We investigated the ability of hooded crows to form transitive inferences. Subjects were trained to discriminate a series of overlapping pairs of stimuli: A+ B-, B+ C-, C+ D-, D+ E, where the letters stood for colour stimuli and plus and minus for rewarded or non-rewarded choices. The stimuli were cards of different colours with a circle of the same colour on the reverse side and diameters decreased from A to E. To preclude an influence of the reinforcement history on choices with the test pair BD, an overcompensation phase was instituted after training. It consisted of the presentation of all training pairs with frequencies selected so that the reward to non-reward ratios for stimulus D would be between 1.5 and 2.0 times greater than for B. If, during the BD test, the bird chose the stimuli according to these ratios they should prefer D. If they chose according to diameter relation they should prefer B. During these tests, the crows strongly preferred B over D (83.1%). In a second experiment, subjects were trained with the same procedure except that the diameters of the circles were all the same. During this test, the performance of two crows was not significantly different from chance level (53.1%), and the other two crows preferred D (80.0%). We conclude that crows can solve transitivity tests using cognitive mechanisms if they are offered additional information (in this case circle diameter) which, presumably, allows them to represent the relevant stimuli in an ordered series.

In the past decades the Three Rs concept, famously launched by Russell and Burch in their 1959 book The Principles of Humane Experimental Technique, has gained a prominent place in the landscape of societal and ethical concern about animal use. Important scientific and institutional initiatives have been taken in order to promote replacement, reduction and refinement. It appears, however, that conceptual and ethical thinking about the presuppositions and changing contexts of the Three Rs concept has lagged behind the scientific and practical efforts. In this paper, first, I argue that there is a threefold argument to make for the need to reconsider the moral basis of the Three Rs concept. Second, I outline a number of standard assumptions of the traditional approach to the Three Rs and question the tenability of these assumptions. Third, I propose some elements of a new framework for the Three Rs principle and connect this to a number of developments in science and society. I conclude with four remarks on the future of the ethics of the Three Rs principle.

A large range of variables can affect the welfare of the dairy cow, making it difficult to assess the overall ‘level of welfare’ of the individual animal. Two groups of individuals completed a questionnaire based upon the ‘five freedoms’: 26 respondents had expertise either in the field of dairy cow welfare or as practicing veterinary surgeons, and 30 were veterinary students in their penultimate year of study. Conjoint analysis was used to calculate the average importance scores (AIS) for 34 variables presented to the respondents as 52 ‘model cows’ in the form of grouped questions, phrases and pictures. Conjoint analysis identified the most important factors for each ‘freedom’: access to forage, body condition score, foot conformation, hock lesions, and the encouragement required for a dairy cow to walk into the parlour. There was a significant difference between the expert and student groups for seven out of 34 factors, which may be attributed to individual variation of opinion, knowledge, experience and expectation. The factors were ranked within each ‘freedom’ using the experts' AIS but it was not assumed that each freedom had equal ‘weight’; therefore, the factors within each freedom were compared only with factors within the same freedom. These scores produced a weighting scale, which was applied on-farm, in a preliminary exercise comparing ‘model’ and ‘perceived’ welfare scores.

Reversible contraceptives, such as melengestrol acetate (MGA) implants, have become an invaluable tool that captive-animal managers use to maintain various species in social groupings while avoiding unwanted pregnancies. The American Zoo and Aquarium Contraception Advisory Group (AZA CAG) monitors the efficacy, reversibility, and safety of contraceptives used in captive exotic mammals worldwide. Because so few data exist on contraceptive efficacy and safety in exotic species, it is critical that evaluations reflect an understanding of the mechanism of action of the active ingredient as well as of the delivery system. The following discussion addresses the concerns of the CAG over the manner in which De Vleeschouwer et al (Animal Welfare 2000, 9: 251-271) analysed MGA implant reversibility data in golden-headed lion tamarins.

Housing conditions can alter both the physiology and behaviour of laboratory animals. Forced-air-ventilated micro-isolation systems increase the efficient use of space, decrease the incidence of disease among laboratory rodents, and provide better working conditions for animal care staff; however, such systems can increase breeding variability and mortality. We examined the possibility that stressors associated with automated housing conditions evoke subtle changes among immune, endocrine, and behavioural parameters in mice housed in a static versus a forced-air-ventilated micro-isolation system. In addition, we assessed the effects of housing in the forced-air-ventilated micro-isolation system both with and without the use of an automatic watering system. Housing in the forced-air-ventilated micro-isolation system, using the automatic watering system, suppressed delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) responses, a measure of cell mediated immune function, compared with the responses of mice housed in static cages. Hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis function was also altered by housing in the forced-air-ventilated micro-isolation system with the use of the automatic watering system, such that mice in this housing system had lower resting corticosterone concentrations and increased reactivity to restraint. Despite these changes in corticosterone, housing condition did not alter activity level or exploratory, anxiety-like, or depressive-like behaviours. These results suggest that investigators should carefully consider housing conditions in studies of immune and endocrine function.

Nowadays in Europe, farmed blue foxes are kept for most of the year in wire-mesh cages furnished with a platform for resting and observing the environment but without any opportunity for hiding from other foxes or from man. We studied the welfare effects of providing an elevated platform and two types of concealment screens in singly housed juvenile male blue foxes (n = 46) from August to December. The foxes were allocated to four experimental groups: group C had no furnishing in the cage, group P had a platform in the cage, group U had a platform and a concealment screen in the cage, and group O had a platform and a concealment screen on the outer wall of the cage. The blue foxes with platforms (groups P, U and O) spent the majority of their time on the platforms both when their cages were approached by man and as revealed by 24 h video recording. The 24 h recordings revealed that the foxes tended to avoid those locations in the cage where the screens obstructed their view (groups U and O); however, when the screens allowed the foxes to hide from an approaching man (group U), they were used for that purpose to some extent. There were no differences between the four groups in terms of growth, increase in rectal temperature after an acutely stressing situation, adrenal size, or fearfulness. The urinary cortisol: creatinine ratio showed that foxes in group U may have been less stressed than those in groups P and O in September, but no differences were observed in October. The concealment screens of group U may have improved the welfare of these blue foxes.

Whaling continues despite a global moratorium, and the methods of slaughter used are a controversial welfare issue. If a whale is not killed instantly by an explosive harpoon, the Japanese use electric lances as a secondary killing device.

Video footage was obtained which documented the sequence of events in Japanese whaling operations, including the harpooning and application of electric lances to seven whales. A minimum time to death of each whale was estimated. To achieve immediate insensibility using electrical stunning, the electrodes must span the brain. This video revealed that electrodes tend to be placed between the pectoral and dorsal fins, and on the same side of the whale. In this case only a small proportion of current would pass through the brain, and ventricular fibrillation is unlikely. Previous work has shown that the currents used were likely to be 50-100 times too small to cause cardiac fibrillation or cerebral dysfunction.

A humane death cannot be achieved with inappropriate placement of lances and inadequate current application. A more effective secondary killing method is necessary.

Whether cattle grazing in nature reserves in temperate summers ought to be provided with artificial shelter (man-made), in addition to natural shelter (vegetation), is a topic of debate. We have investigated the effect of heat-load on the use of natural versus artificial shelter (with a roof and three walls) by cattle in eight nature reserves in Belgium. GPS collars were used to monitor use of open area, natural and artificial shelter during one or two summers (per 30 min). Cattle location data were coupled to same-time values of climatic ‘heat-stress indices’ calculated from local weather stations’ measurements of air temperature, air humidity, solar radiation and wind speed. Use of open area decreased as heat-load increased. The strength of the effect, and whether the cattle sought natural or artificial shelter, were associated with the amount and spatial distribution of natural shelter in the reserve. When natural shelter was sparse, a more scattered distribution tempered the increased use of shelter with increasing heat-load. If sufficiently available, cattle preferred natural to artificial shelter. When little natural shelter was available, cattle did use the artificial shelter and especially so with increasing heat-load. Microclimatic measurements indicated that solar radiation was blocked by vegetation at least as well as by artificial shelter, and allowed more evaporative cooling. In conclusion, we found no evidence for the added value of additional artificial shelter to protect cattle from heat-load in temperate nature reserves, as long as adequate natural shelter is available.

The effect of Farm Assurance (FA) assessors’ attitude to farm animal welfare on the inter-observer reliability of some welfare outcome measures achieved following training was investigated as part of a larger project examining the feasibility and benefits of the incorporation of some on-farm welfare outcome assessments into UK Pig Farm Assurance Schemes. A total of thirty-one FA assessors were trained in three training sessions to assess the following welfare outcome measures: body lesions, tail lesions, severe tail lesions, lameness and pigs requiring hospitalisation. Assessment of photographs, live observations of individual pigs and pens of pigs were used to generate inter-observer reliability data. A previously validated farm animal welfare questionnaire was used to assess the FA assessors’ attitudes to farm animal welfare. Principal Component Analysis of FA assessor scores for this questionnaire resulted in two major components, with component 1 termed ‘pigs have mental welfare’ and component 2 termed ‘people-centric, pigs as profit’. FA assessors demonstrated a range in attitudes to farm animal welfare and, when assessing the same pigs, recorded a range in prevalence of welfare outcome measures and degree of agreement with a gold standard following training. There were only seven out of a possible 98 significant correlations between the FA assessor scores for components 1 and 2 and their recorded prevalence of welfare measures and levels of agreement with a gold standard. In particular, FA assessors’ scores for component 1 were significantly positively correlated with the recorded prevalence for pigs requiring hospitalisation in two of the three training sessions although there was no effect on the agreement with a gold standard for this measure. These results indicate that training in welfare outcomes, defined by a standard protocol, is relatively unconfounded by observer attitudes to farm animal welfare. To obtain better levels of agreement between assessors, and therefore more reliable data, it is recommended that FA schemes concentrate their resources on providing good quality training in a well-defined protocol and reliability testing and that they do not need to attempt to account for the attitudes of the FA assessors to farm animal welfare.

The attitudes of experts towards the husbandry of captive Great Apes was sought in order to gain a greater understanding of the potential importance of different features of the captive environment that may be critical in maintaining a high standard of welfare. Following initial consultation with the convener of the Primate Taxon Advisory Group of the Australasian Regional Association of Zoological Parks and Aquaria, 17 husbandry attributes, such as social structure of the group, enclosure size and staff qualifications, each with two to four levels (ie husbandry scenarios) of possible provision in an enclosure were identified and described. An online survey using Adaptive Conjoint Analysis was distributed internationally to relevant stakeholders: zoo management staff, keepers and education staff, research colony personnel, veterinarians, animal welfare organisation representatives and scientists. A total of 359 respondents completed the survey, and the average importance values for the attributes, and rank order of importance for each of their levels were calculated. Great Ape social structure, enclosure appearance, group size, avoidance provision and enclosure furnishings were considered the most important attributes of captive Great Ape husbandry, whereas feeding interval, staff qualifications, the inclusion of plants within the enclosure, enrichment rotation, and the amount of time an animal spent in an outdoor enclosure were considered of low importance. The order in which these issues were ranked was influenced by the Great Ape species, with physical attributes of the enclosure being rated as more important for orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) and group social attributes more important for the other species. Stakeholder group had little influence on the ranking of issues. It is concluded that experts provided a consensus view on the importance of husbandry attributes of the different Great Ape species that can be used to evaluate their welfare.

The effect of pre-slaughter handling conditions and the RYR1 gene on blood Cortisol, lactate and creatine Phosphokinase (CPK) levels at exsanguination were assessed using 2,923 surveyed pigs from 106 deliveries to five Spanish abattoirs across two seasons. The relationship between blood parameters, carcase skin damage and pork quality traits was also assessed. The season influenced blood cortisol, lactate and CPK values. Females always showed higher concentrations of cortisol, lactate, and CPK than males. Pigs carrying the recessive allele of the RYR1 gene exhibited increased lactate and CPK concentrations but not cortisol. The cortisol concentration decreased in lean pigs that were slaughtered in winter after short lairage periods. The lactate concentration decreased with loading time and increased in summer with lairage time and carcase lean content. The CPK concentration increased with lairage time, carcase weight, and carcase lean content, and with the duration of winter transports. Each truck delivery only explained approximately 10% of the variance in blood parameters. Lairage time is the most influential pre-slaughter handling practice on the assessed welfare indicators. In addition, different optimal lairage times might be appropriate depending on season. Blood cortisol, lactate, and CPK concentrations increased concomitantly with skin damage score. Blood parameters were weakly correlated and they also showed low association with pork quality traits.

Low atmospheric pressure stunning (LAPS) is a slaughter technique which may be less stressful for pigs (Sus scrofa domestica) than current commercial stunning and slaughter methods. The main methods used currently for slaughtering pigs are electric and carbon dioxide stunning, both of which are widely recognised as stressful for pigs. There is currently no published research on the use of LAPS for stunning adult pigs, however there is a significant body of relevant experience from investigations into the effects of low pressure and hypoxia on humans, hypoxia for killing pigs and the use of LAPS for killing poultry, rats and piglets. In this paper, the basic physics and biology of LAPS is briefly reviewed and relevant experience from research with humans, poultry, rats and piglets is presented. On the basis of this information, some initial parameters for LAPS trials with pigs are proposed, potential welfare issues identified and an approach to achieving LAPS at a commercially viable speed is outlined. While the effects of LAPS on pigs is, at present, uncertain, the evidence from research with humans and other animals suggests that healthy, fasted pigs undergoing LAPS are unlikely to suffer from air hunger or from pain. Any pigs suffering from upper respiratory tract disease, tooth decay or excess gas in the alimentary canal may, however, experience pain. A total killing cycle is likely to require 9 to 14 min. To implement LAPS in a commercial, high throughput processing plant will require the use of multiple decompression cylinders. The evidence available suggests that LAPS could be commercially viable for pig slaughter and that for most pigs it will be less stressful than current commercial slaughter methods.

Assessments and predictions of patient quality of life (QoL) permeate many veterinary decisions, including (1) whether to perform a procedure due to concurrent QoL issues, (2) whether a procedure will negatively affect QoL in the near or distant future, and (3) whether QoL is poor enough to warrant euthanasia. In order to understand how veterinarians manage decisions relating to patient well-being, interviews with 41 veterinarians and over 100 hours of observations of 10 veterinarians were conducted. Participants held diverse views regarding the type of parameters that should be included when defining QoL. Interestingly, they also held differing views about who should be assessing patient QoL, with some participants believing that animals' owners were better able to assess patient QoL than veterinarians. For these veterinarians, respecting the client's autonomy in deciding what was best for the patient weighed heavily in their decisions. Other veterinarians felt that they, rather than the client, were the best assessors of QoL and felt justified in persuading clients to follow a certain course of action (often considered a paternalistic approach). These findings raise some interesting questions for the profession. What role should veterinarians play when assessing patient QoL? When is paternalism acceptable or even mandatory in veterinary medicine? Does respecting client autonomy also require an evaluation of the client's abilities to make appropriate decisions for the patient? The lack of uniformity in defining and assessing patient QoL highlights the need for increased dialogue with respect to veterinarians' responsibilities to both animals and clients.

The possibility of lessening the adverse welfare impact of artificial rearing was assessed in thirty Comisana lambs under conditions of ad libitum feeding. The lambs were assigned to a control dam-suckled group (DS) or to one of two test groups, each consisting of 10 animals. 18-24h after parturition, test lambs were separated from their dams: during the first postseparation week 10 subjects (EM) were offered ewe milk and the other 10 (MX) a 50:50 mix of ewe milk and a milk substitute. An artificial feeding system, to which the test lambs had free access, was filled with milk twice daily. After the first week, a transition from EM or MX to 100 per cent (reconstituted) milk substitute was carried out over 3 days in both test groups, gradually reducing the proportion of ewe's milk. In vivo cell-mediated immune response of lambs to phytohemagglutinin percutaneous injection were evaluated at 5, 15 and 25 days of age. At 10 and 20 days of age, all lambs were subjected to 15min isolation tests, during which latency to move, duration of movement and number of bleats were recorded. Blood samples were collected immediately before the test and 15 and 60min after, in order to assess the effect of differential rearing on the Cortisol response of animals at different ages. In addition, the weight gain of lambs was recorded during the first 35 days of age at weekly intervals. Latency to move and duration of movement were not significantly affected by the experimental treatment, whereas the number of bleats was higher (P < 0.001) in dam-suckled lambs compared to test lambs at both 10 and 20 days of age. Neither immune response nor Cortisol levels were affected by milk source. Although weight gain increased with increasing amounts of ewe's milk in the diet, the overall differences between the three groups were small and not significant. These findings suggest that the provision of ewe milk or a mix of ewe milk and a milk substitute during the first post-separation week can be a suitable strategy to sustain the welfare and production performance in the artificially reared lamb.

Approximately 1500 Minke whales are killed annually under permit from the International Whaling Commission (IWC). This hunt supports a modest industry in Norway and in Japan; however, the welfare of whales during hunting and killing is such a cause of concern that in 1980 the IWC formed a sub-group entitled ‘Working Group on Whale Killing Methods and Associated Welfare Issues’ devoted to discussing the issue. This commentary suggests that, when using the Norwegian penthrite grenade-tipped harpoon (‘Whalegrenade-99‘), it is necessary to hit a relatively well-defined target area in order to effect an immediately immobile, and presumed unconscious state in the Minke whale.

Two experiments were carried out to determine whether lighting conditions during handling affected heart rate or behaviour in farmed red deer. In Experiment 1 heart rate was measured in 24 individual deer, held under restraint in a mechanical deer crush for two minutes, under either dark (0lux) or light (1500lux) conditions. A stethoscope was used to monitor heartbeat which was indicated vocally by the stethoscope operator on to a Dictaphone. In Experiment 2, 10 groups of three deer were confined for four minutes in an unfamiliar 4×6m light-proof pen with lighting provided either on the left or right-hand side of the pen, to provide a gradient across the pen from approximately 12 to 1000lux. For the first two minutes the deer were alone and for the second two minutes a person stood in the pen. An infrared video camera was used to record behaviour.

In Experiment 1, heart rate was lower (P < 0.05) in the dark compared with in the light when recording commenced, thereafter it decreased overall with similar (P > 0.05) values observed for the different lighting treatments. In Experiment 2, the mean position of the groups across the pen varied according to whether lighting was on the left or right, with groups displaced to the right when the lights were on the left, and standing in the middle of the pen when the lights were on the right (P < 0.05). During testing, groups moved away from whichever side the lights were on (P < 0.05). The experiments suggested that stress during restraint was reduced by providing darkness and that deer preferred dim lighting compared with bright lighting when confined in unfamiliar surroundings.

Technological advances, such as radio-telemetry, have been increasingly employed for animal monitoring because they can furnish important information regarding the ecology and behaviour of various species. However, during a study on semi-domiciled domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus)conducted in an environmental protection area in Ilha Comprida, state of São Paulo, Brazil, we identified a case of dermatitis that was caused by a radio-collar, which was first noticed by the pet owner. This provided the opportunity for close observation not normally possible when these are used to track animals in the wild. It is our aim to bring the possibility that skin inflammation may develop when using radio-collars in radio-telemetry monitoring to the attention of other researchers. This finding highlights the need for greater attention to be paid to the use of this methodology, especially in the realm of wild animals.

Primates are bred in captivity for a number of purposes, from zoo-based captive breeding programmes for conservation to breeding for biomedical research. In each case, breeding animals that are fit for purpose, either as viable candidates for reintroduction or as valid research models, has presented challenges and resulted in steep learning curves. The breeding of animals for biomedical research has become increasingly focused on the production of animals that are less stressed by captive (specifically laboratory) environments. This is because elevated, particularly chronic, stress responses can result in altered physiological, neurological and behavioural states that have the potential to compromise the validity of scientific results. Selective breeding in captivity to, for example, maximise production, select for docile temperament or specific genotypes for biomedical research, is likely to be counter to natural selective pressures for evolutionary fitness. Given that many natural selective pressures active in the wild are absent in captivity, this paper reviews the selective breeding of primates (especially Old World monkeys) in captivity, its potential negative effects, and options that exist for ameliorating these negative effects.

This study into the behaviour of domestic cats (Felis catus) aimed to assess the relationship between behavioural expressions obtained via the Qualitative Behaviour Assessment (QBA) and quantitative outcomes of temperament tests. Four behavioural tests were used: Unfamiliar person (UP); Novel object (NO); Conspecific reaction (CR); and Food offering (FO) tests. Tests were filmed and assessed using an ethogram that included 25 discrete behavioural categories, generating quantitative information (coding method) on the existing temperament dimensions. Videos were also assessed by another observer using the QBA method, based on a list of 20 adjectives rated in visual analogue scales (rating method). Data were analysed using Principal Component Analysis. Spearman's rank correlation coefficients were used to relate the principal components (PC) of QBA to the temperament dimensions obtained with the coding method. The QBA allowed us to identify three PC, explaining 76.63% of the total variance. PC1 ranged from ‘calm/relaxed/friendly’ to ‘tense/fearful/alert’, reflecting the valence of cats’ behavioural and emotional expressions towards the stimuli tested. PC2 ranged from ‘indifferent’ to ‘agitated/active’, indicating the level of emotional arousal, and PC3 ranged from ‘aggressive’ to ‘suspicious’ and could be interpreted as an axis of ‘aggressiveness — caution’ in response to the stimuli. The first PC obtained for each test by using the coding method was significantly correlated with the PC1 of QBA, suggesting that the variations in cats’ behavioural and emotional expressions identified by QBA were correlated with the main quantitative outcomes of temperament tests traditionally applied for domestic cats. QBA could be a promising tool for identifying and differentiating cat temperament profiles. Further research is required to assess the potential use of QBA as a feasible and practical method for use in shelters.