人类管理下的所有动物的福利是公众一贯关注的领域,但是改善福利的策略可能因物种而异。在这项研究中,专家共识,使用改进的Delphi方法,被用来优先考虑英国养殖动物和伴侣动物的福利问题。
这项研究涉及117位专家,分为八个物种组。从广泛的学科中招募了专家。使用在线调查工具进行了两轮在线调查,最后一轮是一个由专家组成的研讨会(n=21)。专家们一致认为,福利问题应考虑三类进行排序:(1)严重性,(2)持续时间和(3)感知患病率。
讨论委员会为每个物种生成了一份完整的福利问题清单(猫,兔子和马)或通过文献综述(狗,猪,家禽,牛和小反刍动物)。在第一次网上调查中,专家们使用三个类别(严重性,持续时间和患病率)以6点Likert量表,其中1=never/none和6=always/high。福利问题清单减少到总数的25%-59%,通过从专家评级中确定平均排名。在第二轮中,专家们被问及他们是否同意或不同意排名。在最后阶段,在研讨会期间,动物的最高福利问题是针对单个动物确定的(考虑到最大的严重性和持续时间,在专家看来)和感知的患病率。
总的来说,优先考虑的福利问题包括缺乏对福利需求的了解,社会行为问题,问题行为,不适当的饮食和环境,缺乏兽医护理,育种决定的后果,疼痛管理不善,延迟安乐死和慢性健康不良。Delphi程序就英国动物最重大的福利挑战达成了共识,并有助于指导未来的研究和教育优先决策。
The
welfare of all animals under human management is an area of consistent public concern, but strategies to improve
welfare may vary across species. In this study, expert
consensus, using a modified Delphi approach, was used to prioritise
welfare issues of farmed and companion animals in the UK.
The study involved 117 experts, divided between eight species groups. Experts were recruited from a broad range of disciplines. Two rounds of online surveys were conducted using the online survey tool, and the final round was an in-person workshop with a subsection of experts (n=21). The experts agreed that welfare issues should be ranked considering three categories: (1) severity, (2) duration and (3) perceived prevalence.
A comprehensive list of welfare issues was generated for each species by discussion boards (cats, rabbits and horses) or by literature review (dogs, pigs, poultry, cattle and small ruminants). In the first online survey, the experts scored each welfare issue using the three categories (severity, duration and prevalence) on a 6-point Likert scale, where 1=never/none and 6=always/high. Lists of welfare issues were reduced to 25 per cent-59 per cent of the total number, by determining mean ranks from expert ratings. In round 2, experts were asked whether they agreed or disagreed with the rankings. In the final stage, during the workshop, the top-ranking welfare issues for animals were determined for individual animals (considering the greatest severity and duration, in the expert\'s opinion) and for perceived prevalence.
Overall, prioritised
welfare issues included lack of knowledge of
welfare needs, social behaviour issues, problem behaviours, inappropriate diet and environment, lack of veterinary care, consequences from breeding decisions, poor pain management, delayed euthanasia and chronic ill health. The Delphi process resulted in
consensus on the most significant
welfare challenges of animals in the UK and can help to guide future research and education priority decisions.