Assessing the Welfare of Dairy Cows
Assessing the Welfare of Dairy Cows: Surveying UK Dairy Farmer and Cattle Vet Opinion
This survey is part of a larger DairyCo-funded research project at the Royal Veterinary College Current on-farm welfare assessment protocols are often based on a large number of assessment criteria and consequently they can be lengthy and time-consuming to complete. The Royal Veterinary College’s research project aims to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of dairy cow welfare assessment, by developing and trialling the use of more succinct assessment protocols. To assist with the development of these succinct protocols the survey aims to identify the different criteria which UK dairy farmers and cattle vets use to assess the welfare of dairy cows on farm, and to identify which criteria are considered to be the most informative. It is expected that – along with enhanced dairy cow health and welfare, as a result of improved assessment techniques – this project will help reduce assessment time and costs, as well as reducing the amount of paperwork associated with on-farm welfare assessment. To thank you for your time and much valued input, upon completion of the questionnaire, you will be given the opportunity to enter into a prize draw to win £500. If you would prefer to complete an online version of this questionnaire, please go to the following web address: http://edu.surveygizmo.com/s3/841866/assessing-the-welfare-of-dairy-cowssurveying-uk-dairy-farmer-and-cattle-vet-opinion
By completing this questionnaire you are giving your consent to participate in the survey. In agreeing to participate you can be confident that:
Your data will be held in accordance with the UK Data Protection Act (1998) and EU Directive 95/46/EC; Your data will be stored securely and anonymously; Your data will only be used for the stated research purposes.
1) 'Animal welfare' can mean different things to different people. In your opinion would you
agree or disagree that the following are adequate definitions of animal welfare? Strongly disagree
Disagree
Neither agree nor disagree
Agree
Strongly agree
Quality of life
The ability to express natural behaviour
Emotions; how an animal feels
How an animal is managed, treated and looked after
Physical health, function, fitness and performance/production
‘The five freedoms’ (which are freedom from hunger and thirst; freedom from discomfort; freedom from pain, injury and disease; freedom to express normal behaviour; and freedom from fear and distress)
2) Do you feel any additional definitions of animal welfare are missing from the above list? If
yes, please specify:
No Yes:
3) Out of the six possible definitions of animal welfare listed above - and any additional
definitions suggested - which definition do you consider to be the most accurate? (Please select one option).
Quality of life The ability to express natural behaviour Emotions; how an animal feels ‘The five freedoms’ How an animal is managed, treated and looked after Physical health, function, fitness and performance/production Other:
4) When assessing the welfare of an individual adult dairy cow, how often do you use each of
the following management based criteria? Never
Rarely
Sometimes
Often
Always
N/A
Access to pasture
Quality of stockmanship
Suitability of the environment (e.g., thermal and physical comfort, space, housing etc.)
Stocking rate
Cleanliness of the environment
Provision of appropriate resources (e.g., feed, water, bedding etc.)
5) When assessing the welfare of an individual adult dairy cow, how often do you use each of
the following physical health and appearance based criteria? Never
Rarely
Sometimes
Often
Always
N/A
Locomotion (i.e., mobility, lameness)
Coat condition, including hair loss
Rumen fill
Mortality
Body condition score
Dung (e.g., colour, consistency etc.)
Injuries including skin and limb lesions
Hydration status (e.g., skin tent)
Mastitis (e.g., somatic cell count, teat/udder tenderness or pain)
Cow cleanliness
Longevity
Disease (excluding mastitis)
Body temperature
Fertility/reproductive performance (e.g., calving interval, conception rates etc.)
Respiratory rate
Milk yield
Appearance of the eyes
Teat and udder condition
Heart rate
6) When assessing the welfare of an individual adult dairy cow, how often do you use each of
the following behaviour based criteria? Never
Rarely
Sometimes
Often
Always
N/A
Feeding behaviour
Demeanour (e.g., general mood, attitude, alertness etc.)
Aggressive cow-cow interactions
Play behaviour
Chewing the cud/rumination
Posture when lying
Oestrous behaviour (e.g., bulling)
Rising behaviour
Positive cow-cow interactions (e.g., social grooming)
Vocalisations
Activity levels
Response to humans
Posture when standing
Status within the herd
7) When assessing the welfare of an individual adult dairy cow, do you use any additional
criteria to those listed in the 3 tables above? If yes, please specify:
No Yes:
8) When assessing the welfare of the adult dairy herd as a whole, do you use any additional
criteria to those listed in the 3 tables above? If yes, please specify:
No Yes:
The Royal Veterinary College’s research project aims to improve dairy cow welfare assessment by developing succinct assessment protocols. As it is important to ensure these protocols continue to provide us with an accurate picture of welfare, we need to identify and include the most informative welfare assessment criteria, i.e., we wish to identify and include criteria that provide us with an accurate picture of overall welfare as opposed to including criteria that are very specific.
1. Feeding behaviour
21. Locomotion (i.e., mobility, lameness)
2. Demeanour (e.g., general mood, attitude, alertness etc.)
22. Coat condition, including hair loss
3. Aggressive cow-cow interactions
23. Rumen fill
4. Play behaviour
24. Mortality
5. Chewing the cud/rumination
25. Body condition score
6. Posture when lying
26. Dung (e.g., colour, consistency etc.)
7. Oestrous behaviour (e.g., bulling)
27. Injuries including skin and limb lesions
8. Rising behaviour
28. Hydration status (e.g., skin tent)
9. Positive cow-cow interactions (e.g., social grooming)
29. Mastitis (e.g., somatic cell count,
10. Vocalisations
teat/udder tenderness or pain)
11. Activity levels
30. Cow cleanliness
12. Response to humans
31. Longevity
13. Posture when standing
32. Disease (excluding mastitis)
14. Status within the herd
33. Body temperature
15. Access to pasture
34. Fertility/reproductive performance (e.g.,
16. Quality of stockmanship 17. Suitability of the environment (e.g., thermal and physical comfort, space, housing etc.)
calving interval, conception rates etc.) 35. Respiratory rate 36. Milk yield
18. Stocking rate
37. Appearance of the eyes
19. Cleanliness of the environment
38. Teat and udder condition
20. Provision of appropriate resources (e.g., feed, water,
39. Heart rate
bedding etc.)
9) In your opinion, out of the 39 assessment criteria listed in the box above, which 5 criteria
provide the most accurate picture of overall welfare in an individual adult dairy cow? (Please select 5 options). 1) 2) 3) 4)
5)
10) Do you feel there are any additional criteria to those listed in the box above that also provide an accurate picture of overall welfare in an individual adult dairy cow? If yes, please specify:
No Yes:
11) In your opinion, out of the 39 criteria listed in the box above, which 5 criteria provide the
most accurate picture of overall welfare in the adult dairy herd as a whole? (Please select 5 options). 1) 2) 3) 4)
5)
12) Do you feel there are any additional criteria to those listed in the box above that also provide
an accurate picture of overall welfare in the adult dairy herd as a whole? If yes, please specify:
No Yes:
The next section asks you for a few personal details. All data collected will be stored securely and anonymously. 13) What is your profession?
Dairy farm manager Dairy stockman Cattle vet Other:
14) What is your sex?
Male Female 15) What is your age?
20 years or under 21-30 years 31-40 years 41-50 years 51 years or over 16) What is your country of residence?
England Wales Scotland Northern Ireland Other: 17) How many years of experience do you have working with dairy cows?
5 years or less 6-10 years 11-15 years 16-20 years 21 years or more 18) Are you involved with any of the following farm assurance schemes, for example, as an assessor, veterinary advisor or in any other role? (Please select all that apply).
I am not involved with any farm assurance schemes Red Tractor Farm Assurance Scheme RSPCA Freedom Food An organic accreditation scheme Other:
19) On average, how many hours per week do you spend observing and/or interacting with dairy cows?
20) Have you ever attended a workshop, event, course, lecture and/or discussion group in which you have learnt about or discussed dairy cow welfare assessment? If yes, please give details:
No Yes:
21) How did you hear about this survey?
The Royal Veterinary College BVA BCVA Veterinary Times Other:
Thank you for completing the survey! If you wish to be entered into a prize draw to win £500 please fill in your email address or telephone number below: Email address: Telephone number (including area code):
Completed questionnaires can be returned to Sophie Collins at the Royal Veterinary College by: Post:
Email: [email protected]
Fax: 01707 666298
Sophie Collins Centre for Animal Welfare The Royal Veterinary College North Mymms Hertfordshire AL9 7TA
The closing date for questionnaire return is 31 st May 2012. The winner of the prize draw will be notified by 30th June 2012. If you would like any additional information about the survey, or the Royal Veterinary College’s dairy cow welfare assessment project, please contact Sophie Collins at [email protected].
This survey is part of a larger DairyCo-funded research project at the Royal Veterinary College Current on-farm welfare assessment protocols are often based on a large number of assessment criteria and consequently they can be lengthy and time-consuming to complete. The Royal Veterinary College’s research project aims to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of dairy cow welfare assessment, by developing and trialling the use of more succinct assessment protocols. To assist with the development of these succinct protocols the survey aims to identify the different criteria which UK dairy farmers and cattle vets use to assess the welfare of dairy cows on farm, and to identify which criteria are considered to be the most informative. It is expected that – along with enhanced dairy cow health and welfare, as a result of improved assessment techniques – this project will help reduce assessment time and costs, as well as reducing the amount of paperwork associated with on-farm welfare assessment. To thank you for your time and much valued input, upon completion of the questionnaire, you will be given the opportunity to enter into a prize draw to win £500. If you would prefer to complete an online version of this questionnaire, please go to the following web address: http://edu.surveygizmo.com/s3/841866/assessing-the-welfare-of-dairy-cowssurveying-uk-dairy-farmer-and-cattle-vet-opinion
By completing this questionnaire you are giving your consent to participate in the survey. In agreeing to participate you can be confident that:
Your data will be held in accordance with the UK Data Protection Act (1998) and EU Directive 95/46/EC; Your data will be stored securely and anonymously; Your data will only be used for the stated research purposes.
1) 'Animal welfare' can mean different things to different people. In your opinion would you
agree or disagree that the following are adequate definitions of animal welfare? Strongly disagree
Disagree
Neither agree nor disagree
Agree
Strongly agree
Quality of life
The ability to express natural behaviour
Emotions; how an animal feels
How an animal is managed, treated and looked after
Physical health, function, fitness and performance/production
‘The five freedoms’ (which are freedom from hunger and thirst; freedom from discomfort; freedom from pain, injury and disease; freedom to express normal behaviour; and freedom from fear and distress)
2) Do you feel any additional definitions of animal welfare are missing from the above list? If
yes, please specify:
No Yes:
3) Out of the six possible definitions of animal welfare listed above - and any additional
definitions suggested - which definition do you consider to be the most accurate? (Please select one option).
Quality of life The ability to express natural behaviour Emotions; how an animal feels ‘The five freedoms’ How an animal is managed, treated and looked after Physical health, function, fitness and performance/production Other:
4) When assessing the welfare of an individual adult dairy cow, how often do you use each of
the following management based criteria? Never
Rarely
Sometimes
Often
Always
N/A
Access to pasture
Quality of stockmanship
Suitability of the environment (e.g., thermal and physical comfort, space, housing etc.)
Stocking rate
Cleanliness of the environment
Provision of appropriate resources (e.g., feed, water, bedding etc.)
5) When assessing the welfare of an individual adult dairy cow, how often do you use each of
the following physical health and appearance based criteria? Never
Rarely
Sometimes
Often
Always
N/A
Locomotion (i.e., mobility, lameness)
Coat condition, including hair loss
Rumen fill
Mortality
Body condition score
Dung (e.g., colour, consistency etc.)
Injuries including skin and limb lesions
Hydration status (e.g., skin tent)
Mastitis (e.g., somatic cell count, teat/udder tenderness or pain)
Cow cleanliness
Longevity
Disease (excluding mastitis)
Body temperature
Fertility/reproductive performance (e.g., calving interval, conception rates etc.)
Respiratory rate
Milk yield
Appearance of the eyes
Teat and udder condition
Heart rate
6) When assessing the welfare of an individual adult dairy cow, how often do you use each of
the following behaviour based criteria? Never
Rarely
Sometimes
Often
Always
N/A
Feeding behaviour
Demeanour (e.g., general mood, attitude, alertness etc.)
Aggressive cow-cow interactions
Play behaviour
Chewing the cud/rumination
Posture when lying
Oestrous behaviour (e.g., bulling)
Rising behaviour
Positive cow-cow interactions (e.g., social grooming)
Vocalisations
Activity levels
Response to humans
Posture when standing
Status within the herd
7) When assessing the welfare of an individual adult dairy cow, do you use any additional
criteria to those listed in the 3 tables above? If yes, please specify:
No Yes:
8) When assessing the welfare of the adult dairy herd as a whole, do you use any additional
criteria to those listed in the 3 tables above? If yes, please specify:
No Yes:
The Royal Veterinary College’s research project aims to improve dairy cow welfare assessment by developing succinct assessment protocols. As it is important to ensure these protocols continue to provide us with an accurate picture of welfare, we need to identify and include the most informative welfare assessment criteria, i.e., we wish to identify and include criteria that provide us with an accurate picture of overall welfare as opposed to including criteria that are very specific.
1. Feeding behaviour
21. Locomotion (i.e., mobility, lameness)
2. Demeanour (e.g., general mood, attitude, alertness etc.)
22. Coat condition, including hair loss
3. Aggressive cow-cow interactions
23. Rumen fill
4. Play behaviour
24. Mortality
5. Chewing the cud/rumination
25. Body condition score
6. Posture when lying
26. Dung (e.g., colour, consistency etc.)
7. Oestrous behaviour (e.g., bulling)
27. Injuries including skin and limb lesions
8. Rising behaviour
28. Hydration status (e.g., skin tent)
9. Positive cow-cow interactions (e.g., social grooming)
29. Mastitis (e.g., somatic cell count,
10. Vocalisations
teat/udder tenderness or pain)
11. Activity levels
30. Cow cleanliness
12. Response to humans
31. Longevity
13. Posture when standing
32. Disease (excluding mastitis)
14. Status within the herd
33. Body temperature
15. Access to pasture
34. Fertility/reproductive performance (e.g.,
16. Quality of stockmanship 17. Suitability of the environment (e.g., thermal and physical comfort, space, housing etc.)
calving interval, conception rates etc.) 35. Respiratory rate 36. Milk yield
18. Stocking rate
37. Appearance of the eyes
19. Cleanliness of the environment
38. Teat and udder condition
20. Provision of appropriate resources (e.g., feed, water,
39. Heart rate
bedding etc.)
9) In your opinion, out of the 39 assessment criteria listed in the box above, which 5 criteria
provide the most accurate picture of overall welfare in an individual adult dairy cow? (Please select 5 options). 1) 2) 3) 4)
5)
10) Do you feel there are any additional criteria to those listed in the box above that also provide an accurate picture of overall welfare in an individual adult dairy cow? If yes, please specify:
No Yes:
11) In your opinion, out of the 39 criteria listed in the box above, which 5 criteria provide the
most accurate picture of overall welfare in the adult dairy herd as a whole? (Please select 5 options). 1) 2) 3) 4)
5)
12) Do you feel there are any additional criteria to those listed in the box above that also provide
an accurate picture of overall welfare in the adult dairy herd as a whole? If yes, please specify:
No Yes:
The next section asks you for a few personal details. All data collected will be stored securely and anonymously. 13) What is your profession?
Dairy farm manager Dairy stockman Cattle vet Other:
14) What is your sex?
Male Female 15) What is your age?
20 years or under 21-30 years 31-40 years 41-50 years 51 years or over 16) What is your country of residence?
England Wales Scotland Northern Ireland Other: 17) How many years of experience do you have working with dairy cows?
5 years or less 6-10 years 11-15 years 16-20 years 21 years or more 18) Are you involved with any of the following farm assurance schemes, for example, as an assessor, veterinary advisor or in any other role? (Please select all that apply).
I am not involved with any farm assurance schemes Red Tractor Farm Assurance Scheme RSPCA Freedom Food An organic accreditation scheme Other:
19) On average, how many hours per week do you spend observing and/or interacting with dairy cows?
20) Have you ever attended a workshop, event, course, lecture and/or discussion group in which you have learnt about or discussed dairy cow welfare assessment? If yes, please give details:
No Yes:
21) How did you hear about this survey?
The Royal Veterinary College BVA BCVA Veterinary Times Other:
Thank you for completing the survey! If you wish to be entered into a prize draw to win £500 please fill in your email address or telephone number below: Email address: Telephone number (including area code):
Completed questionnaires can be returned to Sophie Collins at the Royal Veterinary College by: Post:
Email: [email protected]
Fax: 01707 666298
Sophie Collins Centre for Animal Welfare The Royal Veterinary College North Mymms Hertfordshire AL9 7TA
The closing date for questionnaire return is 31 st May 2012. The winner of the prize draw will be notified by 30th June 2012. If you would like any additional information about the survey, or the Royal Veterinary College’s dairy cow welfare assessment project, please contact Sophie Collins at [email protected].
