Discipline: Zootechnics

Models of Conditioned Reinforcement and Abnormal Behaviour in Captive Animals

Vera Vinken, Lena Lidfors, Jenny Loberg, Anna Lundberg, Johan Lind, Markus Jonsson, Stefano Ghirlanda, Magnus Enquist

Published in 2023

Scientific article proposing three models, including conditioned reinforcement, to study the complex relationships between environments, innate predispositions and learning in captive animals, which can lead to the development of stereotypies.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories:Wildlife

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Enrichment, Living environment, Human-animal relationships, Behavioural disorders, Societal issues

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Welfare of ducks, geese and quail on farm

EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Animal Welfare (AHAW Panel), Søren Saxmose Nielsen, Julio Alvarez, Dominique Joseph Bicout, Paolo Calistri, Elisabetta Canali, Julian Ashley Drewe, Bruno Garin-Bastuji, Jose Luis Gonzales Rojas, Christian Gortázar Schmidt, Mette Herskin, Virginie Michel, Miguel Ángel Miranda Chueca, Barbara Padalino, Paolo Pasquali, Helen Clare Roberts, Hans Spoolder, Karl Stahl, Antonio Velarde, Arvo Viltrop and Christoph Winckler

Published in 2023

Scientific opinion identifying the most common farming systems in the European Union for each species and category of animal. It describes and assesses the welfare consequences for each species of the following factors: restriction of movement, injury, group stress, inability to adopt comfort behavior, inability to adopt exploratory or foraging behavior and inability to express maternal behavior. It provides recommendations on how to predict negative welfare consequences using both quantitative and qualitative methods.

Document types: Technical Paper

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Animal-based measurements,Adaptation of the environment to the animal, Consciousness, Pain, Risk management, Welfare indicators, Housing, Living environment, Mutilation, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Livestock farming system

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Welfare of dairy cows

EFSA Panel on Animal Health and Animal Welfare (AHAW) : Søren Saxmose Nielsen, Julio Alvarez, Dominique Joseph Bicout, Paolo Calistri, Elisabetta Canali, Julian Ashley Drewe, Bruno Garin-Bastuji, Jose Luis Gonzales Rojas, Christian Gort ́azar Schmidt, Mette Herskin, Virginie Michel, Miguel ́Angel Miranda Chueca, Barbara Padalino, Helen Clare Roberts, Hans Spoolder, Karl Stahl, Antonio Velarde, Arvo Viltrop, Alice De Boyer des Roches, Margit Bak Jensen, John Mee, Martin Green, Hans-Hermann Thulke, Elea Bailly-Caumette, Denise Candiani, Eliana Lima,Yves Van der Stede and Christoph Winckler

Published in 2023

EFSA opinion identifying the main types of housing for dairy cows in Europe and, for each, the main strengths, weaknesses and risks likely to reduce animal welfare. It examines five specific negative welfare consequences: locomotor disorders, mastitis, restricted movement and resting problems, inability to adopt comfort behavior and metabolic disorders. It also analyzes a set of farm characteristics that could be used to classify the level of welfare on farms.

Document Types: Opinions

Animal categories: Bovines

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Animal-based measurements,Adaptation of the environment to the animal, Consciousness, Pain, Risk management, Welfare indicators, Housing, Living environment, Mutilation, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Livestock farming system

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Analysis of Various Facial Expressions of Horses as a Welfare Indicator Using Deep Learning

Su Min Kim, Gil Jae Cho

Published in 2023

Article using deep learning to identify various facial expressions that can be used as indicators of welfare in horses. It proposes a model for the automatic recognition of facial expressions including the eyes, nose and ears, to identify horses in various situations: at rest, in pain, immediately after exercise and during shoeing.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Equines

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Castration, Pain, Precision farming, Welfare indicators, Sterilization

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Relevant Indicators of Consciousness after Waterbath Stunning in Turkeys and Stunning Efficiency in Commercial Conditions

Alexandra Contreras-Jodar, Aranzazu Varvaró-Porter, Antonio Velarde, Virginie Michel

Published in 2023

Scientific article evaluating the prevalence and repeatability among observers of the four most valid and usable indicators of consciousness after waterbath stunning in turkeys before bleeding (tonic convulsion, respiration, spontaneous blinking and vocalization) and during bleeding (wing beating, respiration, spontaneous swallowing and head shaking).

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Poultry

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Consciousness, Carcass quality, Stress

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Heat stress in horses: a literature review

Hyungsuk Kang, Rebeka R. Zsoldos, Albert Sole-Guitart, Edward Narayan, A. Judith Cawdell-Smith, John B. Gaughan

Published in 2023

Scientific review of the causes and consequences of heat stress in horses, how to prevent it, including ways to monitor body temperature and detect heat stress in its early stages, and how to deal with it.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Equines

Keywords:Living environment, Stress

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Réduire le rayonnement du soleil en bâtiment pour maintenir le confort thermique des troupeaux laitiers en période chaude

Bertrand Fagoo, Dominique Lagel, Pierrick Eouzan, Tanguy Morel, Florence Fargier, Jean Charef

Published in 2023

Technical dossier published by Cniel and Idele on ways to combat solar radiation and ensure thermal comfort for dairy cows in summer.

Document Types: Technical review

Animal categories: Bovines

Keywords:Adaptation of the environment to the animal, Livestock buildings, Housing, Living environment

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European Parliament: Written answer to Question E-000857/23: Supporting the installation of loose-house systems for sows 

Question: Annika Bruna (ID), Eric Minardi (ID), Elżbieta Kruk (ECR), France Jamet (ID). Answer: Ms Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission

Published in 2023

Answer to a question on the European Commission's plans to provide financial support for the installation of free-range accommodation for sows, and on the introduction of mirror clauses to protect European livestock farmers from competition from third countries with less stringent animal welfare standards.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Porcines

Keywords:Adaptation of the environment to the animal, Enrichment, Housing, Societal issues

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European Parliament: Written answer to question E-000948/23: Malnourished calves in Europe

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

Published in 2023

Answer to a question concerning the failure by member states to transpose Directive 2008/119/EC with regard to standards for the protection of calves, in particular as regards the monitoring of their hemoglobin blood levels, their feeding and their transport.

Document types: Regulation/Certification

Animal categories: Bovines

Keywords: Carcass quality, Transport,Societal issues

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European Parliament: Written answer to Question E-000940/23: Compliance with Directive 2008/120/EC on the welfare of pigs

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

Published in 2023

Answer to a question concerning the date of publication of the assessment of Member States' national action plans for the prevention of routine tail docking in pigs, the decisions taken by the European Commission to ensure compliance with the regulatory ban on tail docking in this species, and the measures envisaged in the event of breaches of the regulations.

Document types: Regulation/Certification

Animal categories: Porcines

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Pain, Societal issues, Mutilation

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