Evaluation of candidate data-based welfare indicators for veal calves in Switzerland.

Welfare assessment protocols have been developed for dairy cows and veal calves during the past decades. One practical use of such protocols may be conducting welfare assessments by using routinely collected digital data (i.e., data-based assessment). This approach can allow for continuous monitoring of animal welfare in a large number of farms. It recognises changes in the animal welfare status over time and enables comparison between farms. Since no comprehensive data-based assessment for veal calves is currently available, the purposes of this review are (i) to provide an overview of single existing data-based indicators for veal calves and (ii) to work out the necessary requirements for data-based indicators to be used in a comprehensive welfare assessment for veal calves in Switzerland. We used the Welfare Quality Protocol

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Copyright © 2024 Zwygart, Lutz, Thomann, Stucki, Meylan and Becker.

Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.