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Stereotypies and responsiveness as welfare indicators in stall-housed sows

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 November 2017

D.M. Broom
D.M. Broom*
Affiliation:
Department of Pure and Applied Zoology, University of Reading, Reading RG6 2AJ
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Extract

Observations of the behaviour of confined sows provide information about how difficult it is for each individual to cope with the conditions in which it lives. Behaviour which has been described as occurring more frequently in confined sows than in sows with space to walk around includes stereotypies and apathetic behaviour. A stereotypy is a relatively invariate sequence of movements occurring so frequently in a particular context that it could not be considered to form part of one of the normal functional systems of the animal, feeding, body maintenance, reproduction, etc. (Broom 1983). The term apathetic behaviour has generally implied inactivity and lack of responsiveness. In this study, carried out at the Animal and Grassland Research Institute, the occurrence of stereotypies and the degree of responsiveness of stall-housed sows have been quantified.

Type
Pig Production
Information
Proceedings of the British Society of Animal Production (1972) , Volume 1986 , March 1986 , pp. 19
Copyright
Copyright © The British Society of Animal Production 1986

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References

Broom, D.M. 1983. Stereotypies as animal welfare indicators. Curr. Top. vet. Med. anim. Scl., 23, 81–87.Google Scholar
Broom, D.M. and Potter, M.J. 1984. Factors affecting the occurrence of stereotypies in stall-housed dry sows. Proc. Int. Cong. Appl. Ethol. Farm Animals, ed. Unshelm, J., van Putten, G. and Zeeb, K.. pp. 229–231. Darmstad:K.T.B.L. Google Scholar