Species : Multiple species

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

Access the source: What Is Really Social About Social Insect Cognition?

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

Access the source: Rethinking EU Aquaculture for People, the Planet, and Animals

Renouvellement de la convention-cadre du Centre national de référence pour le bien-être animal

INRAE

Published in 2023

Animal categories: All animals

Keywords:All subjects

Access the source: Renewal of the framework agreement for the French Reference Centre for animal welfare

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

Access the source: Improving Animal Welfare Status and Meat Quality Through Assessment of Stress Biomarkers: A Critical Review

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, Transport

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

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

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Epigenetic biomarkers for animal welfare monitoring

Rose Whelan, Sina Tönges, Florian Böhl, Frank Lyko

Published in 2023

Scientific review describing animal DNA methylation patterns and methods for their analysis, an overview of the molecular and biological basis for the development of epigenetic biomarkers in veterinary science, and their potential use in animal welfare monitoring.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: All animals

Keywords: Animal-based measurements, Welfare indicators

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State Policies for Farm Animal Welfare in Production Practices of U.S. Livestock and Poultry Industries: An Overview

Danielle J. Ufer

Published in 2022

Report describing the current status of U.S. policies related to practices that may impact farm animal welfare, the extent of their implementation and geographic coverage, and the legal environment and challenges these policies have faced.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories:Bovines, Ovines, Porcines, Poultry

Keywords: Societal issues, Human-animal relationships

Access the source: State Policies for Farm Animal Welfare in Production Practices of the U.S. Livestock and Poultry Industries: An Overview

Annual report of the EFSA Networks on Animal Welfare 2022

EFSA

Published in 2022

Report of the 2022 meeting which dealt with the revision of the European animal welfare regulations, the associated EFSA opinions with a presentation of those published in 2022 and a progress report on those in progress, and with the work of the expert subgroup for animal welfare and the subgroup on national contact points.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories:Bovines, Porcines, Ruminants, Poultry

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Consciousness, Enrichment, Risk management, Welfare indicators, Living environment, Mutilation, Human-animal relationships, Stress, Livestock farming system, Transport, Pain

Access the source: Annual Report of the EFSA Networks on Animal Welfare 2022

De l’inflation à l’abandon…Les français et leurs animaux de compagnie face à la hausse des prix

Ifop

Published in 2022

Results of an Ifop survey for Woopets of 2005 people, including 1036 pet owners, carried out in November 2022 The results reveal that 41% of the respondents have changed their behaviour towards their pets because of rising prices, that 14% of pet owners who responded have already parted with their pets and that 7% (14% among those under 25 years old) are considering doing so in the future.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Canines, Felines, Exotic pets

Keywords: Societal issues, Human-animal relationships

Access the source: From Inflation to Abandonment… The French and Their Pets in the Face of Rising Prices