Species : Multiple species

Looking beyond the Shoal: Fish Welfare as an Individual Attribute

Lauri Torgerson-White, Walter Sánchez-Suárez

Published in 2022

Scientific review on the current status of welfare assessment methods in aquaculture, comparing them with those for terrestrial animals, and offering recommendations for future research that would allow account to be taken of fish welfare at the level of the individual.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Fish

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Welfare indicators, Livestock farming system

Go to document

Glucocorticoids in relation to behavior, morphology, and physiology as proxy indicators for the assessment of animal welfare. A systematic mapping review

Inga Tiemann, Lisa B. Fijn, Marc Bagaria, Esther M. A. Langen, F. Josef van der Staa3, Saskia S. Arndt, Cathalijn Leenaars, Vivian C. Goerlich

Published in 2023

A systematic review of the literature to determine whether glucocorticoid levels are a relevant indicator of animal welfare. It found that interventions that supposedly affect glucocorticoid levels do not always do so, and when they do, the changes in level are not always accompanied by changes in the associated welfare endpoints of behavior, morphology and physiology.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: All animals

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Welfare indicators, Stress

Go to document

Cognitive Enrichment and Welfare: Current Approaches and Future Directions

Fay E. Clark

Published in 2017

Scientific review of the different forms of cognitive enrichment that have been tested for laboratory, farm and zoo animals. It identifies research needs and proposes new indicators for testing.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories:Cattle, Goats, Wild animals, Sheep, Pigs, Rodents, Poultry

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Enrichment, Welfare indicators, Living environment

Go to document

Monitoring animal welfare standards

World Organisation for Animal Health

Published in 2023

Presentation of the section of the annual report of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) dedicated to adoption levels  of its animal welfare standards in its member countries. These standards address the welfare of land and aquatic animals on the farm, during transport, at slaughter, in research and on specific topics such as the management of stray dogs.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: All animals

Keywords:All subjects

Go to document

What is really social about social insect cognition?

Laure-Anne Poissonnier, Catherine Tait, Mathieu Lihoreau

Published in 2023

Scientific review on insect cognition, focusing on the hypothesis that there is such a thing as a "social brain", i.e. cognitive capacities specific to social species. Most of the research on cognition in insects is done on highly social species, so it is not possible to make comparisons with less social species. It would therefore be necessary to develop specific research programs to address this issue.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories:Insects

Keywords:Cognitive processes, Evolutionary processes

Go to document

Rethinking EU Aquaculture for people, planet and animals

CIWF

Published in 2023

CIWF report promoting greater consideration of farmed fish welfare and sustainable production of aquatic species at the bottom of the food chain in extensive systems to ensure the sustainability of European aquaculture.

Document Types: Opinions

Animal categories:Molluscs, Fish

Keywords:Biodiversity, Societal issues, Environment, Population management, Living environment, Human-animal relationships, Resilience

Go to document

Improving animal welfare status and meat quality through assessment of stress biomarkers: A critical review

Pavan Kumar, Muideen Adewale Ahmed, Abubakar Ahmed Abubakar, Muhammad Nizam Hayat, Ubedullah Kaka, Mokrish Ajat, Yong Meng Goh, Awis Qurni Sazili

Published in 2022

Scientific review of the various stress biomarkers most commonly used in animal husbandry and the factors that influence their expression. The focus is on the use of meat biomarkers, which would allow the non-invasive prediction of meat quality, but also on animal stress before slaughter.

Document Types: Scientific review

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

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Carcass quality, Welfare indicators

Go to document

Revision of animal transport legislation - an essential part of the food production - Information from the Portuguese delegation on behalf of the French, Greek, Irish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Portuguese, Romanian and Spanish delegations

General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union

Published in 2023

Information note from eight European Union countries, including France, opposing the ban on the transport of live animals from member countries. The reasons given are 1. that this would favour imports from third countries with less stringent animal welfare standards, and 2. the difficulty of maintaining the cold chain when transporting meat. The eight countries recommend that enforcement of EU legislation should be strengthened and EU expertise should be shared with third countries to improve animal welfare during transport.

Document types: Regulation/Certification

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

Keywords:Adaptation of the animal to the environment, Societal issues, Stress, Transportation

Go to document

When Do We Start Caring About Insect Welfare?

Tina Klobučar, David N. Fisher 

Published in 2023

Article addressing welfare issues for insects in light of increases in insect farming and consumption, their potential as an alternative source of protein for human and animal food, and their cognitive and sensory abilities suggested by the scientific data.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories:Insects

Keywords: Pain, Societal issues

Go to document