The decision to perform euthanasia in geriatric zoo mammals is usually a highly complex procedure involving ethical, medical, emotional and sometimes political factors. However, subsequent necropsies show that the pathological changes of organs and/or the musculoskeletal system are often already advanced. Therefore, we hypothesise that euthanasia is often delayed to the detriment of the animal's welfare. The purpose of this study was to facilitate and establish an initial, objective, decision-making framework for the euthanasia of geriatric zoo mammals. A scoring-system to assess the physical condition and quality of life in ageing zoo mammals is presented, based on retrospective and prospective investigation of 70 geriatric zoo mammals in five European zoos. Medical records and necropsy reports were studied in retrospective cases. Symptoms were monitored and recorded in prospective cases. Radiographic investigations under general anesthesia or at necropsy were performed additionally. A significant association between symptoms and pathological findings revealed that 36.9% (n = 24/65) of examined animals (n = 41/65) had pathological alterations to the musculoskeletal system and 26.2% (n = 17/65) suffered from neoplasia. Based on the individual reports, 28 veterinarians from different fields of veterinary medicine concluded that these animals had mild to severe pain, discomfort and a significantly reduced quality of life, thus strongly reducing welfare. The proposed scoring system includes all of these factors and offers a simple and reliable tool to support decision-making for euthanasia in geriatric zoo mammals.

Anthropocentric claims about the ways in which non-human animals (hereafter animals) interact in their social and non-social worlds are often used to influence decisions on how animals can or should be used by humans in various sorts of activities. Thus, the treatment of individuals is often tightly linked to how they are perceived with respect to their ability to perform behaviour patterns that suggest that they can think - have beliefs, desires, or make plans and have expectations about the future. Here, I review some basic issues in the comparative study of animal minds and discuss how matters of mind are related to matters of welfare and well-being. Much comparative research still needs to be done before any stipulative claims can be made about how an individual's cognitive abilities can be used to influence decisions about how she or he should be treated. More individuals from diverse species whose lives, sensory worlds, motor abilities and nervous systems are different from those of animals with whom we identify most readily or with whom we are the most familiar, need to be studied. As others, I stress the importance of subjectivity and common sense along with the use of empirical data in making decisions about animal welfare, and that subjective assessments should be viewed in the same critical light as are supposedly objective scientific facts. I also argue that whatever connections there are between an individual's cognitive abilities and what sorts of treatment are permissible can be overridden by that individual's ability to feel pain and to suffer. When we are uncertain, even only slightly, about their ability to experience pain or to suffer, individual animals should be given the benefit of the doubt. There is a great deal of uncertainty about the phylogenetic distribution of pain and suffering.

As zoos have evolved, conservation and conservation education have become primary tasks. To achieve the maximum educational impact, zoos are enriching animal habitats so that their occupants display a wide range of activities that are attractive to the visitor, and unattractive activities are eliminated and reduced. Because public perceptions of the attractiveness of animal behaviour may not coincide with welfare realities, there can be a tension between the requirements of desirable exhibits and those of maximally promoting animal welfare. Zoo animals differ from domesticated animals in human care in several respects. These differences are discussed and set in the context of the sometimes competing aims of enhancing welfare and promoting educational exhibits. An outline history of zoo enrichment programmes suggests that the subject is in need of systematization. The range of data available for improving zoo exhibit designs, and the lives of zoo animals, is reviewed. It is concluded that fundamental data on the environmental needs of many of the wild animals maintained in zoos are deficient in many important areas. Consequently, there is an urgent need to increase such research. Zoo habitats could be excellent places for such fundamental studies, which would feed back into field studies. At the same time, habitat enrichment in zoos cannot await such research and must proceed pragmatically using the range of insights described in this paper. In particular, functional substitution is advocated as a means of enrichment wherever this can be made acceptable to the broad public; its educational value in combatting naive anthropomorphism is stressed. Naturalism in enrichment is criticized as reinforcing anthropomorhisms, but is desirable for promoting global habitat conservation.

The effects of food and/or water deprivation at different ambient temperatures (7 or 35 °C) on stress hormone release in sheep (n = 8), were studied to provide background data for research into the effects of road transport. Blood samples were taken from catheterized animals at the start and, at 6h intervals, during 48h tests in an environmental chamber. Cortisol release was unaffected by temperature or deprivation state but was stimulated by introduction to the chamber. Prolactin secretion showed a similar tendency and levels of this hormone were generally higher in the first test, whichever chamber was used. Heat exposure also had a prolonged stimulatory effect on prolactin release, especially in the first test. Growth hormone concentrations were rather variable but tended to be greatest when the animals were deprived of food. Measurements of plasma osmolality indicated that sheep remained in water balance, even when water was withheld for 48h, unless they had access to food. The results suggest that under laboratory conditions, and over a wide thermal range, withholding food and water for 48h does not induce Cortisol or prolactin release in sheep. However, exposure to novel situations seems to have a stimulatory effect.

Automatic broiler catching machines have been developed for several reasons. Manual catching is expensive, often rough and may cause injury to the birds. Apart from animal welfare considerations, the demand for good quality meat means that rejection rates must be kept at a low level. The poor working conditions for manual catching teams are also an important factor. Only a few scientific studies on the effects of catching machines on bird health and welfare have been published. In this study, the carcase rejection rates in relation to manual and mechanical catching were compared at a poultry abattoir following a change of loading and unloading systems. The effect on the level of birds found ‘dead on arrival’ at the slaughterhouse initially varied considerably, regardless of catching method. During the last 3-month period of the study however, mechanically caught flocks showed significantly higher frequencies of dead birds on arrival than manually caught flocks. During the same last period, when running-in problems should be regarded as solved, the prevalence of bruises was also still significantly higher in the mechanically caught flocks, whereas the prevalence of fractures did not differ significantly between the two groups. This suggests that there are still opportunities for further improvements of the machine, although in Sweden it has now been accepted for commercial use in accordance with Swedish animal welfare legislation, under the supervision of the National Board of Agriculture.

A contingent valuation survey of 2000 people in Great Britain was conducted to find out about people's concerns about farm animal welfare and their willingness to pay to support legislation to phase out the use of cages in egg production in the European Union (EU) by 2005. The survey found that respondents were concerned about a range of farm animal welfare issues, and that the majority supported the proposed legislation and stated that they were willing to pay a significant increase on the current price of eggs to support it. People's willingness to pay to support the legislation would appear to outweigh the extra resource costs of producing eggs without using cages. However, possible sources of bias in the survey and the validity of the willingness to pay measure estimated are discussed. It is concluded that such measures must be interpreted with caution, but can be useful indicators of people's concerns about animal welfare issues and their preferences for public policies on animal welfare.

The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility and test-retest reliability of the Welfare Quality® Animal Welfare Assessment Protocol for Growing Pigs. Twenty-three German pig farms were visited repeatedly by the same trained observers; each farm being visited six times during two fattening periods. The entire protocol assessment was carried out during each farm visit, ie a Qualitative Behaviour Assessment (QBA), behavioural observations (BO), a Human Animal Relationship test (HAR) and different individual parameters (IPs), eg bursitis and tail-biting. Test-retest reliability was evaluated by a Wilcoxon signed rank test (W) and by calculation of the Smallest Detectable Change (SDC) and Limits of Agreement (LoA). The QBA presented non-satisfactory agreement between farm visits. However, good agreement, in general, was found for the BO. For the HAR, no reliability could be detected. Most IPs were of acceptable agreement, with the exception of bursitis and manure on the body. Bursitis showed great differences, which can be explained by difficulties in the assessment when the animals moved around or their legs were dirty. The disagreement in the parameter manure on the body can be explained by seasonal effects. Disagreement was further found concerning the parameters coughing, sneezing, pleuritis, pneumonia and milkspots. Feasibility was good; both observers could be well-trained to fulfil the protocol. Furthermore, the time needed for an assessment did not exceed 6 h. The parts of the protocol that proved to be insufficiently reliable need to be addressed in the future in order to enhance and improve the objective measurement of animal welfare.

In this study, we analysed the effects of social and human contact on calves ‘ behaviour and stress responses. We also measured the effect of this contact on calves ‘ reactions to novel conspecifics and novel humans. Sixty-four calves were housed either alone or in pairs and received either minimal human contact or ‘additional’ human contact (stroking and talking). At six, 10 and 14 weeks of age, the behaviour of the calves was recorded in their home pens. Calves were then tested in an unfamiliar arena either alone, with an unfamiliar calf, or with an unfamiliar man, and in a Y-maze with one arm leading to a calf and the other to a man. An adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) challenge was performed in order to assess chronic stress responses. Compared with individually housed calves, pair-housed calves were more active and made fewer contacts with their neighbours when in their home pens; they were also less active in the arena, spent more time near the calf in the Y-maze, and had lower Cortisol responses to ACTH. Calves that had received additional human contact interacted more with the man in the arena and had lower mean heart rates than those that had received minimal contact. This study confirmed that calves feel a need for social contacts and that pair-housing can lower the stress felt by calves separated from their conspecifics. Additional contact from stockpersons increases calves ‘ likelihood of approaching humans but cannot compensate for their lack of social partners. Hence, when calves are separated, the duration of the separation should be limited, and visual and physical contact with other calves should be provided.

Early research on farmed mink was predominantly concerned with increased productivity; however, in recent years there have been an increasing number of studies related to welfare. The biology of feral mink has also become better understood, and such knowledge can aid in the assessment of welfare on farms, or in the interpretation of problems related to captivity. This paper is a comprehensive review of research pertinent to the welfare of farmed American mink, Mustela vison, in relation to their housing and management. It indicates how housing conditions might be changed to improve welfare, and where our present knowledge is insufficient. Many significant aspects of mink behaviour in the wild, such as their lack of social contact, their tendency to travel long distances and use several den sites, and regular swimming and diving, are denied them in captivity. Farmed mink also show high levels of stereotypy, suggesting that their welfare is not good. Welfare may be improved by appropriate environmental enrichment and changes in the social environment of farmed mink. In general, studies aimed at improving housing conditions have been limited in scope and outlook.

The common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), introduced from Australia about 150 years ago, has become a major pest threatening the native biota of New Zealand. It is also an important disease vector, acting as a wildlife reservoir of infection. Conventional methods of control have had little effect on reducing the national population, so there is a quest to find more effective and humane methods. This has led to an upsurge in research aimed at increasing our knowledge of the biology of this marsupial, with an attendant increase in requirements for access to colony-housed animals.

Possums kept for research purposes have often been housed in individual cages, and several colonies have experienced high mortality rates. After capture, possums have shown inappetence, weight loss and a predisposition to infection, suggesting that this species is susceptible to post-capture stress. For our reproductive studies, research animals are only useful if maintained under conditions that ensure behavioural and physiological processes remain normal. We have adopted an ‘animal husbandry’ approach for our possum colony, where social interaction and the ability to exhibit instinctive behaviour patterns are considered as important as adequate nutrition and housing.

In this colony, group-housed possums show no signs of post-capture stress, and mortality rate has been less than one per cent (of > 600 animals housed to date). Virtually all possums gain weight over the first month of captivity. Procedures for monitoring, handling and the collection of data from these animals, are carried out with little apparent stress to either animals or staff.

A review of the literature was undertaken to consider the possible effects of human intervention (shepherding) at around the time of parturition in extensively farmed sheep. There is little clear empirical evidence to suggest that shepherding ensures either easy births or the integrity of ewe–lamb contact — factors closely linked to the welfare of the animals at this time. There is similarly no clear support for shepherding being harmful. However, the following suggestions are made: first, human presence can inhibit or delay parturition; second, extended parturition can increase the risk of, or is associated with, dystocia; and third, disturbance at birth can compromise ewe-lamb bonding and consequently lamb survival. Furthermore, sheep populations that have undergone rigorous selection for ease of lambing and minimal shepherding in extensive environments have well-documented physical and behavioural traits underlying their predisposition for enhanced lamb survival. Although our cultural legacy may impose a duty to intensively monitor animals at lambing, it is concluded that, at least in some situations, shepherding may not be entirely beneficial. The commonly held view of the necessity for some human intervention in extensive livestock systems is perhaps overly paternalistic, and requires a more comprehensive appraisal.

A review of the scientific literature gives evidence that transferring previously single-caged adult macaques to permanent compatible pair-housing arrangements (isosexual pairs, adult/infant pairs) is associated with less risk of injury and morbidity than transferring them to permanent group-housing arrangements. Juvenile animals can readily be transferred to permanent group-housing situations without undue risks. Safe pair formation and subsequent pair-housing techniques have been developed for female and male rhesus (Macaca mulatta), stump-tailed (M. arctoides) and pig-tailed macaques (M. nemestrina) as well as for female long-tailed macaques (M. fascicularis). Pair housing does not jeopardize the animals’ physical health but it increases their behavioural health by providing them with an adequate environment to satisfy their need for social contact and social interaction.

It is generally agreed that farm animal welfare is at a high level when the animals can behave naturally. Most of today's housing systems, however, differ considerably from the natural environment in which the behavioural organisation of the ancestors of our farm animal species evolved. Consequently, normal behaviour may be impaired in several ways. Frequency, duration or sequence of behavioural elements may be affected. Some normal behaviour patterns may not occur at all. The animals may also possibly behave in unnatural ways – in patterns that would never occur in nature. Furthermore, it is usual for farm animals to exhibit behaviour which is normal in form, but which is elicited by artificial structures within their housing system.

In view of these possible changes in normal behaviour, it is necessary to assess, for each farm animal species and each housing system, whether animal welfare is at risk in any way if the behaviour observed differs from the behaviour that would occur in a natural environment. In some cases the question can be answered by taking a theoretical evolutionary approach. In most cases, however, detailed knowledge about the behavioural organisation of the animals is necessary. Such knowledge is built up from animal motivation studies and investigations into the effect of environmental structures on animal behaviour.

A specific problem of on-farm animal welfare assessment is that there is often not enough time to collect sufficient data to make a judgement about the occurrence of normal behaviour. Resource-based assessment methods are appropriate as an alternative, provided that the resource standards used are based on evidence stemming from research into animal behaviour and motivation.

The influence of visitors on the welfare of captive animals, known as the visitor effect, may in some instances be stressful, adversely affecting animal health. Although the survival of many felid species depends on captive breeding programmes, little is known about this effect. A better understanding of the visitor effect is required to ensure the well-being of felids and the success of breeding programmes. We sought to determine whether the presence of visitors affects behaviour patterns and space use in five feline species in two Spanish zoos: Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), jaguar (Panthera onca), bobcat (Lynx rufus),ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) and Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica) and, if so, whether the effect on animal welfare is positive or negative. To our knowledge, no previous research has addressed the visitor effect in these species, with the exception of the jaguar. Data on animal behaviour, enclosure use, and visitor density were collected during the spring and summer of 2011 and 2012. Changes were observed for all studied species when the zoo was open to the public: four species devoted less time to complex behaviour (ie play, walk) and spent more time resting; ocelots and bobcats made more use of hidden spaces and less use of areas closer to visitors, while the jaguar tended to do the opposite. No correlation was found between visitor density and animal activity, indicating that animals are affected by the mere presence of visitors, regardless of their number. Our findings are in line with those reported by other authors, who have suggested that these behavioural changes are linked to chronic stress. Visitor effect was classed as negative for the welfare of all studied species apart from the jaguar. We advocate the need for future research into potential solutions to mitigate the adverse effect of visitors on felids.

A number of alternative farrowing systems have recently been developed, some of which have been more successful at improving welfare and productivity than others. It is argued that for a system to be successful it should meet with the behavioural requirements of the sow at this time. A number of studies have been carried out to observe the natural behaviour patterns of the peri-parturient sow in a wide range of environmental conditions. These studies have shown that during each phase of peri-parturient behaviour there are a number of key environmental features and conditions which are important to the sow. These include the social environment, shelter, nesting material and offspring interaction. This information can be useful in the design of farrowing systems. A review of the literature indicated that the more these conditions are met, the more readily the sow can adapt to the system, leading to improvements in maternal behaviour and piglet production.

Although bats are frequently admitted to rescue centres — mainly as orphans — very little information is available on their survival after release. Our study answered the following questions: i) do hand-reared bats survive over a short time; ii) which activities and habitat selection do they exhibit; iii) are bats loyal to the release area; and iv) are they able to join local colonies? We radio-tracked 21 hand-reared Pipistrellus kuhlii over a two-year period released on a site that differed from that where they were rescued. At the study site they were provided with the same bat boxes used in the rehabilitation room. Nineteen bats were confirmed to survive, stay in the area and actively forage over 4-14 days. Fourteen day roosts in buildings (nine of which hosted a local colony) were used by 12 subjects. Bats travelled less than 5 km in total each night; their most frequent activity was night roosting, followed by foraging and commuting. We recorded typical foraging behaviour, including hunting around street lamps at sites exploited by many conspecifics. A comparison of habitats available within individual home ranges with those within the study area showed that urban areas, riparian vegetation and farmland were equally important and preferred to woodland. When the foraging time spent in each habitat was compared with habitat composition within individual home ranges or within the study area, urban sites were preferred for foraging over all other habitats, followed by farmland and woodland and finally riparian vegetation. Overall, we showed that hand-raised orphaned P. kuhlii may readily adapt to environments they are not familiar with, exhibit a high short-term survival and select key resources in the release area, provided appropriate rehabilitation and training techniques are adopted.

Animal welfare enhancement requires that problems are reliably identified and ranked in order to prioritise corrective actions. Welfare problems vary with the conditions in which animals are maintained. The objectives were to highlight major welfare problems for dairy cows on farms in France, and find out how farm characteristics (housing and milking systems, breed) could impact specific welfare aspects on these farms. We conducted a cross-sectional survey on 131 French dairy farms. We used the Welfare Quality® protocol, which addresses all aspects of welfare, and yields scores for principles and criteria that represent how well farms meet welfare requirements (from 0 for a very adverse situation to 100 for an excellent one). We used descriptive statistics to highlight low welfare scores, and variance analyses to compare farms. Most farms were found ‘Acceptable’ according to the Welfare Quality® classification. Principles scores for Health, Feeding and Behaviour ranged from 33 to 39. The median score for eight of the welfare criteria was below 50 (‘Pain’, ‘Integument alterations’, ‘Diseases’, ‘Comfort around resting’, ‘Social behaviours’, ‘Human-animal relationship’, ‘Positive emotional state’, ‘Hunger’), while the median score was above 50 for the four other criteria (‘Thirst’, ‘Lameness’, ‘Expression of other behaviours’, ‘Ease of movement’). The scores varied widely between farms, within and between systems. Farms with cubicles obtained lower scores for ‘Comfort around resting’, ‘Injuries’; farms with Holstein cows obtained lower scores for ‘Hunger’; farms using an automatic milking system obtained lower scores for ‘Expression of other behaviours’ and ‘Diseases’ in Holstein herds. This survey yields information on bottlenecks in dairy cow welfare with all dimensions of welfare considered together. The results can be used by stakeholders to prioritise corrective actions in welfare plans, focusing either on the whole population of farms or on farms with characteristics that are at high risk for specific welfare problems.

In order to determine the stress response to disbudding, physiological and behavioural response was investigated in disbudded kids and compared with a control group. Disbudded kids (n = 14), were disbudded by thermal cauterisation, and control kids (n = 15) received the same management without being disbudded. Cortisol was measured at -20, -10 and 0 min (pre-treatment), 0, 10, 20 and 30 min as well as 1, 2, 3 and 4 h from disbudding. Frequency and intensity of the behavioural response (kicks, vocalisations) were also recorded during disbudding. Cortisol was higher in disbudded than in control kids during the first 2 h after disbudding. The cortisol area under the curve was 235% higher in disbudded compared to control animals (828 [± 67.4] and 350 [± 65] nmol L−1, respectively). Disbudded kids showed high intensity behaviours in a greater number of animals (100%) and with a greater frequency than controls. These results indicate the presence of acute stress and a potentially painful experience. In conclusion, disbudding in goat kids induces an acute cortisol increase, which lasts for a duration of 2-3 h and a significant behavioural response. This clearly suggests the necessity of using anaesthesia/analgesia to avoid pain and stress.

Repetitive ‘stereotyped’ behaviours are often performed by both wild and domestic rodents in small laboratory cages. In this study, a behaviour resembling a backwards somersault or backflip is described and quantified in captive roof rats (ship or black rats, Rattus rattus). Videotapes of captive-bred rat pups showed that repetitive backflipping developed rapidly after weaning. In all subjects, the behaviour was highly cyclical, with more than 90 per cent occurring during the dark phase of the light:dark cycle. Individual variability in the performance of backflipping was considerable but performance levels for each individual were consistent from day to day and at 30 and 60 days of age. Highly significant differences were found between litters (families), indicating important maternal and/or genetic effects on performance levels. Cage enrichment in the form of a wooden nest box resulted in dramatically lower rates of performance. Increased cage height resulted in delayed development of backflipping, as well as changes in the form of the behaviour. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that the development and expression of backflipping in young roof rats may be triggered by weaning and maintained by a heightened state of arousal in a relatively impoverished environment with limited opportunities for perceptual and locomotor stimulation.

The traditional concerns about farm animal welfare have centred around the impact of intensive environments and management practices on the animal. This emphasis on the physical environment is changing, however, with greater consideration being given to animal factors and in particular to the selective breeding of farm animals. In this paper we use examples from our own research on dairy cattle and sheep breeding that have made positive and practical contributions towards reducing welfare problems by creating more balanced breeding programmes. In both examples, inclusion of health and fitness traits into breeding indexes can be shown to be more profitable than selecting on production traits alone. In addition, we propose that in principle animal breeding combined with economics research can make a more general contribution towards resolving animal welfare issues, by providing a framework for the quantitative evaluation of the costs and benefits of an animal production system. The advantage of the approaches currently used in multi-trait selection is that they transform all traits (production-based or welfare-based) to a common currency allowing direct comparisons of costs and benefits. Currently the weights applied to traits reflect their economic value to the producer. This approach is likely to underestimate non-economic welfare aspects such as the pain or discomfort associated with lameness, and new approaches are needed to more fully account for these non-economic welfare costs. We therefore propose that consideration is given to the use of approaches such as contingent valuation, which has been widely used in economics to derive values for non-economic activities. The question of who would pay for the addition of these welfare costs to a breeding index remains open, but it would seem most reasonable to treat these as a public good and pay for them as such through appropriate mechanisms.