Improvements to Animal Welfare in Transport

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Welfare".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2023) | Viewed by 1609

Special Issue Editor

Animal & Veterinary Sciences, Roslin Institute, Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), Midlothian EH25 9RG, UK
Interests: livestock welfare; animal health and welfare; welfare assessment techniques; agricultural systems and land management; livestock production and disease control

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The welfare of animals in transit has attracted a great deal of public and political attention in recent years. Research outputs and publications have been employed to facilitate the development of strategies for the improvement of animal transport systems, vehicles and containers and to constitute the sound scientific basis for livestock industry codes of practice and legislation and regulations aimed at protecting the welfare and health status of animals (livestock) in transit. New technologies, including novel sensors and animal monitoring systems, digital data acquisition and processing and large-scale collaborations between the livestock industry and the scientific research community have enabled the provision of new data that can inform further improvements in the welfare of animals during transportation. In addition to animal welfare concerns the world is now faced with issues associated with climate change, sustainability, carbon economy, and food safety all of which have implications for animal transportation. New global attitudes to animal welfare in relation to the food that we eat and concern about how animals are produced, housed, handled, transported and killed will require reassessment and improvement of animal transport practices and regulation. It is now pertinent to produce a collection of new publications that focus upon the provision of proposals for strategies for the improvement of welfare for animals in transit or descriptions of how current designs and operation of vehicles or containers / pens might be improved to optimise welfare during animal transport. In addition, it is appropriate to consider and inform, through cutting edge research, current and future regulations and legislation relating to animal transport and suggestions as to how current or new scientific knowledge might form the basis for improved regulations. For this special edition, original manuscripts covering all aspects of the transport of animals by road relating to the topics described above are invited.

The primary focus of the issues will be upon livestock species but truly novel contributions relating to other species will be considered. Manuscripts may consider the aspects of animal transport under the headings generally employed as the basis for codes of practice and regulations i.e. fitness to travel, loading and unloading, stocking density, feeding and watering intervals, journey times, thermal environments and control and other physical characteristics of the transport environment such as vibration, acceleration, sound, risk of impacts and noxious environmental contaminants. We would invite any potential authors individually or in collaboration with others to submit manuscripts covering these approaches either singly or in combination. The main focus of each submitted contribution should be upon the provision of proposals for strategies for the improvement of welfare for animals in transit or descriptions of how current designs and operation of vehicles or containers / pens might be improved to optimise welfare during animal transport. In addition, manuscripts specifically addressing current transport regulations and legislation and containing proposals for the scientific basis for improved regulations will be welcomed. Manuscripts will be considered that address any or several of the topics and approaches described above.

The special issue will be based primarily upon approaches that will provide the basis for improvements in welfare during live animal transport. This may be achieved through a number of approaches:

  • Identification of the factors that impact upon the welfare and health of animals in transit and the characterisation and quantification of such stressors. These will include environmental factors, procedures and processes to which the animals are subjected and the nature, design and operation of animal containers and vehicles
  • Transport of animals by road, air and sea may be considered
  • Creation of quantitative and predictive models of the impacts of stressors and conditions encountered during transport upon animal physiology and behaviour in relation to welfare
  • Definition of optimal conditions and procedures to be used in transport through modelling and analysis of stressors imposed and the physiological and behavioural responses and requirements of transported animals
  • Engineering solutions based upon an understanding of animals’ requirements involving improved design and operation of vehicles and containers for animal transport including environmental control
  • The provision of the sound scientific basis for improved codes of practice, welfare legislation and regulation relating to the transportation of live animals. A review of current and proposed future regulations
  • Recognition of specific requirements and issues defined for different livestock species, ages and sizes of animals and animals of differing physiological status. Should include Cattle, Pigs, Sheep and Goats, Horses, Poultry and other species of agricultural interest including fish and crustaceans, marine mammals and other exotic or zoo species
  • Manuscripts may consider the aspects of animal transport under the headings generally employed as the basis for codes of practice and regulations i.e. fitness to travel, loading and unloading, stocking density, feeding and watering intervals, journey times, thermal environments and control and other physical characteristics of the transport environment such as vibration, acceleration, sound, risk of impacts and noxious environmental contaminants
  • The submission of manuscripts relating to animal transport under extreme conditions and based on studies undertaken in a range of geographical / meteorological locations and conditions are encouraged
  • Manuscripts might consider the impacts of climate change on the health and welfare issues associated with animal transport in the future
  • The impacts of animal transport on production and product quality indicators, economic aspects and production efficiency and in transit losses might also be considered in relation to the other approaches outlined above

We would invite any potential authors individually or in collaboration with others to submit manuscripts covering these approaches either singly or in combination. The main focus of each submitted contribution should be upon the provision of proposals for strategies for the improvement of welfare for animals in transit or descriptions of how current designs and operation of vehicles or containers / pens might be improved to optimise welfare during animal transport. In addition, reviews of current regulations and legislation relating to animal transport and suggestions as to how current or new scientific knowledge might form the basis for improved regulations will be welcomed. Manuscripts will be considered that address any or several of the topics and approaches described above.

Prof. Dr. Malcolm Mitchell
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • animal transport
  • animal welfare
  • animal health
  • animal stress
  • animal behaviour
  • animal enrichment
  • animal fitness
  • journey times
  • thermal stress
  • heat stress
  • cold stress
  • feeding intervals
  • ventilation
  • trucks
  • loading
  • unloading
  • livestock
  • cattle
  • sheep
  • pigs
  • goats
  • poultry
  • horses
  • ethics
  • regulations
  • legislation
  • codes of practice
  • meat quality
  • product quality
  • animal-based measures (ABMs)
  • Road
  • Handling

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 2718 KiB  
Article
Habituation to Livestock Trailer and Its Influence on Stress Responses during Transportation in Goats
by Govind Kannan, Phaneendra Batchu, Aditya Naldurtiker, Gregory S. Dykes, Priyanka Gurrapu, Brou Kouakou, Thomas H. Terrill and George W. McCommon
Animals 2023, 13(7), 1191; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13071191 - 29 Mar 2023
Viewed by 1201
Abstract
This experiment was conducted to determine the effects of habituation to livestock trailers on stress responses in goats transported for long periods. Intact male Spanish goats (12-month old; BW = 31.6 ± 0.34 kg; N = 168) were separated into two treatment (TRT) [...] Read more.
This experiment was conducted to determine the effects of habituation to livestock trailers on stress responses in goats transported for long periods. Intact male Spanish goats (12-month old; BW = 31.6 ± 0.34 kg; N = 168) were separated into two treatment (TRT) groups and maintained on two different paddocks. Concentrate supplement was fed to one group inside two livestock trailers (5.0 × 2.3 m each; habituated group, H), while the other group received the concentrate supplement, but not inside the trailers (non-habituated, NH). After 4 weeks of habituation period, goats were subjected to a 10-h transportation stress in four replicates (n = 21 goats/replicate/TRT). Blood samples were collected by a trained individual by jugular venipuncture into vacutainer tubes before loading (Preload), 20 min after loading (0 h), and at 2-h intervals thereafter (Time) for analysis of stress responses. There was a tendency for a TRT effect (p < 0.1) on tyramine and metanephrine concentrations. Phenylethylamine and 5-methoxytryptamine concentrations were significantly greater (p < 0.05) in the H group compared to the NH group. Both dopamine and 5-methoxytryptamine concentrations decreased (p < 0.05) with transportation time; however, TRT × Time interaction effects were not significant. Habituation to trailers may be beneficial in mood and energy stabilization in goats during long-distance transportation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Improvements to Animal Welfare in Transport)
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