Human-Animal Interactions with Bos taurus Cattle and Their Impacts on On-Farm Safety: A Systematic Review.

Cattle production necessitates potentially dangerous human-animal interactions. Cattle are physically strong, large animals that can inflict injuries on humans accidentally or through aggressive behaviour. This study provides a systematic review of literature relating to farm management practices (including humans involved, facilities, and the individual animal) associated with cattle temperament and human's on-farm safety. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) was used to frame the review. Population, Exposure, and Outcomes (PEO) components of the research question are defined as "Bovine" (population), "Handling" (exposure), and outcomes of "Behaviour", and "Safety". The review included 17 papers and identified six main themes: actions of humans; human demographics, attitude, and experience; facilities and the environment; the animal involved; under-reporting and poor records; and mitigation of dangerous interactions. Cattle-related incidents were found to be underreported, with contradictory advice to prevent injury. The introduction of standardised reporting and recording of incidents to clearly identify the behaviours and facilities which increase injuries could inform policy to reduce injuries. Global differences in management systems and animal types mean that it would be impractical to impose global methods of best practice to reduce the chance of injury. Thus, any recommendations should be regionally specific, easily accessible, and practicable.

Health and welfare of rabbits farmed in different production systems.

The AGRI committee of the European Parliament requested EFSA to assess the welfare of rabbits farmed in different production systems, including organic production, and to update its 2005 scientific opinion about the health and welfare of rabbits kept for meat production. Considering reproducing does, kits and growing rabbits, this scientific opinion focusses on six different housing systems, namely conventional cages, structurally enriched cages, elevated pens, floor pens, outdoor/partially outdoor systems and organic systems. To compare the level of welfare in the different housing systems and rabbit categories, welfare impact scores for 20 welfare consequences identified from the literature were calculated, taking their occurrence, duration and severity into account. Based on the overall welfare impact score (sum of scores for the single welfare consequences), obtained via a 2-step expert knowledge elicitation process, the welfare of reproducing does is likely (certainty 66-90%) to be lower in conventional cages compared to the five other housing systems. In addition, it is likely to extremely likely (certainty 66-99%) that the welfare of kits is lower in outdoor systems compared to the other systems and that the welfare is higher in elevated pens than in the other systems. Finally, it is likely to extremely likely (certainty 66-99%) that the welfare of growing rabbits is lower in conventional cages compared to the other systems and that the welfare is higher in elevated pens than in the other systems. Ranking of the welfare consequences allowed an analysis of the main welfare consequences within each system and rabbit category. It was concluded that for reproducing does, as well as growing rabbits, welfare consequences related to behavioural restrictions were more prominent in conventional cages, elevated pens and enriched cages, whereas those related to health problems were more important in floor pens, outdoor and organic systems. Housing in organic rabbit farming is diverse, which can result in different welfare consequences, but the overall welfare impact scores suggest that welfare in organic systems is generally good.

Evaluation of veterinary antimicrobial benchmarking systems at farm-level in Europe: implications for the UK ruminant sector.

BACKGROUND: A number of European countries currently conduct mandatory farm-level benchmarking for antimicrobial usage (AMU). This review describes the systems used, with emphasis on metric type and practical implications. METHODS: This report describes examples of four types of metrics used to measure AMU: count-based, mass-based, daily dose-based and course-based, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. RESULTS: The Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark and Switzerland use daily dose-based metrics to benchmark AMU at farm-level, but each country diverges from the European Surveillance of Veterinary Antimicrobial Consumption methodology in its own way, including how the population 'at risk' is calculated. Germany operates a count-based system. Threshold AMU values have been specified at farm-level in the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark, and action is required from producers to reduce AMU above these values. The Netherlands and Belgium also benchmark veterinarians. CONCLUSIONS: For mixed species farms common in the UK and Ireland, splitting AMU by species is recommended. It is also recommended that high priority critically important antimicrobials are benchmarked separately to other antimicrobials. No one metric is optimum; however, for ruminant livestock a daily dose-based metric allows for country-specific adaptations which may allow a higher degree of precision at farm-level benchmarking in the UK and Ireland.

Artificial Grass as an Alternative Laneway Surface for Dairy Cows Walking to Pasture.

Softer surfaces can alleviate pressure on the claw during claw-surface contact, which is especially important for cows with painful claws. The benefits of softer barn floors are well known, but as cows often walk long distances twice daily between pasture and parlour, laneway surfaces are also important. In trial 1, we evaluated the gait of 69 cows on a standard (stone dust-over-gravel) laneway and an artificial grass laneway. Greater speed and longer strides were interpreted as indicators of a more suitable surface. Walking speed was greater on artificial grass than on the standard laneway (p = 0.001, median artificial grass: 1.46 m/s [interquartile range (IQR): 1.39-1.54], standard 1.40 m/s [IQR: 1.30-1.48]). No significant stride length increase was detected (p > 0.10, 158 cm [IQR:151-166] versus 155 cm [IQR:149-164]). In trial 2, we evaluated cow preference by giving 66 pairs of cows four consecutive choices between the standard laneway and artificial grass. Artificial grass was preferred overall (median stretches of artificial grass used out of a maximum of 4: 3 [IQR:2-4], p < 0.001). This preference was significantly (p = 0.001) stronger in lame cows (median: 3 [IQR:3-4]), than in sound ones (median: 2 [IQR:2-3]). Preference was also affected by the side of the laneway covered with artificial grass. Our results suggest that artificial grass improves the welfare of dairy cows walking to and from pasture, with lame cows benefiting to a greater extent.

A Review of the Effects of Non-Straw Enrichment on Tail Biting in Pigs.

Tail biting remains a common problem in pig production. As producers are reluctant to use straw to reduce this behaviour, we review studies on the effectiveness of other types of enrichment. Roughage, hessian sacks, compost, fresh wood, space dividers, rope, and providing new objects regularly can significantly reduce tail damage. These results should be interpreted with some caution, as often only one study per enrichment could be identified. No evidence was found that commonly applied enrichment objects (processed wood, plastic or metal) reduce tail biting significantly unless exchanged regularly, even though multiple studies per type of enrichment were identified. Many studies evaluated the duration of enrichment use, but few evaluated the manner of use. This hampers identification of combinations of enrichment that will satisfy the pig's motivation to eat/smell, bite, root and change enrichments, which is suggested to reduce tail biting. New objects designed to satisfy specific motivations were shown to receive high levels of interaction, but their effectiveness at reducing tail damage remains unknown. More in-depth study of how pigs interact with non-straw enrichment, which motivations this satisfies and how this affects behaviour towards conspecifics, is necessary to optimize enrichment strategies. Optimization is necessary because ceasing tail docking in a way that improves pig welfare requires more effective enrichments than those described in this review, or alternatively, better control over other factors influencing tail biting.

Behavioural and physiological responses of laying hens to automated monitoring equipment.

Automated monitoring of behaviour can offer a wealth of information in circumstances where observing behaviour is difficult or time consuming. However, this often requires attaching monitoring devices to the animal which can alter behaviour, potentially invalidating any data collected. Birds often show increased preening and energy expenditure when wearing devices and, especially in laying hens, there is a risk that individuals wearing devices will attract aggression from conspecifics. We studied the behavioural and physiological response of 20 laying hens to backpacks containing monitoring devices fastened with elastic loops around the wing base. We hypothesised that backpacks would lead to a stress-induced decrease in peripheral temperature, increased preening, more aggression from conspecifics, and reduced bodyweights. This was evaluated by thermography of the eye and comb (when isolated after fitting backpacks), direct observations of behaviour (when isolated, when placed back into the group, and on later days), and weighing (before and after each 7-day experimental period). Each hen wore a backpack during one of the two experimental periods only and was used as her own control. Contrary to our hypothesis, eye temperature was higher when hens wore a backpack (No backpack: 30.2 °C (IQR: 29.0-30.6) vs. Backpack: 30.9 °C (IQR: 30.0-32.0), P < 0.001). Eye temperature of hens wearing a backpack was strongly correlated to the time spent preening (rs = 0.8, P < 0.001), suggesting that the higher temperatures may have been due to preening itself, or to a low head position or decreased heat dissipation when preening under the wings. Aggressive behaviour was very rare and no effect of the backpacks was found. In line with our hypothesis, backpacks increased preening on the day of fitting, both when isolated (No backpack: 0% (IQR: 0-1) vs. Backpack: 22% (IQR: 1-43), P < 0.01) and when back in the group (No backpack: 0% (IQR: 0-27) vs. Backpack: 43% (IQR: 5-77), P < 0.001). However, no effect on preening was observed 2-7 days afterwards. Other behavioural changes suggested that on the day of fitting hens prioritized attempts to (re)move the backpack and were less attentive to their surroundings. However, only equipment pecking (i.e., pecking the backpack or leg rings) was still affected 2-7 days after fitting (No backpack: 0 pecks/hen/minute (IQR: 0-0), vs. Backpack: 0 (IQR: 0-0.07), P < 0.05). We found no effect of our backpacks on bodyweight. In conclusion, our backpacks seem suitable to attach monitoring equipment to hens with only a very minor effect on their behaviour after a short acclimation period (≤2 days).

[Cardiorespiratory events after first immunization in premature infants: a prospective cohort study]. / Cardiorespiratoire verstoringen na 1e vaccinatie bij prematuur geboren kinderen: een prospectief cohortonderzoek.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether all preterm infants born before 33 weeks of gestation need cardiorespiratory monitoring due to the risk of cardiorespiratory disturbances following their first vaccination at 2 months of age. DESIGN: A prospective observational cohort study. METHOD: During a period lasting a little over a year, all preterm infants who were being cared for at the neonatal ward of Medical Centre Alkmaar because they had been born before 33 weeks of gestation received their first immunization at the age of 2 months and were subsequently monitored. Infants who had already been discharged by that time were readmitted for this purpose. RESULTS: In this cohort of 41 premature infants whose mean gestational age was 30.8 weeks (SD: 1.9), 10 of these had a mild decrease in oxygen saturation or bradycardia; three developed a moderate cardiorespiratory event requiring tactile stimulation. The incidence of disturbances was higher in younger and lower-weight infants and those who had experienced more severe morbidity during the neonatal phase. Moderate disturbances only occurred in the infants who had not yet been discharged from hospital after birth. CONCLUSION: It is recommended that still-hospitalized premature infants receive their first immunizations under cardiorespiratory monitoring, as events were observed during a period of 0-24 hours thereafter. In premature infants who had already been discharged - mainly because they were less premature or dysmature - immunization without cardiorespiratory monitoring appeared to be safe. Further research is needed for substantiating this strategy.

Glucocorticoid metabolites in rabbit faeces--influence of environmental enrichment and cage size.

The concentration of glucocorticoid metabolites (GCM) in rabbit faeces has been suggested as a non-invasive indicator of stress. In the present study, GCM concentrations were measured in faeces of fattening rabbits kept in groups of eight, at seven different stocking densities (between 5 and 20 animals/m(2)), with or without environmental enrichment (a wooden structure used mainly for gnawing and resting). Transport (30 min) was used as an acute novel stressor to assess the glucocorticoid response to stress under the different housing conditions. GCM concentrations were elevated post-transport (P<0.001). Whilst cage size had no influence on GCM, enrichment reduced GCM concentrations before as well as after transport (P=0.007 in both cases). Effects of cage size and enrichment on growth characteristics were negligible, whilst enrichment decreased cage manipulation and social contact. The results indicate that even short transport durations may be stressful for rabbits, and that enrichment may decrease housing stress. They suggest that measuring baseline GCM concentrations in faeces is a useful tool to evaluate chronic stress in rabbits, whilst measuring the response to a novel stressor did not provide additional insight.

Granularin, a novel molluscan opsonin comprising a single vWF type C domain is up-regulated during parasitation.

Snails are intermediate hosts to schistosome parasites, some of which are the main cause of human schistosomiasis (bilharzia), and have been used as models for parasite-host interactions for a long time. Here, we have characterized a novel internal defense peptide of the snail Lymnaea stagnalis, of which the relative abundance in brain tissue increases upon infection with the avian schistosome Trichobilharzia ocellata. This protein, named granularin, is secreted by granular cells, which are numerous in the connective tissue surrounding the brain. The protein is unique because it comprises only a single Von Willebrand factor type C domain that is normally found in large transmembrane and secreted extracellular matrix proteins. The granularin gene is twice up-regulated during parasitation. Purified granularin stimulates phagocytosis of foreign particles by blood hemocytes. Together, our data indicate that granularin represents a novel protein that acts as an opsonin in the molluscan internal defense response.