Animal welfare: concepts and measurement2
Abstract
The term "welfare" refers to the state of an individual in relation to its environment, and this can be measured. Both failure to cope with the environment and difficulty in coping are indicators of poor welfare. Suffering and poor welfare often occur together, but welfare can be poor without suffering and welfare should not be defined solely in terms of subjective experiences. The situations that result in poor welfare are reviewed in this study with special reference to those in which an individual lacks control over interactions with its environment. The indicators of poor welfare include the following: reduced life expectancy, impaired growth, impaired reproduction, body damage, disease, immunosuppression, adrenal activity, behavior anomalies, and self-narcotization. The uses of measures of responsiveness, stereotypies, and animal preferences in welfare assessment are discussed. The need to make direct measurement of poor welfare as well as to use sophisticated studies of animal preferences is emphasized.
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Aggression is more likely to be associated with negative physical and subjective states such as pain and fear.
“An increase in aggression could signal that the birds’ welfare is being compromised by offering encounters, as aggression is more likely to be associated with negative physical and subjective states such as pain and fear [20,21].”
From Evaluating the Behavior and Temperament of African Penguins in a Non-Contact Animal Encounter Program (2019) · cites this paper as [20]
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- Authors
- Broom, D. M.
- Affiliations
- University of Cambridge (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Broom, D. M.
- ORCID
- Broom, D. M.
- Venue
- Journal of Animal Science
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 1991-10-01
- Volume
- 69
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 4167-4175
- ISSN
- 0021-8812 (ISSN-L)
- 1525-3163
- OpenAlex
- W1533094162
- Cited by
- 1,095
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 43 · 2025: 68 · 2024: 39 · 2023: 65 · 2022: 65 · 2021: 75 · 2020: 54 · 2019: 71 · 2018: 44 · 2017: 61 · 2016: 50 · 2015: 42 · 2014: 53 · 2013: 49 · 2012: 48
- FWCI
- 10.26
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Animal Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- WBI Studies Repository (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Animal Behavior and Welfare Studies
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Veterinary Pharmacology and Anesthesia
- Health Sciences › Veterinary › Equine › Veterinary Equine Medical Research
- Keywords
- animal welfare, welfare measurement, suffering, coping, welfare indicators, life expectancy, growth retardation, reproduction, disease, immunosuppression, adrenal function, animal preferences, stereotypy, responsiveness
- MeSH terms
- Adaptation, Psychological, Animals, Animal Welfare, Behavior, Animal, Fear, Frustration, Life Expectancy, Pain, Stereotyped Behavior
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