I-17: Recent Developments in Animal Welfare Sciencee

The methodology for the scientific assessment of animal welfare has developed rapidly in recent years and has become a major scientific discipline. The concepts of welfare, need, stress, health, pain, emotion and feeling are now clarified. In teaching, legislation and practical work referring to animal welfare, a clear definition that can be related to other concepts is needed. The welfare of an animal is its state as regards its attempts to cope with its environment. Any veterinary, animal production or biology degree curriculum requires a course on the science of animal welfare and relevant aspects of ethics and law. The major role of animal welfare scientists is to provide objective information about the welfare of animals, so that decisions can be taken about how animals should be bred, housed and treated. Animals use a wide range of coping mechanisms and these involve high-level brain function, with associated good and bad feelings. Pathogens are important environmental challenges so all disease implies poor welfare. Health is an important part of welfare. Where welfare is poor, the best overall assessment of welfare is a function of the severity of effect on the individual and the duration of that effect. The balance of indicators of good welfare and poor welfare has to be assessed. The terminology from economics can describe motivation and hence what is important to animals. Much of the work in the field of animal welfare has been done on farm animals, but it is important to consider how the methods and approaches used can be adapted and applied to the measurement of welfare in animals in other domains, such as in laboratories. Methods of assessment of welfare in the places where animals are kept or used are also developing and will provide better tools for animal keepers and inspectors in future. Welfare-outcome indicators, especially those that are animal-based rather than resource-based, are useful for legislation