Joint Position Statement on \u27Project Wild\u27

Because of the strong biases reflected in the Project WILD materials and the lack of balancing which should be provided by alternate viewpoints and representative data, we oppose the use of public funds for the future purchase, distribution, and/or promotion and use of Project WILD materials without the addition of substantial acceptable balancing material. In those States and Provinces where the materials have already been purchased and distributed, we believe the States and Provinces accepting this material should promptly distribute acceptable balancing material and have it used by those teachers who are using the Project WILD guides. We also believe that animal-welfare organizations must be included on State and Provincial steering committees and as resource people at workshops designed to introduce the materials to teachers. In the unfortunate event that a State or Province refuses to use necessary balancing material, we believe that the Project WILD material should not be used in the interests of the integrity of the educational process

Evaluating the need for an animal welfare assurance programme in South Tyrolean dairy farming

Animal welfare assurance is of great importance as dairy farming is recently under increasing pressure to meet societal and commercial expectations. Therefore, this study aims to determine the current welfare situation of dairy cattle housed in tie-stalls and free stalls in South Tyrol (Eastern Italian Alps) in order to evaluate the need for establishment of an animal welfare assurance programme. For reasons of research economy, a protocol was used for data collection that would also be applicable for practical use in an animal welfare assurance scheme. Analyses of resource-based and animal-based indicators recorded in 204 farms in North and South Tyrol (1891 dairy cows) reveal some important animal welfare problems mainly related to the provision of resources and the prevalence of skin alterations especially in tie-stall barns, which are still widely spread in mountain areas. Hence, the implementation of an animal welfare assurance scheme is urgently needed to reflect public concerns through regular and standardised monitoring of welfare indicators and continuous encouragement of improvements in dairy cattle welfare towards predefined targets. Concerning tie-stalls, interventions in stall design as well as the selective use of local breeds best adapted to the mountainous conditions appear to be appropriate measures to optimise dairy cattle health and welfare. These findings substantiate the high value of the data that would be collected as part of the assurance programme to gain insights, which could be used in preventive and corrective health plans to improve welfare-friendliness in dairy farming of South Tyrol

Antibodies against Coxiella burnetii and pregnancy outcome during the 2007-2008 Q fever outbreaks in the Netherlands

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Q fever has become a major public health problem in the Netherlands. Infection with <it>Coxiella burnetii </it>(Q fever) during pregnancy has resulted in adverse pregnancy outcome in the majority of reported cases. Therefore, we aimed to quantify this risk by examining the earliest periods corresponding to the epidemic in the Netherlands.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Serum samples that had been collected from the area of highest incidence by an existing national prenatal screening programme and data from the Netherlands Perinatal Registry (PRN) on diagnosis and outcome were used. We performed indirect immunofluorescence assay to detect the presence of IgM and IgG antibodies against <it>C. burnetii </it>in the samples. The serological results were analyzed to determine statistical association with recorded pregnancy outcome.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Evaluation of serological results for 1174 women in the PRN indicated that the presence of IgM and IgG antibodies against phase II of <it>C. burnetii </it>was not significantly associated with preterm delivery, low birth weight, or several other outcome measures.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The present population-based study showed no evidence of adverse pregnancy outcome among women who had antibodies to <it>C. burnetii </it>during early pregnancy.</p

EFSA BIOHAZ Panel (EFSA Panel on Biologicial Hazards), 2013. Scientific Opinion on the public health hazards to be covered by inspection of meat (solipeds)

A risk ranking process identified Trichinella spp. as the most relevant biological hazard in the context of meat inspection of domestic solipeds. Without a full and reliable soliped traceability system, it is considered that either testing all slaughtered solipeds for Trichinella spp., or inactivation meat treatments (heat or irradiation) should be used to maintain the current level of safety. With regard to general aspects of current meat inspection practices, the use of manual techniques during current post-mortem soliped meat inspection may increase microbial cross-contamination, and is considered to have a detrimental effect on the microbiological status of soliped carcass meat. Therefore, the use of visual-only inspection is suggested for “non-suspect” solipeds. For chemical hazards, phenylbutazone and cadmium were ranked as being of high potential concern. Monitoring programmes for chemical hazards should be more flexible and based on the risk of occurrence, taking into account Food Chain Information (FCI), covering the specific on-farm environmental conditions and individual animal treatments, and the ranking of chemical substances, which should be regularly updated and include new hazards. Sampling, testing and intervention protocols for chemical hazards should be better integrated and should focus particularly on cadmium, phenylbutazone and priority “essential substances” approved for treatment of equine animals. Implementation and enforcement of a more robust and reliable identification system throughout the European Union is needed to improve traceability of domestic solipeds. Meat inspection is recognised as a valuable tool for surveillance and monitoring of animal health and welfare conditions. If visual only post-mortem inspection is implemented for routine slaughter, a reduction in the detection of strangles and mild cases of rhodococcosis would occur. However, this was considered unlikely to affect the overall surveillance of both diseases. Improvement of FCI and traceability were considered as not having a negative effect on animal health and welfare surveillance

Humane biology projects.

Includes bibliography.Mode of access: Internet

Comfortable quarters for laboratory animals.

Loose-leaf; kept up by supplements.Mode of access: Internet

Applied ethology – the basis for improved animal welfare in organic farming

Waiblinger, S., J. Baumgartner, M. Kiley-Worthington and K.Niebuhr (2004): Applied ethology – the basis for improved animal welfare in organic farming. In: M. Vaarst, S. Roderick, V. Lund and W. Lockeretz (eds.). Animal health and welfare in Organic Agriculture. CABI Publishing, Cambridge/USA, 117-161

Smart Technologies Lead to Smart Answers? On the Claim of Smart Sensing Technologies to Tackle Animal Related Societal Concerns in Europe Over Current Pig Husbandry Systems

Current pig production systems in Europe are subject to public criticism. At the same time, Precision Livestock Farming (PLF) technologies, which allow for automated animal monitoring are entering commercial pig farms. With their claim of improving animal health and welfare, these innovations may respond to public concerns. However, they may raise problems of societal acceptance themselves. In this review, we investigate whether the available literature allows for an analysis to which extent PLF can mitigate or reinforce societal concerns related to pig production. We first analyze papers on pig husbandry systems in general, and then those on PLF as an innovation in animal production. In general, there is a tension between citizens and farmers. Citizens hold rather negative attitudes whereas farmers evaluate pig production more positively. Literature on attitudes of other actors, such as veterinarians, is missing. Information on the attitudes toward PLF of stakeholders other than farmers is lacking. Possible challenges of societal acceptance of PLF and chances to overcome these are only discussed in theoretical approaches. We conclude that to analyze the role of PLF in addressing societal concerns over pig production, there is a need for further empirical research including attention to underlying values of all stakeholders. This should focus on the attitudes of the currently missing stakeholders toward pig husbandry in general, and on those of the wider society toward PLF. Only by means of additional data, it will be possible to evaluate whether PLF has the potential to address societal concerns related to pig production