Holistic Approaches to Optimal Wellbeing of Ageing Wild Animals
Promoting good wellbeing in ageing animals benefits from a holistic approach considering a wide spectrum of physical and psychological aspects, through the lens of 24/7 across lifespan. A particular focus on the hours care staff is not usually at a facility is key, and professional zoos endeavour to provide animals with choice and control to […]
The Future of Artificial Intelligence in Monitoring Animal Identification, Health, and Behaviour
With many advancements, technologies are now capable of recording non-human animals’ location, heart rate, and movement, often using a device that is physically attached to the monitored animals. However, to our knowledge, there is currently no technology that is able to do this unobtrusively and non-invasively. Here, we review the history of technology for use […]
Development of a noncontact and long-term respiration monitoring system using microwave radar for hibernating black bear
Abstract 10.1002/zoo.20229.abs The aim of this study is to develop a prototype system for noncontact, noninvasive and unconstrained vital sign monitoring using microwave radar and to use the system to measure the respiratory rate of a Japanese black bear (Ursus thibetanus japonicus) during hibernation for ensuring the bear’s safety. Ueno Zoological Gardens in Tokyo planned […]
Further role of zoos in conservation: Monitoring wildlife use and the dilemma of receiving donated and confiscated animals
Abstract 10.1002/zoo.20040.abs The role of zoos in conservation has evolved. Additional roles that zoos can play in conservation include monitoring live wildlife use (one of the main threats for many species). Zoos in many parts of the world are offered animals by the public and are required to receive animals confiscated by the authorities. By […]
The pitfall with PIT tags: marking freshwater bivalves for translocation induces short-term behavioural costs
Tagging animals is frequently employed in ecological studies to monitor individual behaviour, for example postrelease survival and dispersal of captive-bred animals used in conservation programmes. While the majority of studies focus on the efficacy of tags in facilitating the relocation and identification of individuals, few assess the direct effects of tagging in biasing animal behaviour. […]
The motivation of group-housed laboratory mice to leave an enriched laboratory cage
Animals used in research are often housed in small, barren cages. Providing environmental enrichment should improve their welfare, and a consequence of this might be a reduction in the animal’s motivation to leave an enriched cage. I examined this possibility by housing laboratory mice, Mus musculus, in a cage that provided cagemates, food, water, large […]
Inter-observer and test-retest reliability of on-farm behavioural observations in veal calves
The objective of this study was to investigate inter-observer and test-retest reliability of different behavioural observations to be used in an on-farm, animal welfare monitoring system for veal calves. Twenty-three veal calf farms, varying in size, housing system, feeding regime and age of the calves were visited twice with two observers, simultaneously. Behavioural tests were […]
Animal-based parameters are no panacea for on-farm monitoring of animal welfare
On-farm monitoring of animal welfare is an important, present-day objective in animal welfare science. Scientists tend to focus exclusively on animal-based parameters, possibly because using environment-based parameters could be begging the question why welfare has been affected and because animal-based parameters would be better indicators of welfare. However, selection of even the best animal-based parameters […]
Evaluation of the acute phase protein haptoglobin as an indicator of herd health in slaughter pigs
Health is an important aspect of animal welfare, which is difficult to assess at herd level. Clinical examination of individual animals is time-consuming, and most measures of clinical herd health depend significantly on the examiner. Acute phase proteins are produced during inflammatory processes, and could therefore be used as general markers of infection and injury. […]