Goat

Benchmarking enrichment efforts in the US & Canada across species and enrichment categories

Enrichment is important for animal welfare and data quality. Provision of enrichment opportunities varies between species and enrichment category. However, data benchmarking these differences does not exist. Our objective was to characterize enrichment provision and associated factors across species in...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Cat, Cattle, Chicken, Dog, Ferret, Goat, Macaque, Mink, Mouse, Nonhuman Primate, Rabbit, Rat, Rodent, Sheep

Citation: LaFollette, M. R., Cloutier, S., Brady, C. M. et al. 2023. Benchmarking enrichment efforts in the US & Canada across species and enrichment categories. JAALAS 62(4), 303–316.

Sedated cesarean sections are associated with increased kid survival compared to general anesthesia in goats: Retrospective cohort of 45 cases (2011–2021)

OBJECTIVE To determine whether anesthesia type (sedation or general anesthesia) affects kid survival to discharge in caprine cesarean sections (C-sections). ANIMALS Retrospective cohort of 99 caprine C-sections (2011–2021). PROCEDURES All surgeries were performed via left flank laparotomy in right lateral...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Anesthesia & Sedation, ReproductionAnimal Type: Goat

Citation: Elane, G. L., Portela, D. A., Hobbs, K. J. et al. 2023. Sedated cesarean sections are associated with increased kid survival compared to general anesthesia in goats: Retrospective cohort of 45 cases (2011–2021). Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 261(3), 391–396.

Overcoming the hurdles of lab animal enrichment: Natural behaviors vs. scientific need

The Animal Resources Core (ARC) at the Abigail Wexner Research Institute (AWRI) at Nationwide Children's Hospital (NCH) faces many of the same challenges other institutions manage in terms of enrichment for laboratory animals. A Behavior Assessment Team (BAT) was developed...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Environmental EnrichmentAnimal Type: Chinchilla, Fish, Goat, Mouse, Pig, Rabbit, Rat, Rodent, Sheep, Zebrafish

Citation: Mantz, M., Pugerud, A. 2024. Overcoming the hurdles of lab animal enrichment: Natural behaviors vs. scientific need. Laboratory Animal Science Professional 12(1) (January/February), 32-34.

The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory and Other Research Animals (9th ed.)

The latest edition of the seminal reference on the care and management of laboratory and research animals. The newly revised ninth edition of The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory and Other Research Animals delivers an up-to-date...

Year Published: 2024Topics: Animal Training, Environmental Enrichment, Euthanasia, Housing, Husbandry & Management, Natural Behavior, Relocation & Transport, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Amphibian, Bird, Capuchin, Cat, Cattle, Cephalopod, Crustacean, Dog, Equine, Ferret, Finch, Fish, Fowl, Frog & Toad, Gerbil, Goat, Guinea Pig, Hamster, Invertebrate, Lizard, Macaque, Marmoset, Mole Rat, Mouse, Nonhuman Primate, Other Animal, Other Bird, Other Fish, Other Nonhuman Primate, Other Rodent, Pig, Rabbit, Rat, Reptile, Rodent, Sheep, Snake, Tree Shrew, Turtle & Tortoise, Vervet (African Green Monkey), Zebrafish

Citation: Golledge, H., Richardson, C. (Eds.) 2024. The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory and Other Research Animals (9th ed.). Wiley-Blackwell. 1040 p.

The legislative, ethical, and conceptual importance of replicability in farm animal welfare science

In this commentary, we discuss three replicability issues that are specifically relevant to research regarding farm animal welfare: (1) Legislative action, and its potential economic consequences, should derive from robust and replicable research to benefit animals kept in an industrial...

Year Published: 2020Topics: Regulations & Ethical ReviewAnimal Type: Cattle, Chicken, Equine, Fowl, Goat, Pig, Sheep

Citation: Nawroth, C., Gygax, L. 2020. The legislative, ethical, and conceptual importance of replicability in farm animal welfare science. agriRxiv 2020, 20203211980.

The role of sound in livestock farming—Selected aspects

To ensure the optimal living conditions of farm animals, it is essential to understand how their senses work and the way in which they perceive their environment. Most animals have a different hearing range compared to humans; thus, some aversive...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Husbandry & Management, VocalizationAnimal Type: Cattle, Chicken, Equine, Fowl, Goat, Pig, Sheep

Citation: Olczak, K., Penar, W., Nowicki, J. et al. 2023. The role of sound in livestock farming—Selected aspects. Animals 13(14), 2307.

The welfare of domestic goats (Capra hircus) in a zoo-based animal-visitor interaction program

We investigated whether the welfare of domestic goats in an animal-visitor interaction experience at a zoo was affected by the presence and behavior of visitors. We considered how the number of visitors in the goats' habitat and visitor proximity to...

Year Published: 2021Topics: Handling, Human-Animal InteractionAnimal Type: Goat

Citation: Ramont, M., Leahy, M., Cronin, K. A. 2021. The welfare of domestic goats (Capra hircus) in a zoo-based animal-visitor interaction program. Animal Behavior and Cognition 8(4), 493–506.

Lateralised behavioural responses in livestock to environmental stressors: Implications for using infrared thermography to assess welfare conditions

Lateralised behavioural responses to environmental stressors have become more frequently used as indicators of social welfare in animals. These lateralised behavioural responses are under the control of asymmetrical brain functions as part of the primary functions of most vertebrates and...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Cattle, Chicken, Equine, Fowl, Goat, Pig, Sheep

Citation: Goma, A. A., Uddin, J., Kieson, E. 2023. Lateralised behavioural responses in livestock to environmental stressors: Implications for using infrared thermography to assess welfare conditions. Animals 13(23), 3663.

Animal agency, animal awareness and animal welfare

In nature, animals need to actively engage with the environment in order to prosper in survival and reproduction. Hence, agency is a central adaptive characteristic of animal life. In this paper, I propose that from the adaptive/functional point of view,...

Year Published: 2019Topics: Emotion, Pain, & Sentience, Environmental Enrichment, Natural BehaviorAnimal Type: All/General, Cattle, Chicken, Equine, Fowl, Goat, Pig, Sheep

Citation: Špinka, M. 2019. Animal agency, animal awareness and animal welfare. Animal Welfare 28(1), 11–20.

Gradually weaning goat kids may improve weight gains while reducing weaning stress and increasing creep feed intakes

Most dairy goat farms rear kids on ad libitum milk replacer; calf research suggests this improves growth and welfare, but solid feed intakes are problematic. Weaning can be gradual (incremental milk reduction) or abrupt (sudden, complete milk removal, which evidence...

Year Published: 2023Topics: Rearing & WeaningAnimal Type: Goat

Citation: Vickery, H. M., Neal, R. A., Stergiadis, S. et al. 2023. Gradually weaning goat kids may improve weight gains while reducing weaning stress and increasing creep feed intakes. Frontiers in Veterinary Science 10, 1200849.