Assurance schemes as a tool to tackle genetic welfare problems in farm animals: broilers
Farm assurance schemes can set standards to assure compliance with specific requirements relating to animal welfare. As such, standards can be set to address genetic-related welfare problems in farm animals, such as those associated with fast growth rates in meat chickens (broilers) (Gallus gallus domesticus). Based on discussions with broiler breeding companies, broiler producers and […]
The performance of farm animal assessment
This paper argues that the current drive towards greater use of animal-based measures for welfare assessment raises important issues for how farm visits by welfare assessors are performed. As social scientists, we employ a number of contemporary social science ideas to offer a new approach to examining the practice and performance of farm animal assessment. […]
Applying animal-based welfare assessments on New Zealand dairy farms: feasibility and a comparison with United Kingdom data
AIMS: To assess the feasibility of applying animal-based welfare assessments developed for use in Europe on New Zealand dairy farms; in particular, to identify measures which could be evaluated during a single visit at milking time alongside whole herd locomotion scoring. METHODS: A protocol for animal welfare assessment, developed in the United Kingdom (UK), was […]