Tail biting is a major problem in modern pig (Sus scrofa) production and results in a reduction of animal welfare and productive performance. Biting behaviour has been shown to be decreased by the use of enrichment objects. In this study, 108 pigs housed in a room with 12 pens were observed and a sequence of seven different enrichment materials was tested. Gilts and barrows were housed together and received a new enrichment object each week starting from three different points in the fattening period, ie 20, 40 or 70 kg bodyweight. Toy-contact and biting-penmate behaviour were observed during one hour at day of introduction and five days later. A continuous sequence of seven enrichment objects reduced biting-penmate behaviour and the number of wounds compared to providing only a single toy (chain). This study also confirmed that not every object was feasible as an enrichment object for growing pigs. Generally, the highest toy contact was observed together with the highest biting-penmate behaviour. Most toy-contact and biting-penmate behaviour was observed between 20 and 40 kg bodyweight and was decreasing over age. Providing a sequence of toys for the first time induced toy-contact behaviour while reducing bitingpenmate behaviour but decreased after applying the same sequence for the second or third time. The presence of a single chain or a sequence of different toys had no effect on growth and feed conversion. The ideal sequence should maintain toy-contact behaviour without competition in order to avoid biting-penmate behaviour and reduced animal welfare.

Empathy towards animals and beliefs in animal-human continuity appear to play an important role in shaping the human-animal relationship and in determining the way animals are treated and cared for. Veterinary medicine plays a central role in animal welfare and has been recognised as a highly caring profession, especially in companion animal practice: however, a number of studies have indicated that veterinary students show a decline in empathy towards animals and an increasing tendency to see them in Cartesian terms as they progress through veterinary education. In the present study we used the Animal Empathy Scale and the Human-Animal Continuity Scale to investigate empathy towards animals and beliefs in animal-human continuity in a sample of first-year (n = 131) and final-year (n = 158) veterinary students of the University of Milan, Italy. Results revealed a difference in empathy towards animals, with first-year students scoring significantly higher than those at the end of their academic training. This variation in empathy over time emerged in both male and female students, however females always had higher empathy scores than males. Moreover, veterinary students at the end of their course reported a more instrumental attitude toward animals, more pronounced in males than in females. Similarly, there was a difference in the perception of continuity between humans and animals which was more evident in males, with first-year students scoring higher than fifth-year students in some items. Results are discussed in relation to previous studies carried out in other countries and, given the importance of empathy in the veterinary profession, potential reasons underlying its apparent decrease are considered.

Feasibility and validity of protocols used to assess welfare were evaluated in two fattening rooms in twenty farms, chosen according to the group size, pen shape, floor and space per animal. The two rooms contained animals at the beginning or at the end of the fattening period, respectively. Behaviour was recorded either through direct observations of the pens (3 times per minute, at 5 min intervals), 15 minutes after entering the room (B1) or after the removal of an object given at the end of the visit (B3). The third protocol consisted of a 2 minute observation inside the pen (B2). To evaluate the human-animal interaction, the time to adapt to the presence of the operator in the corridor (HA1) was measured, as well as the reaction of the group when the operator entered the pen (HA2) or walked slowly through the pen (HA3), the time taken by the first five pigs to approach the operator (HA4) and the reaction of the animals when the operator tried to catch an ear (HA5). Lesion scoring was carried out inside the pen on a sample of 60 individual fatteners or at pen level on most of the pigs from the corridor. The occurrence of the main active behaviours is assessed similarly over time by B1 and B3. Behavioural observations are then possible in an on-farm welfare assessment. Lesion scoring from the corridor tends to under estimate the number of lesions (scratches, tail wounds). The HA3 test appears to be the best one to evaluate the relationship towards humans but has to be validated.

In many countries, including the UK, the majority of domestic sows are housed in farrowing crates during the farrowing and lactation periods. Such systems raise welfare problems due to the close confinement of the sow. Despite the fact that many alternative housing systems have been developed, no commercially viable/feasible option has emerged for large scale units. Current scientific and practical knowledge of farrowing systems were reviewed in this study to identify alternative systems, their welfare and production potential. The aim was to establish acceptable trade-offs between profit and welfare within alternative farrowing systems. Linear programming (LP) was used to examine possible trade-offs and to support the design of welfare-friendly yet commercially viable alternatives. The objective of the LP was to optimise the economic performance of conventional crates, simple pens and designed pens subject to both managerial and animal welfare constraints. Quantitative values for constraints were derived from the literature. The potential effects of each welfare component on productivity were assessed by a group of animal welfare scientists and used in the model. The modelled welfare components (inputs) were extra space, substrate and temperature. Results showed that, when using piglet survival rate in the LP based on data drawn from the literature and incorporating costs of extra inputs in the model, the crates obtained the highest annual net margin and the designed pens and the pens were in second and third place, respectively. The designed pens and the pens were able to improve their annual net margin once alternative reference points, following expert-derived production functions, were used to adjust piglet survival rates in response to extra space, extra substrate and modified pen heating. The non-crate systems then provided higher welfare and higher net margin for sows and piglets than crates, implying the possibility of a win-win situation.

To illustrate that different approaches lead to different costs a cost calculation on four different welfare assessment systems for four different animal species has been carried out; an integrated pig herd (450 sows), a dairy cattle herd with automatic milking (90 cows), an organic egg production system (3000 layers) and a mink farm (1000 mink). We calculated the cost to be: €375 per annum for the mink farm and €2205, €2430 and €2435 for the egg production system, the AMS dairy herd and the integrated pig farm, respectively. The costs can be reduced by: reducing the number of indicators and/or the recording frequency, reducing sample sizes, more intensive use of existing data and by exchanging external for internal recordings.

This study aimed to identify behaviours that could be used to assess post-operative pain and analgesic efficacy in male rabbits. In consideration of the ‘Three Rs’, behavioural data were collected on seven male New Zealand White rabbits in an ethically approved experiment requiring abdominal implantation of a telemetric device for purposes other than behavioural assessment. Prior to surgery, rabbits were anaesthetised using an isoflurane/oxygen mix and given Carprofen (2 mg kg−1) as a peri-operative analgesic. Rabbits were housed individually in standard laboratory cages throughout. Data were collected at three time periods: 24-21 h prior to surgery (T1) and, post-surgery, 0-3 h (T2) and 3-6 h (T3). Behavioural changes were identified using Observer XT, significance of which was assessed using a Friedman's test for several related samples. The frequency or duration of numerous pre-operative behaviours was significantly reduced in T2 and T3, as compared to T1. Conversely, novel or rare behaviours had either first occurrence or significant increase in T2 into T3 as compared to T1, these include ‘full-body-flexing’, ‘tight-huddling’, ‘hind-leg-shuffling’. We conclude that reduced expression of common pre-operative behaviours and the appearance of certain novel post-operative behaviours may be indicative of pain in rabbits. Behaviours identified as increased in T2 as compared to T1 but not consistently elevated into T3 were considered separately due to the potentially confounding effect of anaesthesia recovery. These included lateral lying, ‘drawing-back’, ‘staggering’ and ‘closed eyes’. We postulate that for effective application of best-practice post-operative care, informed behavioural observation can provide routes by which carers may identify requirements for additional post-operative analgesia. Additionally, improvement of the peri-operative pain management regimen may be required to ameliorate the immediate effects of abdominal surgery. Comparisons with other studies into post-operative pain expression in rabbits suggest behavioural indicators of pain may differ, depending on housing and surgical procedure.

Free-range egg producers face continuing problems from injurious pecking (IP) which has financial consequences for farmers and poor welfare implications for birds. Beak-trimming has been practised for many years to limit the damage caused by IP, but with the UK Government giving notification that they intend to ban beak-trimming in 2016, considerable efforts have been made to devise feasible housing, range and management strategies to reduce IP. A recent research project investigated the efficacy of a range of IP-reducing management strategies, the mean costs of which came to around 5 pence per bird. Here, the results of the above project's consumer survey are presented: consumers’ attitudes to free-range egg production are detailed showing that, whilst consumers had a very positive attitude towards free-range eggs, they were especially uninformed about some aspects of free-range egg production. The contingent valuation technique was used to estimate the price premium consumers would be prepared to pay to ensure that hens do not suffer from IP: this was calculated as just over 3% on top of the prevailing retail price of free-range eggs. These findings reinforce other studies that have found that whilst consumers are not generally well-informed about certain specific welfare problems faced by animals under free-range conditions, they are prepared to pay to improve animal welfare. Indeed, the study findings suggest that producers could obtain an additional price premium if they demonstrate the welfare provenance of their eggs, perhaps through marketing the eggs as coming from birds with intact beaks. This welfare provenance issue could usefully be assured to consumers by the introduction of a mandatory, single, accredited EU-wide welfare-standards labelling scheme.

The use of farrowing crates is increasingly questioned from an animal welfare point of view. Even so, since a number of attempts to develop loose farrowing systems have been unsuccessful, leading to high levels of piglet mortality due in the main to crushing, many farmers remain sceptical as to whether or not alternative systems can be viable. On the other hand, several European countries have introduced legislation requiring loose farrowing systems, thus promoting research into this type of housing and allowing for performance studies based on large samples of commercial farms. As a consequence of these recent developments, we think it timely to reconsider the evidence available on loose farrowing systems. In our review, we first address the normal peri-parturient behaviour of domestic pigs, as well as studies comparing behaviour and stress physiology in sows kept in both crates and loose systems during farrowing. We then review approaches taken to develop alternative farrowing systems in different countries, and focus lastly on pen, piglet and sow characteristics that contribute to piglet survival in loose farrowing systems. Taking scientific evidence as well as practical experience into account, we conclude that piglet mortality in loose farrowing systems need not exceed that of crate systems. To obtain good performance results, sows due to farrow should be kept individually in sufficiently large pens, structured for preference into a nest area and an activity area. Furthermore, both management and breeding aspects, resulting in high piglet viability and good maternal behaviour, are essential to achieve high production in loose farrowing systems.

Although cats are extremely common, pet owners seem to have a poor understanding of their natural behaviour and needs and a large number end up in cat shelters. In Sweden, no records exist of the number of cat shelters or their activities. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence of cat shelters in Sweden. We found 62 cat shelters during 2006; the year in which this study was conducted. Questionnaires were sent to these shelters with questions concerning: received animals, reasons for relinquishing cats, cat husbandry and how the shelter was run. The most common reason for relinquishing a cat was that the cat was homeless; another common reason was that the owner had an allergy to cats. The shelters had, on average, space for 29 cats, but this varied from six-to-100, and they received on average ten cats per month. This means that a total of around 7,400 cats enter the 62 shelters in Sweden each year. On average, the cats stayed more than three months in the shelter. Less than 10% of the relinquished cats were euthanised. Our study reveals that there are shelters that continuously receive unwanted cats. The majority of these cats are said to be homeless, therefore in order to minimise the number of cats in shelters in Sweden, the focus should be on reducing the number of homeless cats.

This paper describes the development and pilot-testing of a horse welfare assessment protocol (HWAP). The HWAP consists of the collective measurement of numerous factors considered likely to affect a horse's welfare and is thereby designed to provide a holistic score of its welfare status and to identify potential risk factors. The draft protocol contains 47 measures: 15 animal-based, 24 resource-based and eight management-based. It was tested in the autumn at two Swedish riding schools using a total of 37 horses of varying breed, gender and age. Each assessment was repeated after 16-25 days. The results showed that 66% (31/47) of the measures had over 85% repeatability between assessments. Results indicated occurrence of behavioural issues, eg aggression and avoidance, and potential risk factors, such as inadequate management routines and feeding regimes. Using the HWAP, the assessment of up to 22 horses could be carried out in one day. Changes were proposed to the draft protocol which included incorporating an ethogram to assess the human-animal relationship and assessing bit-related injuries. We propose that the protocol might: i) provide a firm basis for the welfare monitoring of horses; ii) identify important potential risk factors; iii) guide welfare improvement and management practices for horse owners and stable managers; and iv) contribute to the development of certification schemes for horse facilities.

Extensive sheep farming systems make an important contribution to socio-economic well-being and the ‘ecosystem services’ that flow from large areas of the UK and elsewhere. They are therefore subject to much policy intervention. However, the animal welfare implications of such interventions and their economic drivers are rarely considered. Under Defra project AW1024 (a further study to assess the interaction between economics, husbandry and animal welfare in large, extensively managed sheep flocks) we therefore assessed the interaction between profit and animal welfare on extensive sheep farms. A detailed inventory of resources, resource deployment and technical performance was constructed for 20 commercial extensive sheep farms in Great Britain (equal numbers from the Scottish Highlands, Cumbria, Peak District and mid-Wales). Farms were drawn from focus groups in these regions where participative research with farmers added further information. These data were summarised and presented to a panel of 12 experts for welfare assessment. We used two welfare assessment methods one drawn from animal welfare science (‘needs’ based) the other from management science (Service Quality Modelling). The methods gave complementary results. The inventory data were also used to build a linear programme (LP) model of sheep, labour and feed-resource management month-by-month on each farm throughout the farming year. By setting the LP to adjust farm management to maximise gross margin under each farm's circumstances we had an objective way to explore resource allocations, their constraints and welfare implications under alternative policy response scenarios. Regression of indicators of extensification (labour per ewe, in-bye land per ewe, hill area per ewe and lambs weaned per ewe) on overall welfare score explained 0.66 of variation with labour and lambs weaned per ewe both positive coefficients. Neither gross margin nor flock size were correlated with welfare score. Gross margin was also uncorrelated with these indicators of extensification with the exception of labour/ewe, which was negatively correlated with flock size and hence with gross margin. These results suggest animal welfare is best served by reduced extensification while greater profits are found in flock expansion with reduced labour input per ewe and no increase in other inputs or in productivity. Such potential conflicts should be considered as policy adjusts to meet the requirements for sustainable land use in the hills and uplands.

Deflighting is used to prevent large captive birds from escaping by limiting their ability to fly. This practice deprives birds of this normal behaviour, but can allow them to express other behaviours that would be suppressed if they were confined to cages or aviaries. The potential negative welfare issues associated with deflighting include the stress of capture and restraint, pain and discomfort associated with the procedure and during recovery, risk of post-operative infections, risk of neuroma formation which could lead to pain, and loss of the ability to fly. The potential practical and welfare advantages of deflighting include a reduction in the need to closely confine or cage birds to prevent them from escaping, and deflighting may be the only way of keeping particular birds in an open situation for display, such as in parks or zoos. In these respects, there must be a balance between the requirement for this practice and the welfare compromises it introduces for birds. By outlining temporary and permanent methods and the complications involved, the following review highlights potential welfare problems and discusses ways of avoiding them. It also evaluates the necessity of deflighting and the need for careful risk assessment.

Dolphins in captivity have to cope with severe changes in their environment. So far, there are few studies on the welfare of these animals under these conditions. The aim of the present study was to find if cortisol was present in the saliva of dolphins and to explore the possibility of performing serial, non-invasive cortisol assays in captive dolphins. Saliva was collected non-invasively during a month from four dolphins that had responded to previous training, in order to provide saliva samples, in two aquaria in Mexico City. In addition, serum and saliva time-matched samples were obtained in an aquarium in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico. Cortisol concentrations in saliva and blood were measured by radioimmunoanalysis (RIA). Results show for the first time that measurable quantities of cortisol are secreted within the saliva of dolphins. Salivary cortisol measurements could be a useful tool for carrying out long-term cortisol sampling. It is far less invasive than blood-sampling and could be used, in conjunction with behavioural observations, to monitor the welfare of captive dolphins, non-invasively.

“Our story must begin with Charles Hume, for the whole of this grand enterprise began as a twinkle in his eye, which often twinkled” (Russell 1995). Fifty-one years ago, in 1954, besides important achievements in other fields of animal welfare, Hume and the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare (UFAW) had brought out the first edition of The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory Animals, edited by Alastair Worden (Worden 1947), who was already preparing a greatly enlarged second edition with William Lane-Petter (Worden & Lane-Petter 1957). Hume had already contributed to the first edition of the Handbook an article on statistical analysis, which is clearly relevant to actual experimentation (Hume 1947); he now had the brilliant and totally original idea of starting a general study of humane technique in actual experimentation. The late Rex Burch and I were appointed to undertake this project; the moment Rex walked into my office I knew that here was not only the perfect colleague but also a lifelong friend, and I sadly miss him.

Environmental light-dark cycles play an important role in behavioural and physiological processes. It is essential that laboratory vivaria be designed to properly control the light conditions in which laboratory mice are housed; however, this is not universally the case. Some laboratory vivarium doors are designed with windows, which allow light from the hallways to leak into the housing space during the rodents’ dark phase. Personnel entering and exiting the housing space during the dark phase can also create excessive light leak from brightly illuminated hallways. In this study, we investigated the hypothesis that exposure to dim light at night, as commonly experienced in many laboratory rodent housing spaces, alters mouse (Mus musculus) behaviour. We specifically analysed patterns of locomotor activity, anxiety- and depressive-like responses. Exposure to dim (5 lux) light at night altered home-cage locomotor activity and increased anxiety and some depressive responses among laboratory mice. These results suggest that light conditions can alter mouse behaviour and potentially influence experimental outcomes. Increased care should be taken to properly control light-dark conditions for laboratory animals.

It has been shown that, in small groups of intact male domestic turkeys, supplementary ultraviolet (UV-A) radiation, visual barriers, and added straw (environmental enrichment) minimize the incidence of injurious pecking under incandescent light at 5 lux. This paper describes two experiments, each involving eight groups of 100 non beak-trimmed birds up to 5 weeks of age, that assessed the effectiveness of these procedures at higher light intensities and with fluorescent light. Experiment 1 examined 5 or 10 lux of incandescent or fluorescent light. Experiment 2 studied responses to 5, 10, 36 or 70 lux of fluorescent light. Individual inspections of the birds, for wing, tail and head injuries due to pecking, were conducted daily.

Fluorescent light significantly reduced the incidence of tail injuries (P = 0.03), and tended to reduce those to the wings (P = 0.08), compared with incandescent light. No difference was observed between 5 and 10 lux for either tail or wing injuries. In Experiment 2, the incidence of tail and wing injuries was significantly and positively correlated with light intensity (tail, P = 0.05; wing, P = 0.02). Injuries to the head were minimal in all treatments. These results suggest that turkey poults may be kept with minimal injurious pecking, under fluorescent light at an intensity of 10 lux, with appropriate environmental enrichment.

Minimising the effects of restraint and human interaction on the endocrine physiology of animals is essential for collection of accurate physiological measurements. Our objective was to compare stress-induced cortisol (CORT) and noradrenalin (NorA) responses in automated vs manual blood sampling in pigs. A total of 16 pigs (30 kg) were assigned to either: (i) automated blood sampling via an indwelling catheter using a novel-penning system called PigTurn® which detects the pig's rotational movement and responds by counter-rotating, allowing free movement while preventing catheter twisting; (ii) automated sampling while exposed to visual and auditory responses of manually sampled pigs; or (iii) manual sampling by jugular venipuncture while pigs were restrained in dorsal recumbency. During sampling of (i), personnel were not permitted in the room; samplings of (ii) and (iii) were performed simultaneously in the same room. Blood samples were collected every 20 min for 120 min and measured for CORT (ng ml−1) using mass spectrometry and NorA (pg ml−1) using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Effects of treatment and time were computed with mixed models adjusted by Tukey post hoc. CORT and NorA concentrations were lowest in group (i) followed by group (ii), which were not different. However, CORT and NorA levels in manually sampled animals (iii) were highest compared to automated methods (i) and (ii). Plasma concentrations across time were not different for CORT, but NorA concentration at time 0 min was higher than at 120 min. The presence of visual and auditory stimuli evoked by manual sampled animals did not affect non-handled pigs’ responses. Restraint and manual sampling of pigs can be extremely stressful while the automated blood sampling of freely moving pigs, housed in the PigTurn® was significantly less stressful for the animals.

In this paper I describe a hypothetical strategy for assessing poor and good welfare with the aim of making a judgement about an animal's quality of life. The concepts discussed here may also contribute to the notion of what makes ‘a life worth living’. The strategy involves attributing scores to positive and negative aspects of an animal's well-being, using predefined categories and a simple scoring rote, and then summating these scores into an overall welfare score. The strategy incorporates a mathematical calculation that has certain mathematical biases to help ensure that any animal suffering is not excessive. I draw attention to some limitations of the proposed strategy and stress that such mathematical scoring systems cannot be used simplistically. Nevertheless, the proposed strategy could be refined, tested and validated to assist decision-making by those with a duty of care to the animal concerned.

Objective methods for assessing the cumulative lifetime experience of non-human animals would be valuable. We develop the hypothesis that biological age is a common currency that integrates the overall quality of an animal's lifetime experience across a range of types of exposure. Ageing is the result of the accumulation of somatic damage, and its rate is determined by the balance between experiences that cause damage and experiences that mitigate damage or promote repair. Negative affective states are associated with somatic damage via both direct causal and indirect pathways. Based on these premises, we predict that individuals that are biologically old for their chronological age will, on average, have experienced worse lives than individuals that are biologically younger, both in terms of their overall health and affective experience. Biological age is, thus, an attractive measure of cumulative experience because it requires no subjective decisions either about how a given exposure impacts an animal, or about how different dimensions of welfare should be weighted in an overall assessment. Biological age can be measured objectively using biomarkers. We argue that two biomarkers, namely leukocyte telomere length and hippocampal volume, are valid biomarkers of cumulative experience in humans, with potential for use in non-human vertebrates. We discuss how these biomarkers could be used to assess cumulative experience in animals, highlighting some of the limitations. We conclude that biomarkers of biological age offer a viable objective solution to the assessment of cumulative experience and their application in an animal welfare context deserves further exploration.

The success of breeding primates in captivity has led to a surplus number of animals in collections. This review examines published journals and key books to investigate the various methods of primate population control. Hormonal, surgical and separation methods are discussed and evaluated with regards to behavioural and welfare implications. Methods of dealing with surplus animals are also reviewed. It is concluded that the successes of contraception methods vary significantly between species, and in some cases not enough is known to conclusively state that one method is preferable to another. The behavioural effects of contraception should be evaluated, as social status and sexual behaviours can be negatively affected by contraception. Non-reversible sterilisation methods, such as castration, should not be used without thorough evaluation due to the behavioural effects on the individual and group as a whole. Overall, the zoo community should share information of successes and failures of contraception in different species, and professional advice should be sought to ensure that the welfare of primates in captivity is not compromised.