Welfare parameters in dairy cows reared in tie-stall and open-stall farming systems: pilot study

ABSTRACT. Animals can experience pain or distress as a result of widely accepted management practices. In dairy cattle, housing system can affect animal welfare. The assessment of animal welfare requires the use of multiple indicators in order to analyse the heterogeneity of the aspects involved. The aim of this study was to compare the welfare of dairy cows reared in a tie-stall (TS) and open-stall (OS) system by metabolic, immunological and stress related parameters. The study involved 80 pluriparous lactating cows belonging to eight dairy farms located in the area of Mugello (Florence, Italy) reared in TS and OS systems. Ten blood samples were collected at morning time to measure alanine-aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate-aminotransferase (AST), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), β-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA), creatinine (Creat), non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA), total proteins (TP), calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K), serum lisozyme (SL), bactericidal activity (SBA), haptoglobin (Hp), oxygen free radicals (OFR), and hair cortisol levels. At the same time a body condition score (BCS) was recorded. Statistical analysis was performed by ANOVA. The experiment was carried out in accordance with European Commission regulations (Directive 2010/63/EC and Directive 98/58/EC). The results showed that the housing system affected various parameters such as ALT, BHBA, OFR, cortisol (P≤0.01) and AST, BUN (P≤0.05). Most of these parameters showed mean values within the range of reference without revealing any signs of suffering. An interesting outcome regarded the OFR levels, which was higher in the OS system (68.2±34.51 U.Carr. vs 36.1±21.39 U.Carr.), probably as a consequence of the high productive effort. In conclusion, it is possible to state that TS did not show a comparable overall situation with serious signs of welfare impairment

Welfare parameters in dairy cows reared in tie-stall and open-stall farming systems: pilot study

ΔΕΝ ΥΠΑΡΧΕΙ ΠΕΡΙΛΗΨΗAnimals can experience pain or distress as a result of widely accepted management practices. In dairy cattle, housing system can affect animal welfare. The assessment of animal welfare requires the use of multiple indicators in order to analyse the heterogeneity of the aspects involved. The aim of this study was to compare the welfare of dairy cows reared in a tie-stall (TS) and open-stall (OS) system by metabolic, immunological and stress related parameters. The study involved 80 pluriparous lactating cows belonging to eight dairy farms located in the area of Mugello (Florence, Italy) reared in TS and OS systems. Ten blood samples were collected at morning time to measure alanine-aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate-aminotransferase (AST), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), β-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA), creatinine (Creat), non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA), total proteins (TP), calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K), serum lisozyme (SL), bactericidal activity (SBA), haptoglobin (Hp), oxygen free radicals (OFR), and hair cortisol levels. At the same time a body condition score (BCS) was recorded. Statistical analysis was performed by ANOVA. The experiment was carried out in accordance with European Commission regulations (Directive 2010/63/EC and Directive 98/58/EC). The results showed that the housing system affected various parameters such as ALT, BHBA, OFR, cortisol (P≤0.01) and AST, BUN (P≤0.05). Most of these parameters showed mean values within the range of reference without revealing any signs of suffering. An interesting outcome regarded the OFR levels, which was higher in the OS system (68.2±34.51 U.Carr. vs 36.1±21.39 U.Carr.), probably as a consequence of the high productive effort. In conclusion, it is possible to state that TS did not show a comparable overall situation with serious signs of welfare impairment

Gut microbiome structure and adrenocortical activity in dogs with aggressive and phobic behavioral disorders

Accompanying human beings since the Paleolithic period, dogs has been recently regarded as a reliable model for the study of the gut microbiome connections with health and disease. In order to provide some glimpses on the connections between the gut microbiome layout and host behavior, we profiled the phylogenetic composition and structure of the canine gut microbiome of dogs with aggressive (n = 11), phobic (n = 13) and normal behavior (n = 18). Hormones\u2019 determination was made through Radio Immuno-Assay (RIA), and next generation sequencing of the V3\u2013V4 gene region of the bacterial 16S rRNA was employed to determine gut microbiome composition. Our results did not evidence any significant differences of hormonal levels between the three groups. According to our findings, aggressive behavioral disorder was found to be characterized by a peculiar gut microbiome structure, with high biodiversity and enrichment in generally subdominant bacterial genera (i.e. Catenibacterium and Megamonas). On the other hand, phobic dogs were enriched in Lactobacillus, a bacterial genus with known probiotic and psychobiotic properties. Although further studies are needed to validate our findings, our work supports the intriguing opportunity that different behavioral phenotypes in dogs may be associated with peculiar gut microbiome layouts, suggesting possible connections between the gut microbiome and the central nervous system and indicating the possible adoption of probiotic interventions aimed at restoring a balanced host-symbiont interplay for mitigating behavioral disorders

Effect of visitors on the behaviour of three Asian small\u2010clawed otters Aonyx cinereus at Cattolica Aquarium

he Asian small\u2010clawed otter Aonyx cinereus is classified as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the presence of visitors on the behavioural repertoire of three Asian small\u2010clawed otters at Cattolica Aquarium, Italy. Observational data sampling took place over two periods of 11 days each. The first period was in August when the Aquarium was open and there were visitors present (open period = OP). The second period was between September and October, on days when the Aquarium was closed to visitors (closed period = CP). Focal sampling was integrated with behaviour sampling during data collection. To evaluate the significant differences in frequency and duration of behaviours during the OP and CP periods, a Wilcoxon Signed Rank test was performed. The results of this study showed that the absence of visitors stimulated significant differences in frequency and duration of activity (such as \u2018locomotion\u2019 and \u2018waiting\u2019) and social behaviours (such as \u2018play\u2019). The otters also spent significantly more time visible than \u2018out of sight\u2019 when there were no visitors present. This preliminary research provides information that may influence the way zoos and aquatic parks manage their otters, and contributes to the improvement of the welfare of animals in human care

CORTISOL CONCENTRATION IN HAIR AND FAECES AS ANIMAL WELFARE INDICATOR IN ORGANIC DAIRY COWS

Abstract: Cortisol is frequently used to detect changes in the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA), which in turn regulates many biological processes such as energy balance, reproduction or immune responses, but it is also activated by stress conditions. For many years, cortisol was measured primarily in blood, saliva or urine, whereas later approaches added other matrices as hair and faeces for non-invasive monitoring of HPA functioning. The aim of this study was to investigate the cortisol concentration of dairy cows reared in organic farming system obtained from two different matrices: hair and faeces. The study involved 20 cows from two organic farms located near Florence (Mugello area). Samples of hair were taken from the tail switch and faeces were directly picked up from the rectum ampule. Hair cortisol extraction and determination were performed according to validated methods. ANOVA test was applied to check differences between hair ad fecal cortisol. Significant differences were observed between the two biological matrices (1.6 vs 1.0 pg/mg respectively for hair and fecal cortisol), nevertheless the scored levels did not indicate a state of animal suffering

CORTISOL CONCENTRATION IN HAIR AND FAECES AS ANIMAL WELFARE INDICATOR IN ORGANIC DAIRY COWS

Cortisol is frequently used to detect changes in the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitaryadrenal axis (HPA), which in turn regulates many biological processes such as energy balance, reproduction or immune responses, but it is also activated by stress conditions. For many years, cortisol was measured primarily in blood, saliva or urine, whereas later approaches added other matrices as hair and feces for non-invasive monitoring of HPA functioning. The aim of this study was to investigate the cortisol concentration of dairy cows reared in organic farming system obtained from two different matrices: hair and feces. The study involved 20 cows from two organic farms located near Florence (Mugello area). Samples of hair were taken from the tail switch and feces were directly picked up from the rectum ampule. Hair cortisol extraction and determination were performed according to validated methods. ANOVA test was applied to check differences between hair ad fecal cortisol. Significant differences were observed between the two biological matrices (1.6 vs 1.0 pg/mg respectively for hair and fecal cortisol), nevertheless the scored levels did not indicate a state of animal suffering