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This programme addresses current problems in the measurement of animal welfare and the detection of welfare problems. There are four related projects: Project 1.1. Animal welfare researchers assess welfare using two main approaches: by measuring different aspects of an animal's behaviour and physical state (welfare indicators), and by monitoring the animal's own choices (motivational priorities). Formal integration of these approaches would be a major step forward for animal welfare science, but has not been attempted. This project uses biostatistical techniques to integrate the data collected from chickens using the two approaches. Project 1.2. The emotional states of animals are a key part of most people' concerns for animal welfare. However, measuring even indirect indicators of animal emotion is a very difficult task. This project uses information and expertise from human psychology research to develop new ways for assessing animal emotion which can be applied to laboratory or farm animals. Project 1.3. One potentially effective way of preventing welfare problems on farms is to detect early warning signs. This project uses CCTV technology, image analysis and computational techniques to investigate whether the group level behaviour of farm animals such as chickens or pigs is a good predictor of the emergence of a welfare problem. It also investigates whether animal choice can be measured in situ in large groups using these approaches. Project 1.4. The social behaviour of animals living together can both cause and prevent welfare problems and provides an important backdrop to the welfare issues studied in Projects 1.1-1.3. This project uses ethological and operant conditioning approaches to investigate two important aspects of social behaviour and cognition: the ability of chickens to empathise with the experience of conspecifics, and the ability of pigs to categorise conspecifics according to familiarity and remember them across time. |
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