8. Animal Welfare
Research proposals on animal welfare were assessed under two categories, indicated by their identifier letters. These have been separated out in this document for ease of access.
8.1 FMA 150
Programme Title: |
Monitoring conditions on stock trucks with the aim of reducing animal suffering and stock losses. |
| Programme Leader: | Dr Lindsay Matthews |
| Institution: | AgResearch, Ruakura |
Programme Goal: To identify environmental conditions on transporters that pose a risk to animal welfare. This information will be suitable for use in identifying practical methods to monitor conditions on stock trucks and in developing relevant welfare codes.
Objective 1
Objective Title: Transport conditions and livestock welfare.
Research Leader: Dr Lindsay Matthews
Description:
Identify conditions which pose a risk to stock on trucks and cargo vessels, and ensure effective transfer of this information with the overall aim of reducing animal suffering and stock losses by:
- collating published information and practical knowledge of the relative risks to the welfare of cattle and sheep of environmental and other conditions on trucks and cargo vessels;
- ranking the importance of the range of conditions likely to pose a danger to stock;
- recording a range of conditions and their effects on welfare in situations of high and low risk to the welfare of animals;
- liaising with key industry stakeholders to develop support for assurance of high welfare standards for livestock on trucks and cargo vessels;
- passing the information on the relative importance of conditions posing a danger for animal welfare (and potential strategies to reduce the risks) to MAF in a report by 15 June 2000.
8.2 FMA 151
Programme Title: |
Assessment of calf castration methods. |
| Programme Leader: | Professor David Mellor |
| Institution: | Massey University |
Programme Goal: Using behavioural and physiological indices in 2-4 month old calves, assess acute castration distress, its alleviation by local anaesthetic, and the relative rates of healing of wounds caused by different methods.
Objective 1
Objective Title: Effects of method on castration distress in calves
Research Leader: Professor DJ Mellor
Description:
A MAF-funded survey of calf castration methods used in New Zealand revealed that 85% of 2,821 respondents who castrate calves do so using rings, 18% employ surgery and 1% castration clamp (note that some use more than one method). In addition, another methods, similar to ring castration, employing a ligature (Bander) in being promoted in New Zealand. Use of local anaesthetic (LA) is very low (3%). The majority castrate at 2-4 months of age.
The research will compare the acute cortisol responses of 2-4 month old calves to castration by:
- ring alone or ring with LA or LA + K;
- castration clamp alone or clamp with LA or LA + Ketoprofen (K);
- surgery (pull; spermatic cord severed by pulling) alone or surgery (pull) with LA or LA + K;
- surgery (clamp-cut: spermatic cords severed surgically) alone or surgery (clamp-cut) with LA or LA + K;
- Callicrate Bander alone.
LA will be injected 15 minutes before castration into the scrotal next, spermatic cords, testes and vaginal cavity of the scrotum. K will be injected at the same time. Control groups will include:
- handling control;
- LA control;
- LA + K control and ACTH (to stimulate a maximal cortisol response.
The total number of groups will be 17. Calf behaviour and healing of castration wounds will be examined at regular intervals during the 2 months after castration to assess whether any pain-associated behaviours can be linked with persistence of lesions in the scrotal area.
8.3 FMA 152
Programme Title: |
Near infrared spectrometry of faecal and blood samples for indicators of animal stress. |
| Programme Leader: | Dr Lindsay Matthews |
| Institution: | AgResearch, Ruakura |
Programme Goal: The development of rapid, low cost assays of animal stress indicators in faeces and blood using near infrared reflectance (NIR) and transmittance (NIT) spectrometry.
Objective 1
Objective Title: Innovative, low cost stress indicators.
Research Leader: Dr Catherine Morrow
Description:
Aim to develop low cost indicators for use in the field for monitoring animal welfare by:
- developing calibrations, or prediction equations, for NIR and NIT analysis of faecal and plasma samples, respectively;
- validating the utilisation of NIR and NIT analysis of faecal samples and plasma samples to quantify levels of stress in livestock;
- determining the usefulness of NIR/NIT analyses as low cost stress indicators;
- developing sample collection protocols for use by Animal Welfare Inspectors;
- investigating the feasibility of a contract laboratory service for Animal Welfare Inspectors.
8.4 FRM 401
Programme Title: |
Nose ringing of sows. |
| Programme Leader: | Neville Gregory |
| Institution: | AgResearch, Ruakura |
Programme Goal: To reduce the need for replacing nose rings and to reduce the number of rings used in the same animal.
Objective 1
Objective Title: Design and manufacture of new rings.
Research Leader: NG Gregory
Description:
Existing nose ring designs have the advantage that they can be inserted in one action which helps reduce the length of time the pig has to be restrained. Three new ring designs will be developed, keeping this advantage; two based on a C clip, the third a spectum ring made of plastic. Insertion and strength of the rings will be tested on heads of boars and sows from slaughter houses and one or more design will be manufactured with a sufficient number for selected farmers to test.
Objective 2
Objective Title: Field test of new ring(s).
Research Leader: NG Gregory
Description
Animal Ethics approval will be obtained before the new design of ring(s) will be distributed, with recommendations of how to attach, amongst farmers who have agreed to test them on their sows. Telephone interviews will be undertaken four months later to determine whether or not the new rings were successful and for comments on how they compared with the usual procedure each farmer uses.
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