Citizens' concerns about farm animal welfare are often dismissed on the assumption that they are not well informed about farming practices. We conducted exploratory surveys of interested citizens (n ...= 50) before and after a self-guided tour of a 500-head dairy farm. 'Before' survey questions explored perceptions, concerns, and values about dairy cattle farming and welfare, in addition to a short knowledge-based quiz on dairy cattle husbandry. An 'after' survey explored the extent to which these constructs shifted after the tour. Before, most participants correctly answered quiz questions about general feeding and housing practices, but scores were low on questions about specific practices such as cow-calf separation. Participants considered several elements as necessary for a 'good' life for dairy cattle: fresh food and water, pasture access, gentle handling, space, shelter, hygiene, fresh air and sunshine, social companions, absence of stress, health, and safety from predators. These elements reflect a diverse conception of animal welfare that incorporates values for physical and mental well-being, natural living, and humane care. The visit had a mixed effect on perceptions of whether dairy cows had a 'good' life, improving perceptions for a quarter of participants, worsening perceptions in a third, with no shift in the remaining participants. The visit appeared to mitigate some concerns (e.g., provision of adequate food and water, gentle humane care) while reinforcing or eliciting others (e.g., lack of pasture access, early cow-calf separation). Moreover, animal welfare-relevant values held by participants (e.g., natural living, care) appeared to play an important role in influencing perceptions of farm practices. These results suggest that education and exposure to livestock farming may resolve certain concerns, but other concerns will likely persist, especially when practices conflict with deeply held values around animal care.
Genetic modification of farm animals has not been well accepted by the public. Some modifications have the potential to improve animal welfare. One such example is the use of gene editing (i.e. ...CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)) to spread the naturally occurring POLLED gene, as these genetically hornless animals would not need to experience the painful procedures used to remove the horns or horn buds. The aim of the current study was to assess public attitudes regarding the use of GM to produce polled cattle. United States (US) citizens (n = 598), recruited via Amazon Mechanical Turk, were asked "Do you think genetically modifying cows to be hornless would be…", and responded using a 7-point Likert scale (1 = a very bad thing, 4 = neither good nor bad, 7 = a very good thing). Participants were then asked to indicate if they would be willing to consume products from these modified animals. We excluded 164 of the original 598 participants for not completing the survey, failing any of three attention check questions, or providing no or unintelligible qualitative responses. Respondents were then asked to provide a written statement explaining their answers; these reasons were subjected to qualitative analysis. Comparison of Likert scale ratings between two groups was done using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test, and comparisons between more than two groups were done using the Kruskal-Wallis rank test. More people responded that the modification would be good (Likert ≥ 5; 65.7%) than bad (Likert ≤ 3; 23.1%), and that they would be willing to consume products from these animals (Likert ≥ 5; 66.0%) versus not consume these products (Likert ≤ 3; 22.6%). Qualitative analysis of the text responses showed that participant reasoning was based on several themes including animal welfare, uncertainty about the technology, and worker well-being. In conclusion, many participants reported positive attitudes towards GM polled cattle; we suggest that people may be more likely to support GM technologies when these are perceived to benefit the animal.
Rats (Rattus norvegicus) bred for research are typically confined with their litters until weaning, but will spend time away from pups when given the opportunity. We aimed to assess how dam welfare ...is affected by the ability to escape from their pups. Rat dams (n = 16) were housed in cages either with or without an elevated loft. We measured time dams spent in lofts, time spent nursing, and affective states using elevated plus maze and anticipatory behavior testing. We predicted that 1) dams housed with lofts would use them increasingly as pups aged, 2) dams without a loft would spend more time passively nursing (i.e. initiated by pups rather than the dam) and more total time nursing as pups aged, and 3) dams housed with lofts would show evidence of a more positive affective state. Dams housed with lofts spent more time in the loft with increasing pup age; dams spent on average (mean ± SE) 27 ± 5% of their time in the loft when pups were 1 wk old, increasing to 52 ± 5% of their time at 3 wks. When pups were 3 wks old, dams with lofts spent less time passively nursing (10 ± 2% of total time, compared to 27 ± 4% for dams without a loft) and less time nursing overall (36 ± 4% of time versus 59 ± 2% for dams without a loft). Rats without loft access showed increased anticipatory behavior potentially indicative of negative affective state (24.5±1.8 behaviors per minute in wk 3 compared to 18.8±1.0 in wk 1). These findings indicate that rat dams in laboratories choose to spend time away from their pups when provided the opportunity, particularly later in lactation; an inability to do so is associated with increased passive nursing and negative affect.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) gradual-fill is commonly used to kill laboratory rats, but this use remains controversial due to a lack of agreement between studies. Inconsistencies may arise from differences ...in behaviors measured (e.g. active versus passive behaviors), in how rats cope with threats, or in rat sensitivity to CO2. The aims of the current study were to 1) describe active and passive responses during CO2 forced exposure, 2) determine if these responses are consistent within individuals and across aversive stimuli, 3) assess individual differences in aversion to CO2 in aversion-avoidance and approach-avoidance tests and 4) determine how responses in aversion tests relate to individual differences in behavior during forced exposure. Twelve Sprague Dawley female rats were exposed twice to three treatments: CO2, oxygen (O2), and fox scent, and were exposed to CO2 twice in each aversion test. The change in behavior from baseline was higher for rearing and locomotion when rats were exposed to CO2 than when exposed to O2 and fox scent. Responses varied among rats but were consistent across multiple tests within rats. For example, rearing was consistent within individuals between two exposures to CO2. Similarly, the strength of aversion was consistent within individuals across multiple exposures to CO2 in aversion-avoidance and approach-avoidance testing. Latency to avoid CO2 in aversion-avoidance tests was negatively correlated with rearing during CO2 forced exposure. Collectively, these results indicate that rat responses to CO2 vary between (but are consistent within) individuals, suggesting that rats vary in CO2 sensitivity. However, even the less responsive rats avoided CO2 concentrations far below those necessary to achieve unconsciousness, indicating that all rats likely experience negative states when euthanized with CO2.
One response to calls for increased openness in animal research is to make protocols publicly accessible, but it is unclear what type of input the public would provide if given this opportunity. In ...this study we invited public responses to five different research projects, using non-technical summaries intended for lay audiences. Our aim was to assess the potential for this type of public consultation in protocol review, and a secondary aim was to better understand what types of animal research people are willing to accept and why. US participants (n = 1521) were asked (via an online survey) "Do you support the use of these (insert species) for this research", and responded using a seven-point scale (1 = "No", 4 = "Neutral", and 7 = "Yes"). Participants were asked to explain the reasons for their choice; open-ended text responses were subjected to thematic analysis. Most participants (89.7%) provided clear comments, showing the potential of an online forum to elicit feedback. Four themes were prevalent in participant reasoning regarding their support for the proposed research: 1) impact on animals, 2) impact on humans, 3) scientific merit, and 4) availability of alternatives. Participant support for the proposed research varied but on average was close to neutral (mean ± SD: 4.5 ± 2.19) suggesting some ambivalence to this animal use. The protocol describing Parkinson's research (on monkeys) was least supported (3.9 ± 2.17) and the transplant research (on pigs) was most supported (4.9 ± 2.02). These results indicate that public participants are sensitive to specifics of a protocol. We conclude that an online forum can provide meaningful public input on proposed animal research, offering research institutions the opportunity for improved transparency and the chance to reduce the risk that they engage in studies that are out of step with community values.
Institutions that conduct animal research are often obliged to release some information under various legal or regulatory frameworks. However, within an institution, perspectives on sharing ...information with the broader public are not well documented. Inside animal facilities, managers exist at the interface between the people who conduct animal research and those charged with providing care for those animals. Their perception of transparency may influence their interpretation of the institutional culture of transparency and may also influence others who use these facilities. The objective of our study was to describe perceptions of transparency among animal research facility managers (all working within the same ethical oversight program), and how these perceptions influenced their experiences. Semi-structured, open-ended interviews were used to describe perceptions and experiences of 12 facility managers relating to animal research transparency. Four themes emerged from the participant interviews: 1) communication strategies, 2) impact on participant, 3) expectations of transparency, and 4) institutional policies. Similarities and differences regarding perceptions of transparency existed among participants, with notable differences between participants working at university versus hospital campuses. These results illustrate differences in perceptions of transparency within one institutional animal care and use program. We conclude that institutions, regulators and the public should not assume a uniform interpretation of a culture of transparency among managers, and that sustained communication efforts are required to support managers and to allow them to develop shared perspectives.
Many dairy cattle worldwide are housed in tiestalls, meaning that they are tethered by the neck to individual stalls. On some farms, tied cattle are permitted seasonal access to pasture, but ...otherwise their movements are restricted compared with cows housed in freestall barns or other loose housing systems. The aim of this systematic review is to summarize the scientific literature pertaining the welfare of tied dairy cattle through comparison with less-restrictive housing systems. Articles identified by PubMed and Web of Science underwent a 5-phase screening process, resulting in the inclusion of 102 papers. These papers addressed measures of welfare related to affective state, natural behavior, and health (with the lattermost category subdivided into hoof and leg disorders, lameness, mastitis, transition disease, and other diseases or conditions). Health was the most researched topic (discussed in 86% of articles); only 19% and 14% of studies addressed natural behavior and affective state, respectively. Our review highlights different health benefits for tethered and loose cattle. For example, tied cattle experience reduced prevalence of white line disease and digital dermatitis, whereas loose cattle experience fewer leg lesions and injuries. The prevalence of mastitis, transition diseases, and other conditions did not differ consistently across housing types. We found that the expression of certain natural behaviors, particularly those associated with lying down (e.g., time spent kneeling, unfulfilled intentions to lie down), were impaired in tiestalls. Articles addressing affective state found benefits to loose housing, but these studies focused almost exclusively on (1) physiological measurements and (2) cow comfort, a concept that lacks a consistent operational definition across studies. We call for future research into the affective state of tied cattle that extends beyond these explorations and employs more sophisticated methodologies.
Concern from the public is growing regarding early cow-calf separation, yet proponents of this practice maintain that artificial rearing is critical for cow and calf health. Early separation is ...assumed to reduce the risk of transfer of pathogens from dam to neonatal calf, but a wide range of health benefits associated with extended cow-calf contact has also been documented. The aim of this systematic review was to report and synthesize conclusions from the literature on dairy cow and calf health in conventional rearing versus cow-calf contact systems. Peer-reviewed, published manuscripts, written in English, directly comparing dairy cow or calf health in artificial versus suckling systems, were eligible for inclusion. We conducted 7 targeted searches using Web of Science to identify key literature on important health conditions. The resulting manuscripts underwent a 4-step appraisal process, and further manuscripts were sourced from reference lists. This process resulted in a final sample of 70 articles that addressed cow and calf health. Sufficient literature was available to assess mastitis in cows, and scours, cryptosporidiosis, Johne's disease, pneumonia, immunity, and mortality in calves. The results for cryptosporidiosis, pneumonia, immunity, and mortality were mixed, with some differences between studies likely attributable to flawed comparisons between cohorts. Overall, the articles addressing calf scours and mastitis pointed to beneficial or no effects of suckling. The studies addressing Johne's disease did not find cow-calf contact to be a significant risk factor. In conclusion, the scientific peer-reviewed literature on cow and calf health provides no consistent evidence in support of early separation.
People often express concern for the welfare of farm animals, but research on this topic has relied upon self-report. Facial expressions provide a quantifiable measure of emotional response that may ...be less susceptible to social desirability bias and other issues associated with self-report. Viewing other humans in pain elicits facial expressions indicative of empathy. Here we provide the first evidence that this measure can also be used to assess human empathetic responses towards farm animals, showing that facial expressions respond reliably when participants view videos of farm animals undergoing painful procedures. Participants (n = 30) were asked to watch publicly sourced video clips of cows and pigs undergoing common management procedures (e.g. disbudding, castration, tail docking) and control videos (e.g. being lightly restrained, standing). Participants provided their subjective rating of the intensity of 5 negative emotions (pain, sadness, anger, fear, disgust) on an 11-point Likert scale. Videos of the participants (watching the animals) were scored for intensity of unpleasantness of the participants' facial expression (also on an 11-point Likert scale) by a trained observer who was blind to treatment. Participants showed more intense facial expressions while viewing painful procedures versus control procedures (mean ± SE Likert; 2.4 ± 0.08 versus 0.6 ± 0.17). Participants who reported more intense negative responses also showed stronger facial expressions (slope ± SE = 0.4 ± 0.04). Both the self-reported and facial measures varied with species and procedure witnessed. These results indicate that facial expressions can be used to assess human-animal empathy.
The objectives of this study were to describe the incidence of postpartum disease and to evaluate the association with serum cholesterol concentrations during the first 3 weeks after calving in ...grazing dairy cows. The association between non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA), β-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA), calcium and postpartum diseases was also evaluated. A total of 307 Holstein dairy cows from 6 commercial grazing herds in Osorno, Chile, were monitored from calving until 21 days in milk. Cases of retained placenta, clinical hypocalcemia and clinical mastitis were recorded by the farmer using established definitions. Twice weekly, cows were evaluated for metritis by the same veterinarian based on vaginal discharge and body temperature. Postpartum blood samples were collected weekly and analyzed for serum concentrations of cholesterol, NEFA, BHBA and calcium. Cows were considered as having subclinical ketosis if BHBA >1.2 mmol/L, and subclinical hypocalcemia if calcium <2.0 mmol/L in any of the 3 weekly samples. Overall, 56% of the cows studied developed at least one clinical or subclinical disease after calving. Incidence of individual diseases was 8.8% for retained placenta, 4.2% for clinical hypocalcemia, 11.7% for clinical mastitis, 41.1% for metritis, 19.9% for subclinical hypocalcemia and 16.6% for subclinical ketosis. Lower postpartum cholesterol in cows was associated with developing severe metritis or having more than one clinical disease after calving. For every 0.4 mmol/L decrease in serum cholesterol cows were nearly twice as likely to be diagnosed with multiple clinical diseases after calving. Higher BHBA concentrations and lower calcium concentrations during week 1 were associated with severe cases of metritis. Low serum calcium concentration during week 1 was also associated with developing more than one clinical disorder after calving. In conclusion, the incidence of postpartum diseases can be high even in grazing herds and lower serum cholesterol concentrations were associated with occurrence of clinical postpatum disorders.
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