Subject: Emotion

Visual perception of emotion cues in dogs: a critical review of methodologies

Catia Correia-Caeiro, Kun Guo, Daniel S. Mills

Published in 2023

Scientific review revealing that research on the visual perception of emotions in dogs focuses on facial emotional cues, often ignoring whole-body information, and pointing to the interpretive errors that can arise as the result of poor study design and incorporation of biases such as anthropomorphism. It suggests that new technologies nevertheless offer a way to resolve data collection issues, offering useful perspectives in this area of study.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories:Canine

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Precision farming, Human-animal relationships

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Welfare of laying hens on farm

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 S Herskin, Miguel Ángel Miranda Chueca, Virginie Michel, Barbara Padalino, Paolo Pasquali, Helen Clare Roberts, Hans Spoolder, Karl Stahl and Antonio Velarde

Published in 2023

EFSA opinion identifying the most important factors impacting on the welfare of laying hens: bone lesions, group stress, inability to avoid unwanted sexual behavior, inability to engage in comfort behavior, inability to engage in exploratory or foraging behavior, isolation stress, predation stress, resting problems, movement restriction, skin disorders, soft tissue lesions and integument lesions. It proposes animal-based measures to assess them, and sets out the risks related to different farming systems. Measures to prevent risks and mitigate welfare consequences are proposed. Recommendations are made to address specific welfare issues for laying hens.

Document Types: Opinions

Animal categories: Poultry

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

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Welfare of broilers on farm

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 S Herskin, Miguel Ángel Miranda Chueca, Virginie Michel, Barbara Padalino, Paolo Pasquali, Helen Clare Roberts, Hans Spoolder, Karl Stahl and Antonio Velarde

Published in 2023

EFSA opinion that identifies 19 major welfare consequences for broilers, animal-based measures to assess them, risks related to different farming systems and animal-based measures to assess them. Measures to prevent risks and mitigate welfare consequences are proposed. Recommendations are made to address specific welfare issues for broilers. Indicators for monitoring the welfare of broilers at slaughter are proposed.

Document Types: Opinions

Animal categories: Poultry

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

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European Parliament: Written answer to Question E-000006/2023: Animal welfare in the report on the functioning of the Common Fisheries Policy

Question: Caroline Roose (Greens/EFA), Francisco Guerreiro (Greens/EFA). Answer: Mr Sinkevičius on behalf of the European Commission

Published in 2023

Answer to a question on whether the Commission intends to include the issue of animal welfare in the report on the functioning of the common fisheries policy.

Document types: Regulation/Certification

Animal categories:Molluscs, Fish

Keywords:Consciousness, Pain, Societal issues, Livestock farming system

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Outside enclosure and additional enrichment for dairy goats

Knut Egil Bøe, Rebecca Ehrlenbruch, Inger Lise Andersen

Published in 2012

A scientific paper investigating the effects of access to an outdoor pen and environmental enrichment on the activity pattern and social behavior of Norwegian dairy goats kept on slatted floors with limited space. It shows that the goats prefer to use the outdoor pen when they are active, and view branches as an attractive enrichment.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Caprines

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Enrichment, Housing, Living environment, Livestock farming system

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Resting pattern and social interactions in goats—The impact of size and organization of lying space

Inger Lise Andersen, Knut Egil Bøe

Published in 2007

Scientific paper showing that the time Norwegian dairy goats spent resting and their resting habits depended more on the size than the lay-out of the lying space, while social interactions depended more on the lay-out than on the size of the lying space.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Caprines

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Enrichment, Housing, Living environment, Livestock farming system

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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

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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

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Alleviation of transportation-induced stress in Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, using brackish water

Morteza Yousefi, Seyyed Morteza Hoseini, Robilson Antonio Weber, Eduardo da Silva, Hamid Rajabiesterabadi, Mohammad Arghideh, Fatemeh Hosseinpour Delavar

Published in 2022

Scientific paper evaluating the effects of different salt concentrations in the transport water of Nile tilapia. It concludes that the addition of 4 g/L salt to transport water reduces stress, liver damage, oxidative stress and hydromineral imbalances in Nile tilapia.

Document Types: Scientific paper

Animal categories: Fish

Keywords:Enrichment, Stress, Transport

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Effect of Heat Stress on the Behavior of Lactating Cows Housed in Compost Barns: A Systematic Review

Authors: Karen Dal' Magro Frigeri, Matheus Deniz, Flávio Alves Damasceno, Matteo Barbari, Piotr Herbut, Frederico Márcio Corrêa Vieira

Published in 2023

Scientific review of the effect of heat stress on the behavior of lactating cows housed in composted bedding barns. It revealed that the most commonly used indicator of thermal comfort is the temperature and humidity index; that thermal stress increases drinking, moving, agonistic behaviors and dyspnea, and decreases feeding behaviors and lying time.

Document Types: Scientific review

Animal categories: Bovines

Keywords:Animal-based measurements, Enrichment, Housing, Stress

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