animal welfare in mega dairies
TRANSCRIPT
‘Welfare of Cattle’ in Commercial Dairy Operations
Khushboo Gupta &Coordinator-Farm Animals,FIAPO
Dr.M.L.KambojSenior ScientistLPM, NDRI
What is Animal Welfare?
• The ability of an animal to cope physiologically, behaviorally, cognitively and emotionally with its physiochemical and social life environment, including the animal’s subjective experience of its condition
(Gonyou, 1993; Duncan & Fraser,1997;Scott,2004)
• State of well-being, in which at least basic needs are met and suffering is minimized
(Spedding, 2000)
Oie- Office International Des Epizootieson Animal Welfare
“Animal welfare means how an animal is coping with the conditions in which it lives. An animal is in a good state of welfare if (as indicated by scientific evidence) it is healthy, comfortable, well nourished, safe, able to express innate behaviour, and if it is not suffering from unpleasant states such as pain, fear, and distress”
Good animal welfare requires disease prevention and veterinary treatment, appropriate shelter, management, nutrition and humane handling
Why Animal Welfare?• Animals are sentient beings: Emotional
aspect of using animals • The reality of dairy industry is different
from what is shown in advertisements for publicity of animal products
• Consumer awareness• “Well managed and gently handled
animals are productive than anxious animals , or those handled roughly”
(Pawelek & Croney,2003)
Indian dairy industry- A brief overview• India has a population of 199.1 Million cows
and 105.3 Million buffalos(2007 Census)• Prevalence of cross bred cows & various
breeds of buffalo • Dairying as a tool for rural empowerment-
livelihood & food security • Specially for small farmers • Shift in nature of dairying: from household
to commercial• Completely production oriented• Dairy industry superficially regulated
Prevailing Milk Production Systems{Typologies}
• Large commercial dairy• Urban & peri- urban dairy• Small holder backyard farmers• Government farms & breeding centres• Gaushalas
Milk production to be doubled by 2020
• Strengthening of present small holder in the country
OR
• Start large commercial units with numerous milk producing cows
Dairy Industry
But within this market…
Loser
Welfare considerations in commercial dairy operations
The Five freedomsIndicatorsPractices
The 5
Freedoms
Freedom from thirst, hunger and malnutritio
n
Freedom to express
normal behavior for the
species Freedom from fear
and distress
Freedom from pain, injury and disease
Freedom from
discomfort due to
environment
Freedom statement What it entails
Freedom from Hunger and Thirst Ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour
Freedom from Discomfort Providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area.
Freedom from Pain, Injury or Disease Prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment.
Freedom to Express Normal Behaviour Providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal's own kind.
Freedom from Fear and Distress Ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering.
Indicators of Reduced Animal Welfare
Behaviour Physical Physiological Production
Bar bitingTongue rollingWind suckingInter/Cross-
suckingEye rollingTail biting
CutInjury
Body damage
Reduced feed intake,
Immune suppression,
Adrenal activity altered
Milk production decreased,
Body Weight decreased,
Reproduction impaired,
Cheap milk is good but the cows are losing…….
Production & Reproduction
• Growth hormones - bST• Diet related/ nutritional problems
- challenge feeding, milk fever ( calcium intake vs milk extraction) etc
• ‘One calf an year’- Metabolism of animal & male calves- Longevity - Effect on consistent productivity
• Tie stalls “Mammary infections and/or teat injuries have been found into
be more common in cows kept in tie stalls compared to cows kept in free stalls or straw yards”
(Hultgren J.2002)• Lying space
“Lying behaviour plays a critical role in the production potential, profitability and welfare status of intensively managed dairy cattle. When cows are deprived of adequate lying time, their welfare may be reduced”
(Fregonesi & Leaver (2001) & Cooper et al. (2008) )
• Freedom of movement
Housing
Activity Time devoted to activity per day
Eating 3 to 5 h (9 to 14 meals/d)
Lying/resting 12 to 14 h
Social interactions 2 to 3 h
Ruminating 7 to 10 h
Drinking 30 min
Outside pen (milking, travel time) 2.5 to 3.5 h
Typical daily time budget for a lactating dairy cow
Grant and Albright, 2000
Relationship between resting time and milk yield in dairy cows Grant, 2004
Cows have a strong behavioral need to rest
Cows will take more rest when
• Microclimate inside the house is comfortable• Comfortable resting place is available• They are not over crowded• Surface of the floor is conducive for rest
- not hot in summers- not cool in winters- not slippery
In order to maximize milk production, a cow should spend over 12 hours, or more than 50% of her day, lying in a stall or a pasture
Ryan A., 2010
Flooring• Concrete floors
“ The presence of excreta on walking surfaces causes discomfort to cows and predisposes them to developing leg and foot problems” (Wells et al. 2008)
• The greater use of free stall housing with concrete floors may be contributing to reproductive loss.
(Phillips and Morris, 2001)
• Concrete flooring has also been blamed for a higher incidence of lameness in modern dairy cows
Lame cows with claw lesions (approximately 18% of the herd) were half as likely to conceive when compared to healthy cows(Hernandez et al., 2001)
Lameness
Calf Rearing• Separation from mother
(Day old weaning)
• Feed to calves-Biased feeding-Male in buffalos, female in local & draught breeds
• Male calves (young & adult) - Disposal in young and adult mainly in cross bred cows- Unwanted, uncared, unnourished, made to die
Other problems…• Inadequate feeding
-Increased aggression in the feeding area when cows are overcrowded has been noted by a number of researchers (Olofsson, 1999; DeVries et al., 2004; DeVries and von Keyserlingk, 2006,Huzzey et al., 2006)
• Frequent re -grouping• Locomotion and activity• Physical- Lameness, mastitis, tail docking,
de horning• Branding • Handling, transport & slaughter
Are current dairy production systems ethical?
Considerations:–Animal welfare
• Is the animal harmed? • Are the animals’ needs met?
–Human obligations• Are the animals being used
responsibly?• What is the impact on the
environment?(Croney,
2004)
Dairy operators’ approach to welfare
• Many would like to spend more on improving cow health and welfare
– But variation in attitudes
• Not always clear return on investment for health / welfare matters
Fears in adopting animal welfare
• Unclear about what it entails• Avoid making large, expensive
changes• Unaware of the impacts of poor
animal welfare• Misconception that animal
welfare is being taken care of
Who will improve the condition then?
Farmer?
Government?
NGOs?
Consumer?
Vets?
YOU can make a difference to lives of thousands of animals at dairies!
By enhancing your knowledge on animal welfareBy introducing your students to this concept &By including AW in course curricula- UG & PG
levelBy encouraging research in this areaBy publishing scholarly articles on ‘harmonizing
animal welfare in dairy operations’By vocalizing animal welfare at scientific foraBy advising commercial dairy operators to adopt
welfare practices
FIAPO’s efforts….
• Developing scientific scaling methods to assess welfare of dairy cows across different typologies of milk production units in India • Development of strategy to
promote animal welfare of dairy animals
Possible Strategy to promote AW
• Development of a national code of dairy standards• Incorporation of dairy standards in the Bureau of
Indian Standards• Up gradation of Registration of cattle premises rules• Work with Animal Husbandry departments to adopt
dairy code• AH depts. to include animal welfare indicators such
as housing and waste disposal as eligibility for dairy promotion schemes
Strategy continued…..• Invoke India’s commitment to international covenants
and treaties• IEC to farmers• Capacity building of cooperatives to ensure
functionaries to ensure compliance of animal welfare practices by their members.
• NIAW to run training programme on animal welfare best practices in dairy operations
• Consumer outreach & public awareness• Network of dairy scientists & progressive dairy farmers
Applying good animal welfare can be as simple as applying good husbandry practices on
consistent basis
Good animal welfare
EQUALS
Better health Improved productivity
Quality productsIncreased overall profitability