Discipline: Nutrition

The clinical companion of the donkey

Donkey Sanctuary charity group

Published in 2018

This book provides up-to-date and comprehensive information on donkeys, with the aim of improving their health and welfare. It focuses in particular on the characteristics of the species compared with other members of the equidae family. It includes a chapter on behaviour which is fundamental to the understanding of this unique animal and key to  the clinical signs and requirements for handling, feeding and treatment.

Document Types: Technical work

Animal categories: Equines

Keywords: Adaptation of the environment to the animal, Anxiety, Pain, Welfare indicators, Fear, Human-animal relationships

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Bien dans son corps, bien dans sa tête : qu’est ce que le bien-être du cheval?

IFCE group

Published in 2017

Whether you are a rider, breeder, teacher or horse owner, you will find everything on horse welfare in this "go-to" text from the French Horse and Riding Institute. Nowadays, there is a real awareness of welfare issues for animals, and the horse is no exception to this. What is currently considered to be good or bad practice? What scientific evidence is there? What might future developments look like and what are the regulations? In order to answer these questions, this book offers the reader information that is informed by science and presented in a form that can be understood and used by both professionals and amateurs. With a context-setting preface and introduction written by Axel Kahn and Sylvie Brunel, the wealth of bibliographical research carried out by Christine Briant and her team makes it possible to grasp the concept of equine welfare (including that of donkeys and ponies), and to apply it to feeding, housing, health and behaviour.

Document Types: Scientific work

Animal categories: Equines

Keywords: Animal-based measurements, Anxiety, Learning, Training, Livestock buildings, Pain, Enrichment, Welfare indicators, Housing, Restraint equipment, Memory, Living environment, Fear, Cognitive processes, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Livestock farming system, Transport, Vocalisation

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Fish Welfare in Aquaculture. Veterinary thesis.

Mathilde Escudero

Published in 2018

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Fish

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High-Fibre feeding in gestation

Meunier-Salaün M.C., Bolhuis J.

Published in 2015

Pregnant sows are generally fed in low quantities, a fact that may lead to poor satiety and may not fully satisfy their drive to express their foraging and feeding behaviours. Accordingly, feed restriction may lead to the frequent occurrence of oral activities other than feeding, including stereotypies, restlessness and aggressive behaviour in group-housed sows, which are interpreted as indicators of persistent drives and frustration associated with feeding. The inclusion of fibre in the diet reduces the latter's energy density and therefore allows meals to be larger without increasing the energy provided. In addition, dietary fibre influences the mechanisms that improve satiety and satiety at the sensory, post-digestive and post-absorption levels. This chapter examines the impact of dietary fibre on the behaviour and well-being of pregnant sows and describes its potential consequences for performance. The level of response to dietary fibre is, however, variable and depends on the characteristics of the fibre diet (inclusion rate, source of fibre, physicochemical properties), housing and feeding conditions and the characteristics of the sows, including parity, and is greater in young sows. Dietary fibre provided during gestation generally results in increased feed consumption by sows during lactation, probably due to its effects on the size and capacity of the gastrointestinal tract. Studies on the effects of fibre on reproductive performance are rare and show variable results, which could be partly attributable to an over- or underestimation of the diet's energy content during pregnancy. In conclusion, dietary fibre generally has a beneficial effect on the behaviour and welfare of pregnant sows on a restricted diet. The impact of high-fibre diets during pregnancy on reproductive performance over several successive cycles in group-housed sows merits further investigation.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Porcines

Keywords: Enrichment, Cognitive processes, Stress

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