Rearing & Weaning

Effects of different feed types on intestinal microbial community diversity and intestinal development of newborn Siamese crocodiles

Conventional alligator farming, characterized by reliance on chilled fish meat, faces significant challenges, including risks of bacterial contamination and nutritional imbalances. These issues heighten increasing disease susceptibility and threaten industry sustainability, underscoring the critical need for developing nutrient-dense, low-pathogenicity compound...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Husbandry & Management, Rearing & WeaningAnimal Type: Crocodile & Alligator, Reptile

Citation: Zhang, X., Wu, J., Wang, C. et al. 2025. Effects of different feed types on intestinal microbial community diversity and intestinal development of newborn Siamese crocodiles. Journal of Zoological and Botanical Gardens 7(1).

The influence of environmental conditions and husbandry practices on goat welfare

Goat (Capra hircus) welfare is an important issue in any farming system. The aim of the study was a comprehensive analysis of the impact of environmental factors and farming practices on the welfare of goats, with particular attention to physical,...

Year Published: 2026Topics: Body Modification/Mutilation, Environmental Enrichment, Human-Animal Interaction, Husbandry & Management, Rearing & Weaning, Social Housing & Companionship, Welfare AssessmentAnimal Type: Goat

Citation: Pilarczyk, R., Bąkowska, M., Tomza-Marciniak, A. et al. 2026. The influence of environmental conditions and husbandry practices on goat welfare. Animals 16(5).

Effects of hand-rearing and group size on chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) social competence in captivity

The behavior of individual animals reflects both internal states and external context. For captive animals, their early life experiences can influence later adjustment, particularly their social competence. In addition, the way in which they are housed and their current social...

Year Published: 2026Topics: Rearing & Weaning, Social Housing & CompanionshipAnimal Type: Chimpanzee, Nonhuman Primate

Citation: Murray, L. E. 2026. Effects of hand-rearing and group size on chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) social competence in captivity. Animals 16(2).

Musical stimulation in lactating sows affects pre-weaning piglet mortality and maternal behavior

Functional veterinary music, defined as music specifically designed in its tempo, rhythm, harmonic structure, and frequency ranges to modulate animal emotional states and behavior, has emerged as an innovative strategy for managing lactating sows. Exposure to functional music in other...

Year Published: 2026Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Rearing & WeaningAnimal Type: Pig

Citation: Montoya-Zuluaga, J., Álvarez-Hernández, N., Betancourth-Chaves, P. et al. 2026. Musical stimulation in lactating sows affects pre-weaning piglet mortality and maternal behavior. Scientific Reports 16(1), 4049.

Temperature-dependence of early development of zebrafish and the consequences for laboratory use and animal welfare

Zebrafish (Danio rerio) are widely used in biological research, but the impact of incubation temperatures on developmental endpoints is still insufficiently studied. This study quantifies developmental differences in zebrafish embryos incubated at 26°C and 28°C, focusing on key endpoints (heartbeat...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Rearing & WeaningAnimal Type: Fish, Zebrafish

Citation: Miller, A., Schröder, K. L., Braun, K. E. et al. 2025. Temperature-dependence of early development of zebrafish and the consequences for laboratory use and animal welfare. PLOS ONE 20(12), e0340193.

The successful introduction of an early rabbit to human habituation programme to reduce stress and aggressive behaviour

Rabbits as a species, are naturally overly sensitive to stress which is a source of concern and consideration for the use in research settings; both in terms of their interaction with humans, and in terms of the quality of the...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Human-Animal Interaction, Rearing & WeaningAnimal Type: Rabbit

Citation: Mikkelsen, L. F., Rudolph, T., Ganivet, I. et al. 2025. The successful introduction of an early rabbit to human habituation programme to reduce stress and aggressive behaviour. Scandinavian Journal of Laboratory Animal Science 51, 33–37.

Main husbandry practices and health conditions that affect welfare in calves: A narrative review

Calf welfare is critically influenced by early-life husbandry practices and health conditions. This narrative review synthesizes current evidence on key management practices affecting calf welfare, including calving, colostrum intake, milk feeding, water provision, weaning, housing, mutilations, and transport. A structured...

Year Published: 2025Topics: Body Modification/Mutilation, Housing, Husbandry & Management, Rearing & Weaning, Relocation & TransportAnimal Type: Cattle

Citation: Mainau, E., Goby, L., Manteca, X. 2025. Main husbandry practices and health conditions that affect welfare in calves: A narrative review. Animals 15(21).

The inoculation fallacy: why early enrichment cannot compensate for poor adult environments

Early-life environmental enrichment (EE) is widely promoted as a route to building resilience and competence, yet these benefits rarely persist when adult environments lack opportunities for agency. Resilience and competence are behavioral properties of current reinforcement contingencies, not internal traits....

Year Published: 2026Topics: Environmental Enrichment, Rearing & WeaningAnimal Type: All/General

Citation: Parker, M. O. 2026. The inoculation fallacy: why early enrichment cannot compensate for poor adult environments. Behavior Analysis in Practice.

The effect of rearing environment on feather pecking in young and adult laying hens

Although the rearing period has an important influence on the development of feather pecking in laying hens, few studies have quantified the risk factors operating on commercial farms during this time and identified their long-term impact. Our aim was to...

Year Published: 2013Topics: Abnormal/Problematic Behavior, Husbandry & Management, Natural Behavior, Rearing & WeaningAnimal Type: Bird, Chicken

Citation: Gilani, A.-M., Knowles, T. G., Nicol, C. J. 2013. The effect of rearing environment on feather pecking in young and adult laying hens. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 148(1), 54–63.

The use of hides during and after calving in New Zealand dairy cows

Isolation during calving is a common dairy cow behavior, however it has not been examined in large outdoor group settings. The provision of “hides” was monitored for its impact on calving location and cow–calf behavior. Stocking density and bedding management...

Year Published: 2020Topics: Housing, Husbandry & Management, Rearing & Weaning, ReproductionAnimal Type: Cattle

Citation: Zobel, G., Proudfoot, K., Cave, V. et al. 2020. The use of hides during and after calving in New Zealand dairy cows. Animals 10(12), 2255.