Balzani Agnese, Aparacida Vaz do Amaral Cintia, Hanlon Alison
School of Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
Front Vet Sci. 2021 Feb 15;7:623128. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2020.623128. eCollection 2020.
The production of surplus male offspring illustrates a socioethical concern in the dairy industry. In this article, we highlight the animal health and welfare implications of production outputs for surplus dairy calves, namely veal production, dairy calf to beef production, and euthanasia. Moreover, we present a pilot study focus on exploring the perception of key industry actors within the dairy industry in Ireland regarding the use of sexed semen as a mitigation strategy to reduce the production of surplus male dairy calves. A pilot survey was completed by farmers ( = 6), veterinarians ( = 17), and dairy farm advisors ( = 11). All the veterinarians, 80% of the farmers, and 62% of the advisors believed that the use of sexed semen had a positive influence on herd welfare. All participants identified the same barriers to the implementation of sexed semen: lower conception rate, lower availability, and higher cost. The reviewed literature highlights the importance of tailored communication to support knowledge exchange between stakeholders and key industry actors such as dairy farmers, their veterinarians, and advisors. Research to understand stakeholders' perception is pivotal to address socioethical concerns such as the surplus male dairy calves.
雄性多余后代的产生体现了乳制品行业中的一个社会伦理问题。在本文中，我们着重探讨了多余奶牛犊生产产出对动物健康和福利的影响，即小牛肉生产、奶牛犊转为肉牛生产以及安乐死。此外，我们还展示了一项试点研究，该研究聚焦于探究爱尔兰乳制品行业内关键行业参与者对使用性别分选精液作为减少雄性多余奶牛犊生产的缓解策略的看法。农民（n = 6）、兽医（n = 17）和奶牛场顾问（n = 11）完成了一项试点调查。所有兽医、80%的农民以及62%的顾问都认为使用性别分选精液对畜群福利有积极影响。所有参与者都指出了实施性别分选精液存在的相同障碍：受孕率较低、可获得性较低以及成本较高。所查阅的文献强调了进行针对性沟通以支持利益相关者与关键行业参与者（如奶农、他们的兽医和顾问）之间知识交流的重要性。了解利益相关者看法的研究对于解决诸如雄性多余奶牛犊等社会伦理问题至关重要。
