The prevalence and risks for abnormal gait in finishing pigs (Sus scrofa), gilts and pregnant sows from a representative cross-section of indoor and outdoor herds in the United Kingdom were investigated. The prevalence of abnormal gait in finishing pigs, maiden gilts, pregnant gilts and pregnant sows from 88 herds was 19.7, 11.8, 14.4 and 16.9%, respectively. In a multivariable analysis of 98 herds, there was an increased risk of abnormal gait in pregnant sows housed on slatted floors compared with pregnant sows housed on solid concrete floors with straw bedding or sows housed outdoors on soil. The lowest prevalence of abnormal gait in finishing pigs occurred in pigs housed outdoors (3.4 vs 19.7% in indoor-housed finishing pigs) however, the difference was not significant because only three farms in the study housed finishing pigs outdoors. In indoor-housed finishing pigs, there was an increased risk of abnormal gait in pigs housed on solid concrete floors with sparse bedding, partly-slatted floors or fully-slatted floors compared with those housed on solid concrete floors with deep bedding in all areas. However, there were no significant associations between floor type and abnormal gait in gilts. There was an increased risk of abnormal gait associated with increasing callus, bursitis and capped hock score on the limbs of finishing pigs. This might have occurred because limb lesions cause discomfort or because lame pigs spend more time lying and this increases the risk of limb lesions developing.

There is a need to assess the welfare of dairy cows that live outdoors under cold and wet conditions. This study combined a number of techniques to measure stress and make an assessment of welfare in this situation. Two groups of ten non-pregnant, non-lactating Holstein Friesian cows were exposed to a week of wind and rain (WR) or housed indoors (I) with pre- and post-treatment weeks indoors in a cross-over design. Wind and rain consisted of continual air movement (7.1 kph) using fans, water sprinkling for 15 min (3.0 mm) per hour, a mean temperature of 3.4°C and wind chill of –0.3°C. Internal body temperature was recorded every ten min and behaviour for 16 h per day. Blood, faeces and infrared temperatures were sampled at 0800h each morning during treatment weeks, and three times per week during pre- and post-treatment weeks. All cows were challenged with 2 ml Leptoshield Vaccine (CSL Animal Health, Australia) subcutaneously after 3 days of cold exposure to test immune responses. During WR, cows spent a greater proportion of time standing and less time lying down and eating than during I. Infrared temperatures were lower during WR than I in both dorsal and orbital (eye) regions. There was a distinct diurnal pattern of internal body temperature which had a greater amplitude during WR than I resulting from both a lower minimum and a higher maximum. The time of the minimum was 40 min later for WR than I. The overall mean body temperature was 0.07°C higher in WR than I. There were greater increases in plasma and faecal cortisol during WR than I, respectively. Total T4 was higher during WR than I. Non-esterified fatty acid concentration was higher in the week following WR than I. Total white blood cell numbers were lower during WR than I. No treatment differences were found for creatine kinase or for tumour necrosis factor, heat shock protein 90, interleukin 6 or interferon gamma expression in response to vaccination. In conclusion, this study applied a suite of stress measures to dairy cows exposed to extreme cold and wet conditions. Together, these measures indicated activation of the stress axis, physiological and behavioural adaptations to cold and a reduction in welfare. A number of these measures could be used to assess welfare under cold conditions on farms.

In recent years there has been an increased interest in studies related to the welfare of avian species commonly kept as companion animals, specifically those in the order Psittaciformes, commonly referred to as ‘parrots’. During this time the biology and behaviour of wild parrots has also become better understood, aiding the assessment of welfare in captive environments. The impact of the pet trade on wild parrot populations has also become clear. This order now has more globally threatened species than almost any other major group of birds. Many significant aspects of parrot behaviour in the wild, such as flocking, social interaction with conspecifics, foraging on a variety of foods and flight, are denied to varying degrees to parrots kept as companion animals. Captive parrots show high levels of stereotypy, suggesting poor welfare. Welfare may be improved by appropriate environmental enrichment and changes in the social environment of captive parrots kept as companion animals; however, such changes require that caretakers have sufficient knowledge, resources and motivation to accommodate such conditions. The concept of companion animal suitability is an important consideration when developing regulations or policy aimed at improving the welfare of animals kept as companions. Although individual exceptions exist and the level of suitability may vary depending on species, in general, their presence in the pet trade has resulted in serious animal welfare and conservation challenges for parrots, indicating that these animals may be unsuitable as human companions.

On-farm welfare-assessment protocols should be based on valid, reliable and feasible indicators which reflect the animal's state in the context of the housing and management system. This paper focuses on the selection of parameters for cattle and buffalo from welfare research, from assessment protocols used in different European countries and from the literature. Three groups of parameters are described: (1) parameters which can readily be included, such as lameness, injuries, body condition score, cleanliness, getting up/lying down behaviour, agonistic social behaviour, oral abnormal behaviours, human behaviour toward the animals and measures of the animal-human relationship; (2) parameters which require more information on reliability, such as indicators of good welfare and housing factors; and (3) parameters which are regarded as important but so far lack reliability in most countries, such as the incidence of clinical diseases and mortality.

‘Environmental enrichment’ is often considered to improve captive animal welfare. However, some studies using male mice, Mus musculus, indicate that increasing cage complexity increases aggression. Limited evidence suggests that enrichment differs in its effects on behaviour and physiology between strains; but behaviour also differs between strains in non-enriched environments. Differences in enrichment type, evaluation methods, and strains used, have caused difficulty in interpreting the efficacy of environmental enrichment in improving welfare. Using enrichment suitable for commercial laboratories (nesting material and a Perspex tunnel), we compared within-cage behavioural and physiological responses among males of six strains housed in non-enriched standard polypropylene cages with those housed in ‘enriched’ cages. Outbred ICR(CD-l) and TO mice, and inbred BALB/c mice were more aggressive than C57BL/6, CBA/Ca and DBA/2 mice, which exhibited low levels of aggression typical of most inbred strains. Enrichment did not significantly affect aggression levels. Animals in enriched cages spent more time investigating the internal cage environment, eating and drinking, and in stereotypic behaviour patterns, although levels differed between strains. The greatest increase in stereotypy levels (bar-related stereotypies) with enrichment was found in DBA/2 mice. Higher testosterone levels were maintained over the study period in mice housed in enriched cages, and in more aggressive strains. IgG levels were also higher in mice housed in enriched cages, and in the outbred strains ICR(CD-l) and TO compared with inbred strains. The relationship between aggression, testosterone and ‘enrichment ‘ suggests that increasing complexity in laboratory cages may increase a naturally selected territorial response in some strains. The implications for strain-specific welfare are discussed.

Two experiments were conducted to determine whether maximum eye temperature, measured using infrared thermography (IRT), could be a non-invasive technique for detecting responses of cattle to handling procedures. Experiment one used six crossbred heifers randomly assigned to two groups in a crossover design and subjected to i) being hit with a plastic tube on the rump and ii) being startled by the sudden waving of a plastic bag. Experiment two used 32 crossbred bulls randomly assigned to three treatments: i) control, restraint only; ii) electric prod, two brief applications of an electric prod or, iii) startled, as in experiment one, accompanied by shouting. Exit speed (m s−1) was recorded on release from the restraint. Maximum eye temperature was recorded continuously pre- and post-treatment. In experiment one, eye temperature dropped rapidly between 20 and 40 s following both treatments and returned to baseline between 60 and 80 s following hitting and between 100 and 120 s following startling. In experiment two, eye temperature dropped between 0 and 20 s, following both treatments, and returned to baseline by 180 s, following startling plus shouting, but did not return to baseline for five minutes following electric prod. Exit speed tended to be faster following the electric prod. In conclusion, IRT detected responses that were due possibly to fear and/or pain associated with the procedures and may therefore be a useful, non-invasive method for assessing aversiveness of handling practices to cattle.

Various animal welfare assurance programs are being used to encourage or require the adoption of animal welfare standards in food production, and to assure the public that such standards are followed. The programs involve five main formats. Non-mandatory codes/guidelines are relatively easy to institute and appear well-supported by the industry, but provide only minimal assurance to the public unless measures are taken to ensure compliance. Programs based on government regulations and inter-governmental agreements are more challenging to institute; they are likely to generate less industry acceptance, but may provide more public confidence if enforcement is adequate. Product differentiation programs, and retailer policies requiring products to meet certain standards, serve a range of functions; these may generate public confidence but only for products covered. The various programs include several types of requirements. Requirements that are designed to maintain animal health and functioning have a widely accepted scientific basis, are often easy to incorporate into existing production systems, and often provide economic benefits, but do not fully address public concerns over animal welfare in some cultures. Requirements that address pain, distress and other affective states, and those that accommodate certain natural behaviour, have a growing but less traditional scientific rationale and appear likely to generate public confidence; however, they sometimes require significant changes to existing practices. Requirements for more natural surroundings (outdoor, free-range) seem to generate public confidence, but appear most likely to increase costs, least likely to be supported by the existing industry, and may involve trade-offs with productivity and with other aspects of animal welfare. The various formats and requirements provide a range of policy options for addressing animal welfare concerns in different cultural, industry and market contexts.

Visitors to zoos can be a potential source of stress to captive-housed primates, resulting in increased abnormal behaviour and intra-group aggression. Finding a way to screen primates from human visitors may be one method of decreasing stress and enhancing animal welfare. For this study, the behaviour of six zoo-housed gorillas was studied for one month during standard housing conditions (control condition) and for a further month following the installation of a camouflage net barrier to the viewing area of the exhibit (barrier condition). Visitors’ (n = 200) perceptions of the animals and the exhibit were also recorded during each condition. The net barrier had a significant effect on some components of the gorillas’ behaviour. The gorillas exhibited significantly lower levels of conspecific-directed aggression and stereotypic behaviours during the barrier than the control condition. The net barrier also had a slight effect on visitors’ perceptions both of the animals and of their exhibit. The gorillas were considered to look more exciting and less aggressive during the barrier than the control condition. The exhibit was also considered to be more appropriate for visitors following the introduction of the camouflage netting. Overall, the addition of a screen such as camouflage netting could be considered a positive change, resulting in a reduction in those behaviours typically induced by large groups of visitors and an improvement in public perceptions of the animals and their environment.

Genetics is key to the improvement of welfare in broiler chickens at both juvenile and adult (breeder) stages but progress is hampered currently by the seemingly conflicting demands of welfare, commercial production, food security and calls for increasing intensification to curb climate change. Animal welfare is therefore most likely to be improved on a commercial scale by future breeding programmes that incorporate multiple goals of different stakeholders as far as possible and give higher priority to animal welfare. These include: i) broilers with high welfare traits; ii) broiler breeders that do not need feed restriction; iii) birds that can be grown in an economically profitable way; iv) birds with low disease levels without the need for routine medication; v) chicken meat that is healthy and good for humans to eat; and (vi) broilers and breeders that thrive in systems that are environmentally sustainable. Progress towards achieving these goals is hampered currently by the assumptions that high juvenile growth rate is incompatible with good welfare and that feed restriction in adults is inevitable with fast-growing juveniles. We challenge these assumptions at both genetic and whole-animal level and argue that the conflict between good welfare and productivity can be reduced by making use of all available genetic variation from existing breeds and other sources and selecting birds in the range of environments they will encounter in commercial production.

Beneficial effects of human-animal contact on human health have contributed to the wide distribution of animal-assisted interventions (AAIs). While considerable effort has been devoted to the study of human welfare during AAIs, potential effects on therapy animals have been addressed less frequently. The aim of this study was to determine baseline and work-related levels of cortisol, a glucocor-ticoid hormone that mediates physiological responses to arousal, in certified therapy dogs and therapy dogs in training. All dogs (n = 21) participated in weekly group-AAIs in adult mental healthcare. Saliva samples were collected over the course of AAIs and on non-working days and analysed with a cortisol enzyme immunoassay. Analysis of the results revealed that according to their cortisol responses, both therapy dogs and therapy dogs in training were not stressed by AAIs. However, cortisol levels during work in certified therapy dogs performing AAIs on- and off-lead varied significantly, suggesting that further investigation into the use of a lead or other methods of giving therapy dogs opportunities to approach or avoid human contact is needed.

To assess the validity of using wild behavioural data as a welfare indicator for zoo animals, the time budgets of 19 captive giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis), from four zoos were compared with the time budgets of wild giraffe from Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe. Differences were shown to exist between the behaviour of wild and captive giraffe. However, only the duration of lying differed significantly across zoos. Correlations demonstrated that both enclosure size and feed restriction affected the locomotor activity of giraffe. An attempt to quantify observer influence upon the behaviour of wild giraffe was made. Different methods of observation were shown to significantly affect the time budget established. The extent to which wild giraffe behaviour can be used as a welfare indicator for captive conspecifics is discussed, as are the problems inherent in such a study. The difficulties in constructing an alternative welfare measure using prevalence to veterinary problems, are briefly considered. Methods by which captive giraffe welfare can be improved are discussed, particularly concerning the provision of browse to allow more natural feeding patterns to be established.

In assessing the relative merits of farm animal production systems or research procedures using live animals, the impact on the welfare of the animals involved is increasingly being taken into account. Many human activities and human-induced environmental changes can, similarly, adversely affect the welfare of free-living wild animals. As part of a study to investigate the ways in which, and the extent to which this occurs, we considered methods for the assessment of wildlife welfare. Although it is widely accepted that animals can experience and suffer pain and stress, there are difficulties in measuring the intensities of these states (and continuing debate about the terminology and meaning of these and related concepts as applied to animals). In attempting to scale the degree of harm in the various cases examined, a number of factors need to be considered, including: the nature of the harm caused its duration, the numbers of animals affected and their capacity for suffering. We explored ways of quantifying these. The study was undertaken to provide a basis for prioritizing actions to alleviate existing wildlife welfare problems and for assessing the possible wildlife welfare impact of future environmental changes or changes in industrial, agricultural and other practices.

Millions of wild mammals are trapped annually for fur, pest control and wildlife management. Ensuring the welfare of trapped individuals can only be achieved by trapping methods that meet accepted standards of animal welfare. At the international level, the assessment of mechanical properties of killing and restraining traps is set out in two documents published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Few traps currently in use have been tested according to the ISO standards and, in addition, new traps have been designed and old traps modified since the publication of the standards. In this paper we review trapping methods used in Europe and North America to see whether they meet the ISO standards and examine ways to improve the welfare performance of traps. In addition, international legislation is assessed to determine whether this ensures a sufficient level of welfare for trapped animals. Finally, trapping practices used in academic research are reviewed. We conclude that many of the practices commonly used to trap mammals cannot be considered humane. Current legislation fails to ensure an acceptable level of welfare for a large number of captured animals. New welfare standards for trapping wild mammals need to be established so that in future a minimum level of welfare is guaranteed for all trapped individuals.

It is not enough to study animal welfare; our responsibility is to promote it. To this end, we need to step out of our laboratories and develop robust protocols for assessing welfare in groups of animals on farms or in the laboratory. While these protocols must incorporate principles derived from detailed scientific study they will, in practice, need to be based on clinical observations and records that an assessor can acquire at a single visit. Such assessments must also be comprehensive: approaches based only on behaviour, or motivational state, or physical appearance, or performance records, can never tell the full story. The ‘Five Freedoms’ provide a comprehensive template that incorporates the different elements that define welfare state. However they only describe welfare at the time of observation. Protocols, for example, for on-farm assessment need to include measurements and records that provide evidence of long-term consequences of the quality of husbandry practices (eg body condition, chronic injuries). This paper reviews approaches developed at Bristol for the on-farm evaluation of welfare in dairy cows and free-range hens. The criteria used to assess welfare from clinical evidence were developed through expert consultation using the ‘Delphi’ review process. Experts were also asked to make value judgements as to the seriousness of different elements of poor welfare by indicating the point at which intervention would be necessary to resolve specific problems. This study identified a serious limitation of Quality Assurance schemes that seek to encompass many different elements of welfare into a single index that ranks overall welfare as acceptable or unacceptable. Specific farms had specific welfare problems and these required specific solutions.

Cross-institutional studies that combine non-invasive physiological measures of stress responses and the assessment of individual differences in behaviour and temperament have great potential as tools for assessing the well-being of zoo animals and for identifying key environmental stimuli relevant to well-being. In addition, such studies allow comparison of animals under a wide variety of conditions and enable researchers to obtain sufficiently large samples sizes for statistical data analyses. Faecal corticoid measurements, a method recently developed to monitor adrenal activity in wildlife and domestic species, can be obtained non-invasively as part of the normal husbandry routine. While basic techniques still need improvement, and interpretation of the acquired measures can be challenging, assessment of faecal corticoid concentrations can provide a useful indicator of stress responses under a variety of captive conditions. Here we report on three studies that illustrate this approach and the results that can be obtained. An on-going study reveals significant differences in the pattern of variability of faecal corticoid concentrations between polar bears that are reported by keepers to perform stereotypic behaviour and those that do not. In another study, faecal corticoid measures indicated that stress responses to certain extraneous noises might interfere with the breeding of Hawaiian honeycreepers in captivity. In a study of clouded leopards, higher faecal corticoid concentrations were measured when cats were kept on public display or near potential predators compared to individuals maintained off exhibit or in the absence of visible predators. The findings of an on-going experimental study suggest a causal relationship between the provision of additional hiding spaces and a decline in faecal corticoid concentrations in clouded leopards.

There is an increasing requirement for tools to assess and improve animal welfare in an objective and scientifically based manner. In our research a concept of welfare is applied which states that welfare is determined by the balance between positive and negative experiences. This concept implies that an interaction exists between stress systems and reward systems in the brain and, as a consequence: (I) negative experiences induce an increased sensitivity (ie need) for positive experiences; and (II) negative experiences can be compensated for by positive experiences. On this basis, two uses of reward-related behaviour can be hypothesised: (I) reward sensitivity may be used as a tool to assess the state of an animal in terms of welfare because it can indicate the current state of the balance that is dependent on previous (stressful) experiences; and (II) regular presentation of rewards may serve as a tool to counteract stress by shifting the balance to the positive side and, thus, to improve welfare. In order to investigate this, we used the rat as a model. Reward sensitivity was determined by the spontaneous behavioural response shown during expectation of a reward (ie anticipatory behaviour). A third (III) use of reward-related behaviour derives from the fact that anticipatory behaviour is influenced by the (rewarding) properties of the forthcoming reward (or other event) and, thus, may serve as a tool to assess the animal's perception of this reward/event. This paper presents a descriptive overview of the evidence obtained thus far for the three proposed uses of reward-related behaviour. The biological background of our concept of welfare can be generalised to all (vertebrate) species, and anticipatory behaviour can be evoked in a wide range of other species. Therefore, this tool for measuring and improving the welfare of captive animals has great potential and will contribute to a good quality of life for captive animals.

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.

Most dairy producers believe that early separation of the cow and calf is necessary for reproductive efficiency, to minimise health problems and to improve the ease of milking. In addition, many consider that it is less distressing for both animals if separation occurs earlier rather than later. In this paper we review the welfare and production effects of early separation on the cow and calf. Research has shown that the cow's immediate behavioural response to separation from the calf increases with increased contact with the calf, but other work has shown that cow health and productivity are positively affected by the presence of the calf. Calf response to separation also increases when the calf spends more time with the cow, but there are long-term benefits of prolonged contact in terms of sociality, fearfulness and future maternal behaviour. Health, weight gain and future productivity are also improved when the calf is allowed to spend more time with the cow.

This research project was carried out by the Swedish Dairy Association as part of the development of a ‘Scheme for Animal Welfare’. As a first step, on-farm, animal-based measurements on calves, young stock and cows in 55 randomly selected herds were performed. Nine animal-based measurements formed the basis for a classification of welfare at the herd level: cleanliness and body condition in calves, cows and young stock, in combination with lameness, injuries/inflammations and rising behaviour which were recorded for cows only. The threshold (gold standard) for being a case herd with poor welfare, was a score lying among the worst 10% on two or more of the nine welfare measurements. Thirteen of the 55 herds were cases fitting this criterion. As a second step, 65 potential welfare indicators from seven different focus areas in a pre-collected data register were identified by expert opinion. In the final step, the extent to which suggested potential welfare indicators predicted farms’ risk of having poor welfare according to the definition was assessed. The final set of welfare indicators, taken from the national dairy database, included two fertility measures and calf mortality, and it correctly classified 77% of the herds, with a sensitivity of 0.62. The inclusion of cow and young stock mortality led to it correctly classifying 76% of the herds with a sensitivity of 0.77. We propose that this approach could be useful in helping to allocate advisory services to farms at risk of poor welfare.

The adaptability of horses and donkeys to different types of activity has seen the European equine industry become an important economic sector, giving rise to increasing concern regarding equine welfare. As part of the AWIN (Animal Welfare Indicators) project, this review focuses on scientific literature to find potential animal-based welfare indicators — the initial step in developing a valid, reliable and feasible on-farm welfare assessment protocol for equines. Forty-nine indicators were considered and classified in accordance with the four Principles and twelve Criteria developed by Welfare Quality®. Only practical indicators specifically for on-farm use were included, those requiring the use of specific instruments or laboratory analysis were excluded. Academic scientists, partners and collaborators of the AWIN project, discussed and agreed on validity, reliability, on-farm feasibility and acceptance by farmers for each indicator. Some aspects of equine welfare have been thoroughly investigated and appear to have indicators ready for on-farm use (eg ‘absence of prolonged hunger’, ‘absence of injuries and diseases’). On the other hand, a lack of animal-based measures were identified for other Criteria such as ‘absence of pain’ and ‘positive emotional state’. Ongoing research within the AWIN project has begun exploring some of the aforementioned Criteria — these preliminary results of promising indicators have been included (eg Horse Grimace Scale and Qualitative Behaviour Assessment). Further research should address the validity and reliability of indicators, such as human-animal relationship tests and signs of cold stress. As well as for working equines, the development and application of a welfare assessment protocol could be the first step for enhancing on-farm equine welfare.