11. Animal Welfare
Research proposals on animal welfare were assessed under a number of categories, indicated by their identifier letters. These have been separated out in this document for ease of access.
11.1 FRM 414
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| Programme Goal: | To provide a contemporary critical review of relevant literature on equine distal neurectomy. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Interpretative literature search on distal equine neurectomy |
| Research Leader: | Professor Elwyn Firth |
Description:
A literature search will be undertaken. This material will be read and interpreted and a draft written up. Clarification of the material and opinions will be undertaken by consultation with peers and MAF Policy. Conclusions will be drawn and the final draft prepared, then printed in suitable format.
11.2 FRM 416
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| Programme Goal: | To compare the costs of production between: high rise automated sheds, cage layer sheds, barn sheds and commercial free range layer systems. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Costs of egg production |
| Research Leader: | Jack Ripley |
Description:
To determine the costs of production for the four layer systems allowing for variable and overhead costs including allowances for capital. The reported costs will be on a case study basis and not necessarily represent averages for the different egg producing systems. The costs will include variable and overheads including allowances for the capital involved in the poultry enterprise.
11.3 FRM 415
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| Programme Goal: | To determine the incidence of clinical and sub-clinical mastitis on biodynamic/organic dairy farms. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Mastitis : a problem on biodynamic or organic farms |
| Research Leader: | Dr Kevin Stafford |
Description:
Clinical mastitis was the most important health problem on organic farms in England with between 19 and 103 cases per 100 cows (Weller and Cooper, 1996). On New Zealand biodynamic/organic farms antibiotics are rarely used as treated stock lose their certification for 12 months and may have to be held separated from the herd in quarantine paddocks. Therefore mastitis has to be prevented or treated using non-conventional therapies (homeopathy, herbs). Farmers (n=15) will be asked to keep a record of each case of clinical mastitis (cow number, date, method of treatment, outcome). Composite milk samples will be taken from ten heifers and ten cows on eight farms about 14 days after calving and again four weeks later for bacteriology. The herd and individual somatic cell counts will also be recorded for the 97/98 lactation.
11.4 FRM 413
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| Programme Goal: | Provide an outline and understanding of the potential animal welfare issues that could be confronting the fisheries and aquaculture industries in the future, and emphasise the inter-relationships between fish or crustacean welfare and product quality or yield. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Review fisheries and aquaculture welfare | |
| Research Leader: | Professor Neville Gregory |
Description:
The scientific literature on the behaviour of fish and crustaceans during marine and aquaculture harvesting and slaughter will be reviewed, along with the causes and consequences of preslaughter stress, trauma, shock, capture and killing on the potential welfare, quality and yield of the produce. This review could be used as a discussion document from which future outlooks about fish and crustacean welfare in the fisheries and aquaculture industries can develop.
11.5 FRM 412
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| Programme Goal: | To evaluate a body condition scoring system in terms of the composition of the carcass and the presence of measurable emaciation. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Condition score and composition |
| Research Leader: | Professor Neville Gregory |
Description:
End of lay hens will be scored for body condition on a 0, 1, 2 and 3 scale by palpating the keel and breast. The aim will be to select 10 birds in each of four grades. More than one breed will be represented. The forty birds will be killed and their carcases physically dissected into the major tissues which will be weighed (skin plus feathers, fat, muscle, bone). The average and range in % fat and % muscle in the empty body in each body condition score category will be determined. In this way the body condition scoring system will be validated against the composition of the carcass and the degree of emaciation in terms of body fat and skeletal muscle depletion.
Objective 2
| Objective Title: | Description of condition scoring system |
| Research Leader: | Professor Neville Gregory |
Description:
A representative carcass for each of the four body condition scores will be frozen and sectioned to display the contour of the keel and breast muscle. Photographs or diagrams will be prepared which will act as standards for the body condition scoring system. These diagrams could be included in a draft set of guidelines on how to use the body condition scoring system.
11.6 AMA 106
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| Programme Goal: | To assist farmers to improve their velveting techniques and compliance with the AWAC code of recommendations and minimum standards for the welfare of deer during the removal of antlers. |
| Collaboration: | Associate Professor Peter Wilson, Massey University |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Current practices for velvet removal |
| Research Leader: | Dr Lindsay Matthews |
Description:
Identify practices to improve farmer compliance with the AWAC code of recommendations and minimum standards for the welfare of deer during the removal of antlers by characterising techniques as used by a sample of veterinarians, for inducing analgesia using local anaesthetic prior to velveting.
This information will be utilised in conjunction with a GIB funded programme which aims to: facilitate quantification of the relative effectiveness of various techniques for inducing analgesia; identify the effect of chemical sedation on velvet analgesia; identify best practice for analgesia induction as used by veterinarians, and develop and recommend strategies in conjunction with regulatory, advisory and industry representatives for the implementation and use of "best practices" by farmers.
11.7 AMA 105
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| Programme Goal: | To improve assessments of acute distress caused by noxious husbandry procedures by measuring indices of rapid-onset 'fight or flight' responses (catecholamines, heart rate) in addition to the slower-onset cortisol responses. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Increasing indices of distress in lambs |
| Research Leader: | Professor David Mellor |
Description:
The acute responses to noxious experiences, whether or not they involve pain, have two well-recognised components: a rapid-onset 'fight or flight' response mediated by the sympathetic-adrenomedullary system, and a slower-onset cortisol response, mediated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical system, which creates favourable conditions for wound healing and effects extensive metabolic adjustments. Both are relevant to assessments of husbandry procedures, but cost and/or ease of measurement led to the cortisol response being emphasised to date.
The researchers will address the following questions.
General questions:
- To what extent do noxious husbandry procedures activate the rapid-onset 'fight or flight' response mediated by the sympathetic-adrenomedullary system?
- How do the features of the rapid-onset 'fight or flight' response and the slower-onset cortisol response (mediated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical system) compare?
Specific questions:
- What are the features of the 'fight or flight' response in lambs experiencing ischaemic pain caused by castration plus tailing with tight rubber rings?
- How do those features compare with the cortisol response of lambs to rubber rings castration plus tailing?
Objective 2
| Objective Title: | Increasing indices of distress in calves |
| Research Leader: | Professor David Mellor |
Description
The acute responses to noxious experiences, whether or not they involve pain, have two well-recognised components: a rapid-onset 'fight or flight' response mediated by the sympathetic-adrenomedullary system, and a slower-onset cortisol response, mediated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical system, which creates favourable conditions for wound healing and effects extensive metabolic adjustments. Both are relevant to assessments of husbandry procedures, but cost and/or ease of measurement led to the cortisol response being emphasised to date.
The researchers will address the following questions:
General questions:
- To what extent do noxious husbandry procedures activate the rapid-onset 'fight or flight' response mediated by the sympathetic-adrenomedullary system?
- How do the features of the rapid-onset 'fight or flight' response and the slower-onset cortisol response (mediated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical system) compare?
Specific questions:
- What are the features of the 'fight or flight' response in calves experiencing amputation pain caused by scoop dehorning with or without prior injection of local anaesthetic?
- How do those features compare with the cortisol response of calves to scoop dehorning with or without local anaesthetic?
- What characteristic behaviours occur in calves not handled after scoop dehorning, and how are they associated with the catecholamine and cortisol responses?
11.8 AMA 108
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| Programme Goal: | To examine the unloading of sheep, cattle, deer and pigs at ten meatworks. The aims are to identify key features which require attention and to highlight systems that work well and can be promoted as models of excellence. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Assessment of stock unloading | |
| Research Leader: | Professor Neville Gregory |
Description:
Three sheep, three cattle, two deer and two pig meatworks will be visited. The unloading of stock from the trucks will be examined at each meatworks, and the truckers and animal handling staff at the plant will be interviewed. Where appropriate, bruise trimming on the slaughterline will be examined. From the inspections and discussions a report will be prepared for each plant which will be confidential to that plant. Features will be selected from each report and used in preparing an overview for MAF. The overview will give a commentary on the findings, recommendations as to how systems could be improved and it will highlight the strengths of systems that are seen to be working well. The names of the plants will not be disclosed.
11.9 AMA 107
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| Programme Goal: | To prepare a set of practical guidelines for MAF veterinarians working in redmeat plants on how to assess the effectiveness of stunning and slaughter from the welfare perspective. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Prepare guidelines |
| Research Leader: | Professor Neville Gregory |
Description:
A set of inspector-friendly guidelines will be prepared which provides a systematic approach to the inspection of:
- stunning and slaughter equipment;
- animals immediately after stunning;
- animals during bleeding; and
- the sticking wound.
A description will be included of some of the ways in which stunning and slaughter can go wrong and what to look for in particular situations. The guidelines will be evaluated with selected MAF veterinarians.
11.10 AMA 104
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| Programme Goal: | To assess the efficacy and practicality of local anaesthetic injection at the time of ring application, instead of 15-20 minutes before it, to alleviate castration distress in lambs. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Alleviating lamb castration distress by local anaesthetic |
| Research Leader: | Professor David Mellor |
Description:
Prior MAF-supported work has demonstrated that intra-testicular or scrotal neck injections of lignocaine local anaesthetic (LA) 15-20 minutes before application of rubber rings to castrate lambs ages 5-7 weeks, abolished the cortisol response caused by ring application alone. If such a method were used on farms it would require double handling thereby making it practically less attractive. The researchers propose to test the effects on the cortisol response to ring castration plus tailing of injecting LA into scrotum (both vaginal cavities) 3-10 seconds before or into both testes 3-10 seconds after ring placement on the scrotal neck above the testes, and compare these cortisol responses with those of corresponding control, LA control and ring castrated plus tailed lambs. No LA will be given into the lambs' tails, but all lambs castrated will also be tailed with rings.
11.11 AMA 110
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| Programme Goal: | To develop a practical means of reducing pain at and after docking in lambs, by comparing behaviour of lambs docked with rubber rings either with or without prior administration of an oral (drench gun) dose of acetyl salicylate. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Acetyl salicylate for lambs at docking |
| Research Leader: | Dr Jo Pollard |
Description:
Lambs (n=48) aged 3-4 weeks, with their dams, will be studied in groups of 8. They will be housed indoors in group pens 4 days before docking (in the morning of Day 0) and for 3 days after docking. Pen floors will be covered in sawdust and haybales will be provided for lambs to play on. Within each group 4 lambs will be docked using rubber rings, and 4 will be control handled only. Two ring lambs and two control lambs will be given an oral (drench gun) dose of acetyl salicylate (eg., disprin) 10 minutes before docking, and remaining lambs will be dosed with water. On Day 2 the oral doses will be repeated 1 hour prior to release at pasture. A video camera will be used to record behaviour on and responses to ring application Days 0, 1, and 2. An observer will record behaviour following release to pasture on Day 2. Activities (including play, resting and sucking) will be compared between days and treatments.
11.12 AMA 109
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| Programme Goal: | To determine the relationships between the body condition scoring system for dairy cattle and the proportions of fat, muscle and bone in the body. |
Objective 1
| Objective Title: | Condition scoring and joint dissection | |
| Research Leader: | Professor Neville Gregory |
Description:
Cull dairy cows which are presented for slaughter at a meatworks will be body condition scored. Forty eight representative carcasses from the main body condition score categories will be selected and measured the following:
- side weight;
- carcass length;
- weight of KKCF;
- weight of mesenteric and omental fat; and
- subcutaneous fat thickness.
The prime rib will be taken as a sample joint and dissected into fat, muscle and bone and the weights recorded. From this the % fat and % muscle associated with each of the body condition scores will be estimated.
Contact for Enquiries
Farm Monitoring Programme Manager
Monitoring and Evaluation
MAF Policy
PO Box 2526
Wellington
NEW ZEALAND
Phone: +64 4 894 0623
Fax: +64 4 894 0741
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