While the international zoological community is committed to enhancing the welfare of individual animals, researchers have yet to take full advantage of the tools available for non-invasively tracking behavioural and physiological indicators of welfare. We review technology currently being applied in studies of zoo, farm and laboratory animals to regularly monitor welfare status, as well as to evaluate responses to particular stimuli and situations. In terms of behavioural measures, we focus on automated assessments that offer insight into how animals — even those that are nocturnal or elusive — behave when humans are not present. Specifically, we provide an overview of how animal-attached technology (accelerometers, global positioning systems, radio frequency identification systems) can be implemented to generate activity budgets, examine use of space, conduct gait assessments, determine rates of movement and study social dynamics. We also emphasise the value of bioacoustics, as the rate and acoustic structure of certain vocalisations may vary across contexts and reflect an animal's internal state. While it can be challenging to identify non-invasive methods for investigating physiological welfare indicators, we discuss approaches (thermography, tracking measures of heart rate) that may be especially useful for monitoring affective states and psychophysiological functioning. Finally, we make a concerted effort to highlight tools that allow welfare scientists to consider measures of positive welfare. Ultimately, zoos can ensure that each animal has the opportunity to thrive by employing technology to create baseline behavioural and physiological profiles, conduct ongoing monitoring schemes and assess responses to specific conditions, events and stimuli.

Until now, only a limited amount of research has been carried out on addressing attitudes towards sport horse welfare (AHW). In order to contribute to filling this gap, the goals of this study were two-fold: the investigation of the influence of different demographic factors and factors related to equestrianism on the AHW and the demonstration of the applicability of Partial Least Squares Equation Modelling (PLS) in this field of research. An online survey was conducted among 2,947 equestrians. A research model was established based on eleven factors, which were investigated for their potential influence on the AHW and their relationships to each other. This model was analysed by means of PLS which, to the best of our knowledge, has not been used before to investigate human attitudes towards horses (Equus caballus). The results show that the factors with the highest impacts on the AHW were the affection for animals, the attitude towards classically organised equestrianism and the utility orientation. Gender, income, agricultural background, tradition, brand orientation and the importance of breed and pedigree were also found to exert a significant influence on the AHW. In contrast, age and involvement in horse-riding as a hobby were found to have no effect on the AHW. Furthermore, several significant relationships could be identified among the different factors. In conclusion, the present study provides an insight into the factors influencing the complex AHW and demonstrates the applicability of the PLS for research in this field.

Fish welfare is a key factor in ensuring successful cultures. Farmed fish that are stressed have been shown to be susceptible to pathologies and present lower growth rates. The present work seeks to check the efficacy of faecal cortisol as a non-invasive method of assessing acute stress in a commercial cultured fish, the gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata). Typical stress markers (plasma cortisol, glucose and lactate) and faecal cortisol were measured in basal and post-stress (air exposure) state. Plasma and faecal cortisol, and plasma lactate after acute stress varied significantly compared to basal levels. Moreover, faecal cortisol showed a significant correlation with plasma cortisol and lactate. In conclusion, this work describes an easy, non-invasive and practical technique to assess acute stress in farmed fish. Further studies are needed to focus on other practical procedures for chronic stress measurements in sea-farms in order to improve the welfare of these animals.

Pain is an indicator of welfare status in livestock, and attitudes play a key role in the assessment and treatment of pain in animals. Veterinarians’ and dairy producers’ perceptions of cattle pain are affected by gender, age and work experience. The aim of this paper was to study beef producers’ attitudes regarding disbudding as well as the painfulness of certain cattle diseases. A questionnaire was sent out to 1,000 Finnish beef producers and the response rate was 44%, representing 19% of all Finnish beef producers. Producers graded their attitudes on a five-point Likert scale and perception about pain on an eleven-point numerical scale. Factor analysis was used and four factors were established. These factors described producers’ assessment of disbudding-related pain, their sensitivity to pain in cattle, their willingness to self-medicate disbudded calves and their perceived importance of horns. Factor scores were tested for differences between genders and the use of disbudding on farms with Mann Whitney U-tests. Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to assess differences among producers’ age, work experience and herd size. Female beef producers assessed animal pain higher than male beef producers. Older and more experienced beef producers showed more positive attitudes towards cattle with horns than younger or less-experienced ones. Older beef producers were more sensitive to cattle pain than younger producers and beef producers with a smaller herd size took disbudding pain more seriously and were more sensitive to cattle pain than the producers with larger herds. Producers who did not use disbudding valued horns more than producers using disbudding.

The aim of this study was to assess smallholder farmer awareness in terms of good pig management and to identify serious management issues that should be readily changeable despite resources being limited in a rural setting. Methodology was a combination of questionnaire and observational surveys performed at pig-keeping households practising either confinement or a free-range system. Households were identified using the snowball method. A total of 120 pig-keeping households were included, of which 32 practised free-range systems and 88 confined their pigs. The observational survey included management practices and welfare assessment based on one pig from each of the 120 households. The results indicated that farmers were not aware of the basic requirements of pigs regardless of the production system practised. Water was often neglected and provided less frequently among those practising free-range. Pigs kept free-range also received treatment less frequently compared to those kept confined. Pigs were generally kept in poor conditions with risk of injury and without shelter from wind, rain, cold, heat, and sun. Welfare issues exist within both production systems, but issues within the confinement system could be easily eliminated with proper management. More knowledge on basic pig husbandry is required in the region and is essential for improving production. Educating farmers on the basic requirements for water and feed, alone, could vastly improve smallholder pig production. Education on pig management should therefore be a cornerstone in any research activity involving smallholder farmers in rural areas.

The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility and test-retest reliability of the Welfare Quality® Animal Welfare Assessment Protocol for Growing Pigs. Twenty-three German pig farms were visited repeatedly by the same trained observers; each farm being visited six times during two fattening periods. The entire protocol assessment was carried out during each farm visit, ie a Qualitative Behaviour Assessment (QBA), behavioural observations (BO), a Human Animal Relationship test (HAR) and different individual parameters (IPs), eg bursitis and tail-biting. Test-retest reliability was evaluated by a Wilcoxon signed rank test (W) and by calculation of the Smallest Detectable Change (SDC) and Limits of Agreement (LoA). The QBA presented non-satisfactory agreement between farm visits. However, good agreement, in general, was found for the BO. For the HAR, no reliability could be detected. Most IPs were of acceptable agreement, with the exception of bursitis and manure on the body. Bursitis showed great differences, which can be explained by difficulties in the assessment when the animals moved around or their legs were dirty. The disagreement in the parameter manure on the body can be explained by seasonal effects. Disagreement was further found concerning the parameters coughing, sneezing, pleuritis, pneumonia and milkspots. Feasibility was good; both observers could be well-trained to fulfil the protocol. Furthermore, the time needed for an assessment did not exceed 6 h. The parts of the protocol that proved to be insufficiently reliable need to be addressed in the future in order to enhance and improve the objective measurement of animal welfare.

The Action Plan of the European Commission 2006-2010 proposed a move towards more private and less state regulation of animal welfare and Great British (GB) Governments made a commitment to reduce the burden of inspection of farms by targeting high-risk enterprises. In previous research in GB, farmers in private, voluntary regulated schemes were more compliant with GB legislation and code at statutory welfare inspections made by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) than farmers not in such schemes. The current study investigated whether membership of other private voluntary regulators and national data sources were associated with greater compliance with welfare at APHA inspections and whether the previous association between greater compliance and membership of private schemes persisted. Compliance at APHA inspections remained higher on farms in the private schemes previously investigated. It was also higher in the one retailer and seven herd health schemes investigated. There was no association between non-welfare EU cross-compliance inspections and compliance at APHA inspections. Approximately 90% of farmers in a scheme passed animal welfare inspections compared with 80% of non-scheme members. We conclude that farms in private schemes are more likely to pass APHA inspections and so this criterion can be used in selection of farms for risk-based inspection. We hypothesise that private regulation with regular inspection of all farms could raise compliance with animal welfare legislation to at least the minimum legal standards, however, it could result in animals with low welfare being concealed; consequently, this hypothesis requires testing.

Manual blunt force trauma is a common method of euthanasia or culling of goat kids, however it is difficult to apply consistently and may vary in effectiveness. Therefore, a controlled mechanical method is needed. The overall objective of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness of a non-penetrating captive bolt (NPCB) to euthanase goats (Capra hircus) up to 48 h of age. In a pilot study (n = 27), the optimum anatomical site for placement of the NPCB was evaluated using signs of insensibility and death, and post mortem assessment of traumatic brain injury. Three different anatomical sites (frontal bone, poll or behind the poll) were evaluated. In Experiment 1 (n = 100), goats were euthanased using the optimum anatomical placement determined in the pilot study and the presence of brainstem reflexes, rhythmic respiration, convulsions and cardiac activity were recorded. In Experiment 2 (n = 7), electroencephalogram (EEG) was recorded to assess awareness following application of the NPCB. Results from the pilot study showed that immediate insensibility followed by death was achieved when the muzzle of the NPCB was positioned behind the poll and the goat's head was bent so that the chin touched the chest. In Experiment 1, all goats were rendered immediately insensible without return to sensibility prior to cessation of cardiac activity. In Experiment 2, application of the NPCB resulted in the immediate onset of EEG activity which was incompatible with awareness. In conclusion, the NPCB reliably caused immediate insensibility and death in goats up to 48 h of age.

The EU-funded Animal Welfare Indicators (AWIN) research project (2011-2015) aimed to improve animal welfare through the development of practical on-farm animal welfare assessment protocols. The present study describes the application of the AWIN approach to the development of a welfare assessment protocol for horses (Equus caballus). Its development required the following steps: (i) selection of potential welfare indicators; (ii) bridging gaps in knowledge; (iii) consulting stakeholders; and (iv) testing a prototype protocol on-farm. Compared to existing welfare assessment protocols for other species, the AWIN welfare assessment protocol for horses introduces a number of innovative aspects, such as implementation of a two-level strategy focused on improving on-farm feasibility and the use of electronic tools to achieve standardised data collection and so promote rapid outcomes. Further refinement to the AWIN welfare assessment protocol for horses is needed in order to firstly gather data from a larger reference population and, secondly, enhance the welfare assessment protocol with reference to different horse housing and husbandry conditions.

To determine the optimal electrical stunning conditions for edible crabs (Cancer pagurus) their impedance was investigated along with currents with the potential to render the animal insensible within 1 s. This information was used to develop a commercial stunner and determine conditions that both stun and kill the animals instantaneously. Results show that the crabs’ impedance is dependent on the current frequency with the optimum outcome seen at net frequencies of 50–60 Hz. The proportion of animals stunned was dependent on the potential difference with 220 V required to stun an animal unconscious within 1 s. Any attempts to kill the crab with asphyxia after a 10-s exposure to electricity failed as 30% of crabs recovered within an hour. A thermal shock, pre- or post-stunning prevented this recovery. Autotomy was not avoided and approximately 4–7% of crabs lost one or more appendage. Electricity caused localised over-heating, but a current of 10-s duration did not cause heating of the carapace. We conclude that electrical stunning used in combination with a thermal shock may stun and kill the animal instantaneously.

An online training package providing a concise synthesis of the scientific data underpinning EU legislation on enrichment and tail-docking of pigs was produced in seven languages, with the aim of improving consistency of professional judgements regarding legislation compliance on farms. In total, 158 participants who were official inspectors, certification scheme assessors and advisors from 16 EU countries completed an initial test and an online training package. Control group participants completed a second identical test before, and Training group participants after, viewing the training. In Section 1 of the test participants rated the importance of modifying environmental enrichment defined in nine scenarios from 1 (not important) to 10 (very important). Training significantly increased participants’ overall perception of the need for change. Participants then rated nine risk factors for tail-biting from 1 (no risk) to 10 (high risk). After training scores were better correlated with risk rankings already described by scientists. Scenarios relating to tail-docking and management were then described. Training significantly increased the proportion of respondents correctly identifying that a farm without tail lesions should stop tail-docking. Finally, participants rated the importance of modifying enrichment in three further scenarios. Training increased ratings in all three. The pattern of results indicated that participants’ roles influenced scores but overall the training improved: i) recognition of enrichments that, by virtue of their type or use by pigs, may be insufficient to achieve legislation compliance; ii) knowledge on risk factors for tail-biting; and iii) recognition of when routine tail-docking was occurring.