Broiler chickens are prone to a range of complex health and welfare issues. To support informed selection of welfare traits whilst minimising impact on production efficiency and to address a major gap in understanding, we systematically explored associations between health and behavioural indicators of broiler welfare.
Abstracts: Exploring the attitudes of backyard poultry keepers to health and biosecurity
Backyard poultry producers have been associated with outbreaks of exotic (e.g. avian influenza) and endemic (e.g. Salmonella) disease all over the world. Currently in the UK the registration of small flocks (less than 50 birds) with local authorities is voluntary therefore there is not an accurate record of how many […]
Abstracts: Lameness and its relationship with health and production measures in broiler chickens
The aim of this study was to explore lameness and the associations between lameness and health/production measures of animal welfare in commercial broiler production, using the Welfare Quality protocol for broilers. A total of 50 flocks were included in the sample and farm visits were conducted for lameness scoring at […]
Global effort leads to the biggest victory in veterinary history
Scientists are confident that the acute viral disease rinderpest, that has devastated cattle and their keepers for thousands of years, has been eradicated world-wide. The eradication is being heralded as the biggest achievement in veterinary history and is expected to save countless lives in some of the poorest countries of […]