Animal category: Cattle

L’agriculture bio garantit-elle un meilleur « bien-être » des animaux d’élevage ?

Eugénie Duval, Benjamin Lecorps

Published in 2021

Article demonstrating that the French organic label guarantees higher animal welfare standards than conventional farming, providing access to outdoors, banning cage rearing and tethered systems, allowing only exceptional authorisation of non-medical surgical interventions, and requiring more frequent checks and compulsory stunning before slaughter. However, the legislation on transport and slaughter is still inadequate, even in the case of organic farming.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords: Housing, Living environment, Mutilations, Breeding and rearing systems, Transport,Societal issues

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Animal welfare: a shift from live to meat-and-carcass transport

Gediminas Vilkas

Published in 2021

Press release presenting the results of the European Parliament's Committee of Inquiry into the protection of animals during transport. The committee recognised that EU rules on the protection of animals during transport are not always respected and that the welfare needs of animals during transport are not always met. It recommends limiting and better monitoring the export of live animals, developing meat-and-carcass transport and banning the transport of very young animals.

Document types: Regulation/Certification

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Equines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords:Societal issues, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Transport

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Genome editing and farmed animals

Pete Mills

Published in 2021

Report describing genome editing techniques, and critically analysing their potential use for livestock. It makes recommendations, in particular the need for a full scientific review of the literature before changing the UK regulations in this area and for a dialogue between scientists and the public on these issues.

Document Types: Opinions

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Equines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Societal issues, Resilience, Robustness, Livestock systems

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A review of factors affecting the welfare of dairy calves in pasture-based production systems

Megan Verdon

Published in 2021

A scientific review identifying the following risk factors for poor welfare in pasture-reared dairy calves (common to all rearing systems): perinatal mortality, poor passive transfer of immunity, poor pain management during disbudding and insufficient milk in the feed.  In addition, separation from the mother and the culling of male calves reduces the public acceptability of dairy farming. It makes recommendations for improving farming practices.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Bovines

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Maternity, Living environment, Breeding and rearing systems, Societal issues

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An evaluation of four private animal health and welfare standards and associated quality assurance programmes for dairy cow production

S.J. More, J. Marchewk, A. Hanlon, A. Balzani, L. Boyle

Published in 2021

A scientific paper evaluating four sets of private health and welfare standards and associated quality assurance programmes in dairy cattle from Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands and the UK. It highlights transparency problems and calls for regulatory oversight of the use of these standards.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Bovines

Keywords:Animal-based measurement, Societal issues, Breeding and rearing systems, Welfare indicators

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Animal Welfare and Farmers' Satisfaction in Small-Scale Dairy Farms in the Eastern Alps: A "One Welfare" Approach

Chiara Spigarelli, Marco Berton, Mirco Corazzin, Luigi Gallo, Sabine Pinterits, Maurizio Ramanzin, Wolfgang Ressi, Enrico Sturaro, Anna Zuliani, Stefano Bovolenta

Published in 2021

Scientific paper invesetigating the relationships between farmer satisfaction, animal welfare outcomes and the overall performance of small-scale dairy farms in the Eastern Alps.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Ovines

Keywords:Animal adaptation to environment, Livestock buildings, Societal issues, Welfare indicators, Living environment, Human-animal relationships, Livestock systems

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European Parliament: Written answer to Question E-004061/2021 : Animal welfare during transport to third countries

Question: Francisco Guerreiro (Greens/EFA). Answer: Ms Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission

Published in 2021

Response to a question on the possible welfare implications of animals being transported live to Israel, and more widely, to countries in conflict or at war.

Document types: Regulation/Certification

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Equines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords: Societal issues, Transport

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Agriculture MEPs call for a scientifically-sound update of animal welfare rules

Gediminas Vilkas, Hana Raissi

Published in 2021

News item presenting the main conclusions of the draft resolution on the implementation report on animal welfare rules on farms, adopted by the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development on 26 October 2021. They include a call for clearer and more consistent EU rules, financial incentives for farmers, and an EU-wide animal-welfare labelling system.

Document Types: Opinions

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords: Societal issues, Breeding and rearing systems

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French Assemblée nationale: Written answer to question n°36537: Défendre le maintien et le développement des abattoirs de proximité

Question: Régis Juanico (Socialistes et apparentés - Loire). Answer: Ministry of Agriculture and Food

Published in 2021

Answer to a question on the Government's intentions regarding the retention of  local abattoirs, in which the economic, environmental and animal welfare benefits of such establishments are evoked. 

Document types: Regulation/Certification

Animal categories: Bovines, Caprines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords:Consciousness, Pain, Societal issues, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Transport

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Préparation complète des broutards : Un levier pour diminuer la fréquence des maladies respiratoires ?

Elise Vanberg, Marlène Guiadeur, Béatrice Mounaix

Published in 2021

Technical factsheet setting out an experimental protocol to prepare grazers, the measurable technical benefits, particularly in terms of health, reduction of stress, and weight gain, and the opinions of those working in the sector.

Document Types: Technical review

Animal categories: Bovines

Keywords:Antibiotic resistance, Housing, Livestock housing, Breeding and rearing system, Pathogen transfer

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