In a 2x2 factorial design, (n=6) sheep were either transported by road for 15h or kept in their home pens, and then either starved for 12h with access to water or offered hay ad libitum, with access to water. All groups were offered hay and water 12h after transport. Behavioural observations and measurements of dehydration and feed restriction were made before, during, and for 24h post-transport, to evaluate the implications of these procedures for the welfare of sheep.

After the journey, the immediate priority for the sheep was to eat. Consumption of hay increased water intake and reduced the time spent lying down. The plasma Cortisol concentration was greater in sheep which had been starved during the 12h post-transport period, than in those offered hay during this time; and the plasma free fatty acid concentration was greater in sheep which had been transported than in those which had not. Although transported sheep kept without hay during the first 12h post-transport drank more water than those which had not been transported, the mean time before they drank was greater than 7h. During the transport period, there was less lying behaviour in transported sheep than in non-transported sheep but transported sheep did not lie down more posttransport than non-transported ones. This work suggests that sheep should be offered both feed and water after a 15h journey. However, when feed was not available after a 15h journey, drinking and resting did not appear to be immediate priorities.

This study examined the effects of environmental enrichment on aggressive behaviour and dominance relationships in growing pigs. Three hundred and twenty pigs were reared from birth to 15 weeks of age in either barren or enriched environments. The barren environments were defined by common intensive housing conditions (ie with slatted floors and in terms of recommended space allowances), while the enriched environments incorporated extra space and substrates for manipulation. Aggressive behaviour was observed in a social confrontation test during the suckling period and dominance relationships were assessed from a food competition test at 12 weeks of age. Animals were weighed at regular intervals throughout the experiment. Environmental enrichment reduced the expression of aggressive behaviour. Pigs from enriched rearing environments fought significantly less with unfamiliar animals than those from barren environments when tested under standard conditions (mean of 1.46 vs 2.75 fights per 30min test for enriched vs barren environments; SEM 0.20, P < 0.001). The nature of dominance relationships also appeared to differ between barren and enriched environments. In barren environments, dominance among pen mates was correlated with aggression (r = 0.33, P < 0.01), whereas in enriched environments it was correlated with body weight (r = 0.24, P < 0.01). Correlations between behaviour in the social confrontation and food competition tests suggested that dominance characteristics were established early in life and remained stable through the growing period.

The aim of the study was to compare different behavioural, physiological and performance traits in three groups of veal calves fed either a routine all-liquid diet with milk replacer (GO) or the same diet supplemented with a total of 10kg (G10) or 25kg (G25) of pelleted straw and cereals. Each of the three feeding programmes involved 21 male Friesian calves kept in individual crates for 20 weeks (from 1 to 21 weeks of age). Oral activities, haematological variables, ruminai characteristics, health and performance were all investigated. In calves supplied with dry feed, there was no evidence of ruminating behaviour; and chewing, regarded as a non-nutritive oral activity, was clearly reduced. The incidence of tongue playing and manipulating objects was not influenced by additional pellets.

Haemoglobin concentrations were higher in G25 than in other groups as a result of the extra iron supplied in the pellets. Other blood variables were unchanged. In G10 and G25 changes in rumen characteristics were clearly demonstrated by the following observations: i) the weight of reticulo-rumens increased by 11 and 35 per cent, respectively; ii) small papillae (virtually non-existent in calves fed an all-liquid diet) were present, and there was a darkening of the mucosa; and iii) there was a marked reduction in the number of hairballs, resulting from a continuous elimination of ingested hair by ruminai motility. In G25, carcase weight was significantly (P < 0.05) increased by 6.5 per cent compared with controls and no detrimental effects such as bloating or abomasal ulceration were observed when dry feed was added. Supplying calves with straw-cereal pellets was considered positive for the physiological aspects of welfare in veal calves. However, other diet compositions capable of inducing rumination behaviour should also be investigated.

‘Environmental enrichment’ is often considered to improve captive animal welfare. However, some studies using male mice, Mus musculus, indicate that increasing cage complexity increases aggression. Limited evidence suggests that enrichment differs in its effects on behaviour and physiology between strains; but behaviour also differs between strains in non-enriched environments. Differences in enrichment type, evaluation methods, and strains used, have caused difficulty in interpreting the efficacy of environmental enrichment in improving welfare. Using enrichment suitable for commercial laboratories (nesting material and a Perspex tunnel), we compared within-cage behavioural and physiological responses among males of six strains housed in non-enriched standard polypropylene cages with those housed in ‘enriched’ cages. Outbred ICR(CD-l) and TO mice, and inbred BALB/c mice were more aggressive than C57BL/6, CBA/Ca and DBA/2 mice, which exhibited low levels of aggression typical of most inbred strains. Enrichment did not significantly affect aggression levels. Animals in enriched cages spent more time investigating the internal cage environment, eating and drinking, and in stereotypic behaviour patterns, although levels differed between strains. The greatest increase in stereotypy levels (bar-related stereotypies) with enrichment was found in DBA/2 mice. Higher testosterone levels were maintained over the study period in mice housed in enriched cages, and in more aggressive strains. IgG levels were also higher in mice housed in enriched cages, and in the outbred strains ICR(CD-l) and TO compared with inbred strains. The relationship between aggression, testosterone and ‘enrichment ‘ suggests that increasing complexity in laboratory cages may increase a naturally selected territorial response in some strains. The implications for strain-specific welfare are discussed.

The effects of food restriction on the welfare of sheep are as yet unclear. An operant crate and a push-door were used to measure feeding motivation in sheep after Oh, 6h, 12h, 18h and 24h without food. In experiment 1, sheep had to push a panel with their noses to obtain a food reward. In experiment 2, sheep had to run a race and push through a weighted door to reach food; the time taken to reach various points was recorded and the work performed to push through the door was calculated.

In experiment 1, 3 out of 12 sheep became trained to push the panel and there was a difference in the mean number of rewards/session obtained by each animal (P < 0.05). There was no effect of treatment on the number of panel presses performed. In experiment 2, 10 out of 14 sheep were successfully trained. More sheep went through the push-door when deprived of food (P < 0.05), and they were quicker to enter the race, reach the push-door, and reach the food than those which had not been deprived (P < 0.0001). They also spent less time pushing the door than non-deprived sheep (P < 0.0001).

The push-door was a more appropriate method of measuring motivation to feed in sheep, as more sheep learned the task in less time than for the operant crate. As measured by the time taken to enter the race, reach the push-door, push through the door and reach the food there was an increase in feeding motivation after only 6h without food.

Preferences for nest box size and position were tested in two groups of common marmoset, Callithrix jacchus jacchus. In a pre-test phase two, new, wooden nest boxes were introduced to each group alongside their old metal one, so that the animals could become familiar with them, and so that any pre-existing preference could be identified. In successive experiments: i) the old metal nest box was closed so that the marmosets had to choose a preferred box from the two new nest boxes; ii) the size of the preferred nest box was systematically reduced; and iii) in one of the groups the reduced nest box was restored to full size, but its position interchanged with the non-preferred box. In a further experiment, the position of the preferred, and then of the non-preferred box was raised to the highest point in the cage. The marmosets showed strong positional preferences which could not have been predicted without performing the tests. One of the groups also showed a strong preference for the high nest box. It was concluded that marmosets may exhibit preferences for their cage furniture, the basis of which may not be clear to us. These preferences should, however, be taken into account when designing cages to maximize the welfare of the animals.

Attitudes to animal biotechnology are diverse, partly because people have different viewpoints and often do not recognize or acknowledge this to be so. First, people adopt different ethical approaches. If an opponent of genetic manipulation says’ I don't like the idea of altering animals ‘biology’ and a proponent replies’… but it is useful’, they are failing to communicate, because one is asking whether the action is right or wrong, whereas the other emphasizes the consequences. Another approach focuses on the person carrying out the action. Many people have hybrid views combining elements of these different approaches. Second, people ‘s concepts of welfare vary, emphasizing animal minds, bodies or natures - or a combination of these. A proponent who argues that a particular genetic change will not cause suffering is unlikely to reassure an opponent who puts more emphasis on naturalness than on feelings or health. An improved dialogue, in which people attempt to understand one another's viewpoints, may enable common principles to be established and practical measures to be taken that enable more cooperation in attempts to improve both human and animal welfare.

To examine the effect of hay on behaviour of caged rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus, a study was carried out on 86 rabbits, kept in wire cages with no access to hay in one period and with access to hay in a second period. As the study was part of a larger experiment analysing the rabbits’ behaviour in two different cage systems, the rabbits were equally distributed across two systems: a system with conventional barren wire cages, and an enriched system with boxes and raised height at the back of the wire cages. The rabbits’ behaviour was recorded using direct scan sampling during the day and continuous registration based on video recording at night. When hay was available, the rabbits in both cage systems performed significantly less bar gnawing and excessive grooming. This applied especially to the rabbits kept in the conventional cage system which also showed a distinct decrease in their frequency of changing between different behaviours. This suggests that rabbits kept in cages where hay is available are less stressed than those kept in cages where it is not. Enrichment with hay should, therefore, be considered in attempts to improve the welfare of caged rabbits.

In September 1998, the International Association of Human-Animal Interaction Organisations, IAHAIO, held its 8th international conference in Prague, Czechoslovakia entitled ‘The Changing Roles of Animals in Society’. Eight hundred delegates from 42 nations attended this three-day event. At its annual business meeting, just prior to the congress, IAHAIO national members unanimously passed the IAHAIO Prague Guidelines on Animal-Assisted Activities and Animal-Assisted Therapy (reproduced below), designed to protect the persons receiving such services, the programmes offering them and, in particular, the animals involved.

Chickens were reared in pairs in wooden boxes from 1 to 10 days of age. One chick from each pair was marked to facilitate identification and its position in one or other of the symmetrical halves of the home box was noted at each of 32 visual scans carried out every day. Cumulative sightings in each half were calculated across the first 5 days to establish the least preferred half. Three ‘enrichment’ objects were then placed in the least preferred half of each box on day 6. The chicks ‘positions were again recorded at each of 32 scans on 5 consecutive days. The enrichment objects were avoided on day 6 but such neophobia waned within 24h and a weak, non-significant trend for enrichment to increase usage of the least preferred half became apparent. The strong side preferences shown by the chicks before the introduction of enrichment stimuli, and their transitory neophobia, sound important cautionary notes for the design and assessment of husbandry and environmental enrichment procedures.

A polled sheep with a short tail, and devoid of wool on the head, legs, belly and breech, has been proposed as a breeding goal (Scobie et al 1997). This paper examines the practical and welfare implications of such an objective. Mean shearing times were significantly (P < 0.001) slower for control Romney (97s) and Coopworth (88s) ewe hoggets compared to times for both breeds after they were ‘trimmed’ to resemble the breeding goal (47s). Romney wethers were slower to shear than ewes (P < 0.001), but trimmed wethers (53s) were much faster to shear than the untrimmed controls (99s). Trimmed sheep produced less wool (pooled mean weights of fleece wool for trimmed sheep vs total wool for controls being 2.5 vs 3.5 kg; P < 0.001), half the difference (ie 500g) consisting of lower value oddment wools from the untrimmed controls. Tails were docked to 0, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 per cent of the distance between the base of the tail and the hock of Perendole lambs, and 0, 20, 40 and 60 per cent on Coopworths. More dags accumulated as the tail stump increased in length, although significance was dependent on the time of year and management system. No flystrike (cutaneous myiasis) was observed in Perendales given physical and chemical protection, while a small proportion of all tail lengths were flystruck in Coopworths given only physical protection. When shorn as hoggets, the time taken to shear Perendole ewes increased with increasing tail length (P < 0.001). Provided the undocked short tail is bare of wool, the proposed breeding goal should deliver an economic solution to sheep breeders attempting to satisfy markets conscious of chemical residue and animal welfare issues in the new millennium.

This paper uses the Missyplicity Project ‘s detailed Code of Bioethics as a starting point for discussion of animal rights perspectives on cloning. Although funded by a couple in order to clone their pet dog, the project has more important collateral goals and forms part of a general line of research that, if successful, promises enormous clinical benefits to humans.

A particular type of animal rights perspective is described and used to evaluate this project. This perspective accepts a ‘principle of axiological anthropocentrism’ (PAA), according to which only human beings have certain interests, or a kind of value, which is of pre-eminent moral significance. The best-known animal rights views (those of Singer and Regan) are shown to be consistent with the PAA. This perspective also denies that potential characteristics qualify their possessors for the same type of moral respect as actualized characteristics.

The balancing of potential benefits against risks to research subjects is discussed and it is concluded that, from the particular ethical perspective adopted in this paper, cloning research of this general type is not particularly problematic; and, given its stringent Code of Bioethics, only an abolitionist perspective could condemn the Missyplicity Project in particular.

In the UK, the Animal Procedures Committee (APC) is a statutory committee that provides advice to the Home Secretary on the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 and his functions under it. The membership of the Committee is prescribed under the Act and at least two-thirds of the members must be either medical practitioners or veterinary surgeons or qualified in a relevant biological subject. One member must be a barrister, solicitor or advocate. At least half of the members must not have held a licence under the Act during the last 6 years, and the interests of animal welfare must be adequately represented. Given these restrictions, individuals are appointed in their own right, and not because of their membership of or employment by various organizations. This Annual Report is the last for which Professor Margaret Brazier was the Chair of the Committee, her place being taken with effect from February 1999 by The Reverend Professor Michael Banner. It is particularly important, as it contains the final Report of The Review of the Operation of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 which covers the whole breadth of the functioning of the Act. It is interesting to note, that the Committee accept that there are opportunities for improving the Act's operation and enhancing its effectiveness. It is also the first APC Annual Report since Dolly the cloned sheep was produced, and the Committee have accepted that that this event demonstrated that there are ethical issues on which they not developed a position.

In August 1998, the UK's Farm Animal Welfare Council (FAWC) published its most recent report: addressing the welfare of broiler breeders. Some 780 million broiler chicks are produced annually in the UK and at any one time the national population of broiler breeder hens that produce these chicks is about 6 million. Professor Sir Colin Spedding in his letter (reproduced on page iii of the report) introducing the report to the Minister of Agriculture Fisheries and Food, points out that broiler breeders are relatively valuable birds and that there is a strong commercial incentive to ensure they receive careful husbandry. However, commercial forces do not always pull in the same direction as welfare considerations and they have lead to some particular dilemmas in the welfare of broiler breeders.

Prion diseases are fatal neurodegenerative disorders, epitomized by the recent bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) epidemic in cattle and the emergence of a novel variant of Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease (vCJD) in humans. In prion disease, the agent of infection is believed to be composed of proteinaceous particles, termed prions, which are converted from a normal isoform into a pathogenic isoform during pathogenesis. A bioassay to detect pathogenic prions of BSE in bovine products consumed by humans was unattainable until the development of transgenic mice, due to the significantly lower susceptibility of wild-type mice to BSE. Transgenic mice have now been generated which express the bovine prion protein and are susceptible to BSE. Following an intracerebral injection with brain homogenate of BSE-infected cattle, transgenic mice develop numerous clinical signs of prion disease, including truncal ataxia (inability to coordinate the torso's muscular activity), increased tone of the tail, generalized tremor, and lack of a forelimb extensor response.

In this study, the ethical score system devised by Porter (1992) was applied to the BSE bioassay as a tool for identifying welfare issues affecting animals used in the bioassay. We acknowledge that there are limitations to the use of the information arising from the application of the Porter scoring scheme for assessing the justification to proceed with any animal experiment; notwithstanding these problems, however, our application of the Porter model to the BSE bioassay enabled us to identify potential targets for refinement: pain involved, duration of distress and the duration of the experiment. This was despite lenient scoring for the duration of distress and pain experienced by the mice, and optimal scoring for the quality of animal care. The targets identified for refinement are discussed in relation to the method of inoculation, the duration of the bioassay, and the duration of the clinical phase, with the objective of exploring ways of reducing the severity of the bioassay.

The available statistics suggest that some 7 million mice are used annually for scientific procedures in the European Union. More mice are used than any other species. There has been a great deal of attention given to application of the ‘3Rs’ (replacement of animal use, reduction of numbers used, and refinement of techniques) in scientific procedures but there may be room for considerable further improvement in the quality of animals’ lives through improved husbandry. In view of this, about 10 years ago, the British Veterinary Association Animal Welfare Foundation (BVAAWF), the Fund for the Replacement of Animals in Medical Experiments (FRAME), the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), and the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare (UFAW) established a Joint Working Group on Refinement tasked with arranging working parties to define improvements in the husbandry of laboratory animals. This is the third report produced by the Joint Working Group (previous reports covered the removal of blood and rabbit husbandry). The 14 authors comprise experts in a variety of aspects of murine biology, care, and welfare.

On the instruction of the UK Government's All Party Parliamentary Group for Animal Welfare, the Circus Working Group was formed in November 1996 to examine animal welfare aspects of circuses and to review current legislation and husbandry practices. This Group, which included representatives from a number of organizations with relevant interests and expertise, made a 2-year investigation of circuses in England and Wales and published a report of its findings, deliberations and recommendations in October 1998. The Group looked into various issues including: the law, the numbers of animals in circuses, accommodation, training, physical and psychological effects, transport, and standards of veterinary care. Evidence was gathered through consultations and also through visits to circuses.