Hernandez Rick Obrian, Sánchez Jorge Alberto, Romero Marlyn H
Faculty of Agrarian and Animal Sciences, University of Caldas, Manizales 170004, Colombia.
Department of Animal Health, Faculty of Agrarian and Animal Sciences, University of Caldas, Manizales 170004, Colombia.
Animals (Basel). 2020 Dec 2;10(12):2273. doi: 10.3390/ani10122273.
Animal welfare for sheep in extensive rural farms is difficult to quantify among rural farmers due to several factors, including the lack of technology and the low level of interaction they have with the animals. The purpose of this study was to search for animal-based iceberg indicators using the Five Domains Model approach and study the relationship between sheep reactive behavior (flight distance), sheep handling training and farmers job satisfaction. Thirteen extensive commercial dual-purpose sheep farms ( = 520 animals) were evaluated in Marulanda, Caldas (Colombia, South America). On-farm Animal Welfare Indicators (AWIN) were assessed using an adapted version of this protocol. Socio-demographic characteristics, sheep handling training and job satisfaction were evaluated using a structured interview. Blood and stool samples were taken to determine Fecal Egg Count and Packed Cell Volume. Bivariate regression models were used to find animal-based indicators that predicted Nutrition, Ambience, Health and Behavior welfare domains, and a Qualitative Behavior Analysis was used for mind state domain analysis. Body condition score (BCS) ( = 0.001), fleece cleanliness ( = 0.03), FAMACHA© Score ( = 0.05), and flight distance in meters ( = 0.19) were found to be indicators, and were useful for predicting overall welfare assessment (R2 = 0.85) on theses farms. Regarding mind welfare domain, Qualitative Behavioral Assessment found two principal components (PC) that explained 82% and 67% of the variance, and described emotional valence and energy levels of sheep, respectively. Sheep handling training (β = -8.75, = 0.004) and job satisfaction (β = -7.5, = 0.013) had a negative association with the average flock flight distance. Spearman's rank correlations were significant ( < 0.001) between Fecal Egg Count, Packed Cell Volume, FAMACHA© Score (FS), Body Weight (BW) and, BCS. The strongest association was observed between Packed Cell Volume (PCV) and Fecal Egg Count (FEC) ( = -0.43), also FS was correlated with PCV ( = -0.28) and FEC ( = 0.21), and BCS was correlated with weight ( = 0.32). We suggest that these animal-based indicators could be useful as iceberg indicators for extensive sheep production systems and may set the ground for more research in small extensive sheep farms to develop strategies to find welfare problems and solutions.
由于包括缺乏技术以及农民与动物互动程度低等多种因素，在广大农村地区，评估农村农场绵羊的动物福利状况对农民来说颇具难度。本研究旨在采用五域模型方法寻找基于动物的冰山指标，并研究绵羊的反应性行为（逃避距离）、绵羊处理训练与农民工作满意度之间的关系。在南美洲哥伦比亚卡尔达斯省的马鲁兰达，对13个大型商业化两用绵羊农场（共520只羊）进行了评估。使用该协议的改编版本评估农场动物福利指标（AWIN）。通过结构化访谈评估社会人口统计学特征、绵羊处理训练和工作满意度。采集血液和粪便样本以测定粪便虫卵计数和红细胞压积。使用双变量回归模型寻找预测营养、环境、健康和行为福利领域的基于动物的指标，并使用定性行为分析进行心理状态领域分析。发现体况评分（BCS）（P = 0.001）、羊毛清洁度（P = 0.03）、FAMACHA©评分（P = 0.05）和以米为单位的逃避距离（P = 0.19）为指标，且有助于预测这些农场的整体福利评估（R2 = 0.85）。关于心理福利领域，定性行为评估发现两个主成分（PC），分别解释了82%和67%的方差，并分别描述了绵羊的情绪效价和能量水平。绵羊处理训练（β = -8.75，P = 0.004）和工作满意度（β = -7.5，P = 0.013）与羊群平均逃避距离呈负相关。粪便虫卵计数、红细胞压积、FAMACHA©评分（FS）、体重（BW）和体况评分之间的斯皮尔曼等级相关性显著（P < 0.001）。观察到红细胞压积（PCV）与粪便虫卵计数（FEC）之间的关联最强（r = -0.43），FS也与PCV（r = -0.28）和FEC（r = 0.21）相关，且BCS与体重（r = 0.32）相关。我们认为，这些基于动物的指标可作为大型绵羊生产系统的冰山指标，可能为小型大型绵羊农场开展更多研究奠定基础，以制定发现福利问题及解决方案的策略。
