ 1 were categorised as DP and OT, respectively. Significantly lower respiration, rectal temperature, pulse and weight were observed for the DP pigs relative to OT. Pigs were assessed for behavioural indicators of efficacy and welfare. No differences were observed between DP and OT when using P-CO2 or G-CO2. However in P-Ar, DP had greater latency to loss of consciousness relative to OT (212 [± 22] vs 77 [± 22] s), decreased latency to last limb movement (511 [± 72] vs 816 [± 72] s), greater duration of open-mouth breathing (151 [± 21] vs 69 [± 21] s), decreased duration ataxia (101 [± 42] vs 188 [± 42] s) and decreased righting response (27 [± 11] vs 63 [± 11] s). The G-Ar treatment was removed due to ethical concerns associated with prolonged induction. In conclusion, depression score did not affect pig responses to euthanasia with CO2 gas, but did affect responses to Ar. Furthermore, Ar was associated with a prolonged euthanasia process, including frequencies and durations of distress behaviours.

Interventions aimed at improving animal welfare on farms may be more successful if greater attention is paid to the points of view of farmers. For example, understanding how different dairy farmers detect lame cows, decide to treat them, get them to the point of treatment, and how practical considerations that impact on this process may be important for reducing lameness on dairy farms. In-depth interviews with twelve dairy farmers were carried out to explore how this occurred on their farms. This in-depth approach allowed a number of factors influencing lameness treatment to be uncovered. The language used by farmers to describe lameness gave important insight into their perceptions of lameness and into the value they placed on prompt treatment. Farmers’ perceptions of lameness were found to affect the speed of treatment, with treatment of cows perceived to have impaired mobility or to be less severely lame sometimes delayed. Other priorities on the farm, skilled labour availability, farm infrastructure and farmers’ emotional responses to lameness treatment were all found to impact on whether or when a lame cow was treated. In order to encourage farmers to promptly treat all lame cows their perceptions of lameness and the benefits of prompt treatment must be addressed. The language used when communicating with farmers about lameness may be key to achieving this. The practical barriers, such as time and labour constraints, associated with the treatment process, must also be understood, taken into account and seen in the context of the farm management as a whole.

The influence of several factors on abnormal behaviour was investigated in 46 singly housed sooty mangabeys (Cercocebus atys) (eight nursery-reared, 38 mother-reared), including self-injurious, self-directed, stereotypic locomotion, and faeces/urine-related behaviours (SIB, SDB, SL, FUR, respectively). An analysis of behavioural assessments spanning a mean of four years per subject showed that 83% displayed at least one form of AB during that time, with SL being the most common (mean of 3.06% of observation sessions and displayed by 59% of subjects) and SIB the least common (mean of 0.09% of all observation sessions and displayed by 20% of subjects). Like other primate species, displaying AB was influenced by the percent of life spent singly housed and by nursery-rearing during infancy. However, unlike some other primates, there was no influence of the number of yearly sedations or room relocations on AB; also, females were more likely to display AB than male mangabeys. To investigate the effects of nursery-rearing further, we compared the eight nursery-reared, singly housed subjects with eight nursery-reared subjects that were socially housed since the age of three years. While nursery-reared subjects in single housing displayed SL and FUR in higher proportions than those in social housing, subjects from both environments displayed SIB and SDB in equal proportions, suggesting that they are persistent forms of AB for nursery-reared mangabeys even after long-term social housing. To reduce future incidence of AB in captive mangabeys, we recommend minimising nursery-rearing and the duration of single-housing whenever feasible or avoiding them altogether.

To determine whether lame broilers are in pain it is necessary to compare measures of lameness and mobility before and after analgesic treatment. Such measures should not be unduly affected by other bird characteristics. This study assessed the performance of lame (gait score, GS 3-4) and non-lame (GS 0-1) broilers using two mobility tests: (i) a novel test to assess broiler ability to access resources when housed in groups (Group Obstacle test); and (ii) a Latency-to-Lie (LTL) test. Outcome test measures included number of obstacle crossings, latency to cross an obstacle, and time taken to sit in shallow water. Associations between outcome test measures and other bird characteristics (established lameness risk-factors), including strain, sex, age, mass, contact dermatitis and pathology, were also investigated. The performance of high-GS and low-GS broilers differed in both mobility tests and no other bird characteristics were as consistent a predictor as lameness. This demonstrates that mobility impairments are closely related to lameness assessed using GS, and that there is a component of lameness that cannot be explained by other bird characteristics (eg being male and heavy). This component may represent pain or discomfort. Both mobility tests are suitable for further application with analgesic testing to classify lameness-associated pain in broilers.

This study aimed to estimate the value of the typical Australian herding dog in terms of predicted return on investment. This required an assessment of the costs associated with owning herding dogs and estimation of the work they typically perform. Data on a total of 4,027 dogs were acquired through The Farm Dog Survey which gathered information from 812 herding dog owners around Australia. The median cost involved in owning a herding dog was estimated to be a total of AU$7,763 over the period of its working life. The work performed by the dog throughout this time was estimated to have a median value of AU$40,000. So, herding dogs typically provided their owners with a 5.2-fold return on investment. When respondents were asked to nominate the maximal, one-off, veterinary expenditure they would consider to remedy an illness or injury for an especially valued dog, the median response was AU$1,001-2,000 which is not concordant with the dogs’ calculated median lifetime value. The current findings equip working dog owners with useful information to make financially appropriate expenditure decisions related to their working dogs. This is expected to increase farm profitability and improve welfare for farm dogs.

Animal hoarding is considered to be an under-reported problem, which affects the welfare of both people and animals. Few published studies on animal hoarding are available in the scientific literature, particularly outside North America. The present study was designed to obtain data on animal hoarding in Spain, with a particular focus on animal welfare issues. Data were obtained retrospectively from 24 case reports of animal hoarding involving a total of 1,218 dogs and cats and 27 hoarders. All cases were the result of legal intervention by a Spanish humane society during the period from 2002 to 2011. Hoarders could be characterised as elderly, socially isolated men and women who tended to hoard only one species (dog or cat). Most cases presented a chronic course of more than five years of animal hoarding. The average number of animals per case was 50, with most animals being dogs. In 75% of cases the animals showed indications of poor welfare, including poor body condition, and the presence of wounds, parasitic and infectious illnesses. Amongst the hoarded animals aggression and social fear were the most commonly reported behaviours. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report on animal hoarding in Spain and one of the first in Europe. Further studies are needed to fully elucidate the epidemiology, cross-cultural differences and aetiology of this under-recognised public health and welfare problem. More research might help to find efficient protocols to assist in the resolution and prevention of this kind of problem.

There are very few abattoirs in North America that process ostriches (Struthio camelus) which means producers are forced to transport their birds over long distances (> 500 km) for processing. The objectives of this research were to investigate the effects of pre-transport nutrient supplementation and transport duration on ostrich bodyweight and blood biochemistry. A total of 45 ostriches were used in three transport trials with driving durations of 30 min (n = 10), 7 h (n = 11) and 18 h (n = 24). Birds were weighed and blood sampled (10 ml) before and after transport. There were two treatment groups in each trial: control (n = 22) and nutrient-supplemented (n = 23). Prior to transport, each bird in the nutrient-supplement group was tube-fed 1 L of liquid nutrient supplement (containing water, dextrose, protein, and electrolytes), and control birds were each tube-fed 1 L of water. The results of our study showed that birds which were shipped for 18 h lost the most bodyweight while birds transported for 7 h lost more weight than those transported for 30 min. Birds which were transported for a longer time also had higher post-transport concentrations of plasma glucose, creatine phosphokinase, aspartate aminotransferase, total protein and uric acid. Male birds which received nutrient supplement lost less weight compared to the male control birds. We concluded that under the present shipping conditions, long distance transportation is detrimental to ostrich welfare with significant loss to producers due to mortalities and shrinkage. Our results also indicated that the use of pre-transport nutrient supplementation can partially alleviate the effect of the transportation stress.

Lameness in breeding swine can cause severe pain leading to on-farm welfare issues and significant economic impacts. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs including meloxicam and flunixin meglumine are commonly used in veterinary medicine for their analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties. Pressure algometry and thermal sensitivity tests are non-invasive methods to quantify pain sensitivity using nociceptive thresholds to provoke withdrawal responses on lame and sound legs. The objective of this work was to determine the effects of these drugs on nociceptive thresholds in sows induced lame using pressure algometry and thermal sensitivity tests. Lameness was induced in 24 mature, mixed-parity sows using a chemical synovitis model and three treatments were compared: meloxicam (1.0 mg kg−1 PO), flunixin meglumine (2.2 mg kg−1 IM) and sterile saline (IM). Pressure algometry was measured on sound and lame rear legs with three replicates at three landmarks. Thermal sensitivity tests were done on sound and lame rear legs with three replicates using a thermal stimulus at one landmark. From 37 to 72 h after lameness induction, meloxicam- and flunixin meglumine-treated sows tolerated higher pressure algometer nociceptive thresholds compared to saline-treated sows. Changes in thermal nociceptive thresholds were evident at the Tmax time-points for meloxicam administration and 72 and 168 h post lameness induction for flunixin meglumine-treated sows. In conclusion, flunixin meglumine and meloxicam administration mitigated pain sensitivity in lame sows post lameness induction when pain sensitivity was evaluated with pressure algometry. These analgesic drugs may be a key tool to manage pain associated with lameness.