Papers by Isabelle Veissier
INRA Productions Animales, 2020
Les origines des sciences du bien-être animal peuvent être trouvées dans le débat sur le statut m... more Les origines des sciences du bien-être animal peuvent être trouvées dans le débat sur le statut moral des animaux en philosophie, l’introduction de la notion de stress en physiologie et la description du comportement des animaux par les éthologues. Dans les années 1970, le bien-être animal est devenu un objet pour la recherche appliquée dans le but d’améliorer la qualité de vie des animaux domestiques. Il a été d’abord étudié au sein de disciplines, par exemple les éthologues ont comparé le comportement des animaux domestiques à celui de leurs homologues sauvages et des besoins comportementaux ont été identifiés. Il est ensuite apparu que le stress est plus un concept psychologique que physiologique. Des liens entre le stress, les besoins comportementaux et les préférences ont été établis. De même, les liens entre le bien-être et la santé animale ont été étudiés : un comportement de malaise a été identifié et des relations entre stress et immunité ont été relevées. Plus récemment, l...
Animal Welfare
All systems of scoring animal units (groups, farms, slaughter plants, etc) according to the level... more All systems of scoring animal units (groups, farms, slaughter plants, etc) according to the level of the animals’ welfare are based inevitably on normative decisions. Similarly, all methods of labelling, in terms of acceptability, are based on choices reflecting ethical values. The evaluative dimension of scoring and labelling does not mean that we should reject them, but it does mean that we need to make the normative and ethical background explicit. The Welfare Quality® scoring system is used as a case study in order to highlight the role of underlying value-based decisions. In this scoring system, which was designed in accordance with assessments and judgments from experts in animal and social sciences and stakeholders, we identify value-based decisions at the following five levels. First, there are several definitions of animal welfare (eg hedonist, perfectionist, and preferentialist), and any welfare scoring system will reflect a focus upon one or other definition. In Welfare Q...
Animal Welfare
Welfare is multidimensional, comprising good health, comfort, expression of behaviour, and so on.... more Welfare is multidimensional, comprising good health, comfort, expression of behaviour, and so on. Its overall assessment therefore requires a multicriteria evaluation. The set of criteria shall be exhaustive (no missing item), minimal (only necessary items), agreed by stakeholders, and legible (a limited number of criteria). Furthermore, the interpretation from one criterion shall not depend on that from another. We propose a set of 12 subcriteria grouped into four criteria: feeding, housing, health and optimised emotional states. This work will assist in developing measures to be used on-farm to form a European standard for overall assessment of animal welfare.
Animal Welfare
Human factors (attitudes, personality traits, self-esteem, job satisfaction) strongly determine o... more Human factors (attitudes, personality traits, self-esteem, job satisfaction) strongly determine our behaviour towards animals, animal production and animal welfare. Recent studies have emphasised positive human contacts as indicators of a stockperson's positive attitude towards animals and towards animal welfare in general. Stockmanship can be improved by careful selection of people and/or by training. However, little is known of the biological basis of the effect of stock handling procedures on the welfare of animals. The animal's perception of the stockperson (based both on emotional responses and cognitive aspects such as anticipation, recognition and categorisation), and the existence of sensitive periods in an animal's life, need to be explored in more depth, especially under farm conditions. We need to consider the complexity of human behaviour (eg husbandry practices, balance between positive and negative interactions, predictability, controllability) and its effe...
Animal Welfare
The concept of quality of life in animals is closely associated with the concepts of animal senti... more The concept of quality of life in animals is closely associated with the concepts of animal sentience and animal welfare. It reflects a positive approach that inquires what animals like or prefer doing. The assessment of farm animal welfare requires a good understanding of the animals' affective experience, including their emotions. However, affective experience in animals is difficult to measure because of the absence of verbal communication. Recent studies in the field of cognitive psychology have shown that affective experience can be investigated without using verbal communication by examination of the interactions between emotions and cognition. On the one hand, appraisal theories provide a conceptual framework which suggests that emotions in humans are triggered by a cognitive process whereby the situation is evaluated on a limited number of elementary criteria such as familiarity and predictability. We have applied these appraisal theories to develop an experimental appro...
Animal Welfare
Animal welfare is of increasing significance for European consumers and citizens. Previously, agr... more Animal welfare is of increasing significance for European consumers and citizens. Previously, agricultural production focused mainly on supply, price and competition but consumers now expect their food to be produced and processed with greater respect for the welfare of the animals. Food quality is therefore determined by the welfare status of the animals from which it was produced as well as the nature and safety of the end product. Thus, practical welfare improvement strategies and reliable on-farm monitoring systems for assessing the animals’ welfare status and evaluating potential risks are urgently required to accommodate societal concerns and market demands. It is also of paramount importance to define the kind of information that consumers want about the final products and to develop effective strategies for communicating welfare standards to the public. Generating an intensified dialogue with all factions of society on welfare issues as well as appropriate labelling of anima...
Animal Welfare
Farm animal welfare has become an important issue for the European public, especially in the last... more Farm animal welfare has become an important issue for the European public, especially in the last two decades when a number of crises (eg Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy and Avian Influenza) have affected farm animal populations. Public concern about this issue led the European Union to fund the Welfare Quality® project. This project aimed to develop a protocol for assessing animal welfare on farms and at slaughter plants, to identify the main animal welfare problems, and to address possible welfare improvement strategies. In fulfilling these aims, the Welfare Quality® project incorporated inputs frombothscience and society. This was crucial, as the public perception of what constitutes ‘animal welfare’ sometimes differs from animal science-based definitions. Furthermore, these differences are often interwoven with broader variations in ethical- and value-based understandings about human/non-human animal relationships. This paper presents the steps that we adopted to establish a di...
"L’ecornage est une procedure douloureuse pour les veaux. Le but de cette etude etait de det... more "L’ecornage est une procedure douloureuse pour les veaux. Le but de cette etude etait de determiner si la combinaison d’un sedatif et d’un anti-inflammatoire non steroidien (AINS) est un moyen pour reduire la douleur a l’ecornage, et si l’expression de la douleur varie selon l’âge, la race ou le sexe du veau.Des veaux Holstein et Charolais des 2 sexes, âges de 7 ou 28 jours, ebourgeonnes et ayant recu un AINS (ketoprofene) seul ou couple a un sedatif (xylazine) ont ete compares a des veaux sans traitement etpour lesquels l’ebourgeonnage a ete simule. Leur comportement, leur taux de cortisol salivaire et leur frequence cardiaque ont ete suivis.Les veaux non sedates ont reagi plus fortement et avaient une frequence cardiaque et un taux de cortisol salivaire plus eleves. Ces effets n’ontpas ete observes chez les veaux sedates. Les reponses ont ete les memesquels que soient l’âge, le sexe ou la race.Les resultats sont en faveur d’un traitement antidouleur lors de l’ecornage, combinant sedation et anti-inflammatoire."
Sustainability Certification Schemes in the Agricultural and Natural Resource Sectors, 2019
Animal welfare is an important aspect of the acceptability and thus sustainability of animal prod... more Animal welfare is an important aspect of the acceptability and thus sustainability of animal production systems in Europe and, increasingly, in the rest of the world. In this chapter, we will first describe some developments in animal production and the related societal discussion on animal welfare with focus on the European Union. Then we will discuss animal welfare research and welfare assessment and we illustrate the case of the development of the Welfare Quality® protocols promoted by the European Union. Finally, we address current initiatives for improving the transparency of the market for animal-friendly produced products via labelling as well as technological developments for improving animal welfare
Bulletin de l'Académie Vétérinaire de France, 2000
Une des productions les plus critiquees a l'heure actuelle est celle des veaux de boucherie. ... more Une des productions les plus critiquees a l'heure actuelle est celle des veaux de boucherie. Ces animaux sont eleves dans des milieux juges artificiels par beaucoup d'entre nous. De fait, l'isolement social, le manque de place, l'absence de tetee et l'absence d'aliments solides sont autant de facteurs qui affectent le bien-etre des veaux. De plus, le soigneur, par ses gestes quotidiens aupres des animaux, determine une part importante de la reactivite des veaux lors de manipulations. Des ameliorations des conditions de vie des veaux de boucherie semblent possible. L'elargissement des cases individuelles, le logement en groupes stables, la complementation avec un aliment contenant des fibres, la mise a disposition d'objets a teter peuvent etre proposes. Certaines de ces mesures sont d'ailleurs rendues obligatoires par la reglementation.
International Journal of Biometeorology, 2017
Under temperate climates, cattle are often at pasture in summer and are not necessarily provided ... more Under temperate climates, cattle are often at pasture in summer and are not necessarily provided with shade. We aimed at evaluating in a temperate region (Belgium) to what extent cattle may suffer from heat stress (measured through body temperature, respiration rate and panting score, cortisol or its metabolites in milk, and feces on hot days) and at assessing the potential benefits of shade. During the summer of 2012, 20 cows were kept on pasture without access to shade. During the summer of 2011, ten cows had access to shade (young trees with shade cloth hung between them), whereas ten cows had no access. Climatic conditions were quantified by the Heat Load Index (HLI). In animals without access to shade respiration rates, panting scores, rectal temperatures, and milk cortisol concentrations increased as HLI increased in both 2011 and 2012. Fecal cortisol metabolites varied with HLI in 2011 only. When cattle had access to shade, their use of shade increased as the HLI increased. This effect was more pronounced during the last part of the summer, possibly due to better acquaintance with the shade construction. In this case, shade use increased to 65% at the highest HLI (79). Shade tempered the effects on respiration, rectal temperature, and fecal cortisol metabolites. Milk cortisol was not influenced by HLI for cows using shade for > 10% of the day. Therefore, even in temperate areas, cattle may suffer from heat when they are at pasture in summer and providing shade can reduce such stress.
Journal of Animal Science, 2000
We studied the importance of the stockperson's behavior on veal calf behavior using 22 veal calve... more We studied the importance of the stockperson's behavior on veal calf behavior using 22 veal calves housed in individual crates. Eleven calves received minimal contact from the stockperson, and the other 11 calves were stroked and allowed to suck the stockperson's fingers after each meal during the entire fattening period (21 wk). The effects of this additional contact with the stockperson on the calves' responses to people was studied, when in their home environment (crate) or outside their home environment (singly in a novel arena). When tested in their home environment, the calves receiving additional contact withdrew less from the approach of humans (familiar or unfamiliar)
Livestock Science, 2015
A survey was carried out to describe the extent and current practice of cattle disbudding/ dehorn... more A survey was carried out to describe the extent and current practice of cattle disbudding/ dehorning in the EU Member States. Disbudding was defined as removal of horns in calves of up to 2 months of age, whereas dehorning was defined as removal of horns in older animals. Specific questionnaires were created regarding dairy, beef, and suckler production systems and they were submitted to local experts of each country belonging to relevant institutions like universities, national farmers' associations, cattle breeders associations, farm veterinarians and practitioners. Figures on disbudding/dehorning practices were produced for each production system for both the whole European Union and the North, Centre, East and South EU macro-regions. A total of 652 questionnaires were collected and 64%, 24% and 12% of them related to dairy cattle, beef cattle and suckler cows, respectively. Data from the survey showed that in Europe, 81% of the dairy, 47% of the beef and 68% of the suckler currently keep disbudded/dehorned animals, while the prevalence of polled cattle is rather low, especially in the dairy cattle sector (5% of all cattle farms; o 1% of dairy farms). Regardless of production system, prevalence of dehorned animals is the highest in the North macro-region. Polled cattle farms are almost exclusively located in the North where polled beef breeds are raised for fattening. Dehorning is performed primarily on loose housed cattle to reduce the risk of injuries for herdmates and the stockman. Dehorning is less frequently performed in organic farms. As method of horns removal, disbudding is generally preferred over surgical removal of the horns in older cattle. Hot-iron is the most used disbudding method especially in the North and Centre. Use of caustic paste is reported more frequently in the South and the East. In the large majority of EU farms, the stockman is the person in charge for disbudding and some kind of medication for pain relief is administered to the animals only in a small percentage of Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
The objectives of the study were i) to highlight negative and variable aspects of dairy cow welfa... more The objectives of the study were i) to highlight negative and variable aspects of dairy cow welfare in commercial farms, and ii) to determine which farm characteristics were associated with impaired welfare. We assessed welfare using the Welfare Quality ® protocol in 131 commercial farms that differed in location (highlands vs. lowlands), cow breed (Holstein vs. Montbéliarde), herd size (fewer than vs. more than 50 lactating cows), housing (cubicles vs. deep bedding), or milking system (milking parlor vs. robot). Within each farm, scores that express the degree of farm compliance with 11 welfare criteria were calculated (absence of hunger, thirst, diseases, normal behavior...). We used linear models to assess the association between farm characteristics and criterion scores. Six criteria had low scores (<50 on a 0-100 value scale): “Absence of prolonged hunger”, “Positive emotional state”, “Good human- animal relationship”, “Expression of social behavior”, “Comfort around resting...
Raphaelle Botreau, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, France Marc Bracke, Wageningen ... more Raphaelle Botreau, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, France Marc Bracke, Wageningen University and Research Centre, Netherlands Marianne Bonde, Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Denmark Patrice Perny, Universite Paris 6, France Andrew Butterworth, University of Bristol, United Kingdom Linda Keeling, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden Jacques Capdeville, Institut de l'Elevage, France Isabelle Veissier, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, France
Improving farm animal welfare, 2013
One of the main objectives of the Welfare Quality® project was to develop a standardised system f... more One of the main objectives of the Welfare Quality® project was to develop a standardised system for assessing the welfare of animals kept on farms or at slaughter and thus accommodate the main drivers underlying the vision (see Chapter 4). More specifically the need for such an assessment system arose because animal welfare is an important and growing concern for European citizens and of increasing relevance to supply chains and markets as well as policy making and regulatory bodies. It also addresses the fact that European consumers do not feel sufficiently informed about the welfare of farm animals and thereby struggle to take this issue into account when purchasing food or other animal-based products (European Commission, 2007a,b).
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Papers by Isabelle Veissier