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Learning from the animals supports livestock care and farm management, while helping address fast-shifting public expectations, says UBC's Dan Weary

This is the guiding question that for years has drawn a broad cross section of the livestock industry to the Livestock Care Conference, hosted by Alberta Farm Animal Care (AFAC).

For University of British Columbia (UBC) researcher Dr. Dan Weary, a featured speaker at the 2009 conference, the answer is simple: "Ask the animals."

In a presentation delivered at the conference on "Science, Consumer Perceptions and the Animal," Weary showed a video of an experiment by his UBC Animal Welfare Program farm animal research team, designed to allow dairy cows to select their own pen areas, choosing between pens with either damp or dry bedding materials.

"We want the barns and pens to really work well for the animals," says Weary. "With this type of experiment, you can ask the cows – they vote with their feet."

Learning from the animals

With six dairy cows roaming freely in the barn alleyway and 12 pens to choose from - half damp and half dry, arranged in checkerboard fashion - the cows, after some nosing around and 'test driving'different pens, unfailingly settle into each of the six dry pens.

The point of the experiment is to show that bedding quality really does matter to the animal, says Weary. "Whoever says cows aren't thoughtful hasn't looked at this video. This type of experiment allows the cows to show their preference, which reinforces to the producer what factors are truly important to the animal."

In this and related studies, Weary and colleagues have shown that simple factors such as quality pen bedding and maintenance can result in a tremendous increase in cow comfort, which ultimately is a key factor in not only their welfare, but bottom line factors such as health, efficiency, reduced labor requirements and productivity. Simply put, a happy cow is an efficiently managed cow and productive cow.

More leading perspectives

The Livestock Care Conference as a whole showcased issues and ideas that indicate growing societal expectations around farm animal care. The strong turnout and viewpoints expressed also reinforced that industry is recognizing this and taking steps to lead.

Weary's presentation was a stand-out among several quality presentations during the day-long conference. A longer version article on Weary's presentation, along with articles on five additional presentations is available on the AFAC Web site.

Examples of the perspectives provided by the speakers in these articles are included below.

"By learning from the animals, we have found the amount of improvement you can achieve through some very easy to apply changes in management can be vast."
– Dr. Dan Weary, University of British Columbia, Livestock Welfare Program

"We realize we have sat by the sidelines for too long. With the increasing public focus on welfare issues, this became 'the big dog in the room.' It was not a new topic, but it was something we hadn't addressed as an isolated priority or policy area."
– Dr. Gail Golab, head of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Animal Welfare Division.

"There are a lot of factors that come into play when we design policy that need to be considered. When it comes down to the specifics, you don't need government to stand there and clear our throats and say 'do these things.' What we need is to have partnerships and communication in working together with industry to get things done."
– Dr. Anne Allen, Canadian Food Inspection Agency

"Speak to the reasonable majority rather than an antagonist on one end of the spectrum. Don't get drawn into a fight you can't win. It's wasted oxygen. It's
a source of anxiety, a source of bad feeling, and the bottom line is it's not good allocation of strategic resources, because the antagonists drive a wedge between us and the reasonable majority who are the real target we should be connecting with." – Matt Sutton-Vermeulen, a consultant specialized in issues management

"Some things don't change, and that's not a bad thing. When I look back on the notes and slides from my early presentations, I realize we've been saying essentially the same thing 15 years and I believe that has served us well. We've had the same messages, but people have listened and this has resulted in real progress that the industry, which has made it happen, can be proud of."
– Susan Church, Alberta Farm Animal Care

"To be truly prepared, we really have to be prepared for the thing we expect the least. The situation, as bad as it was, could have been a lot worse. It's a lesson to have your resources and partnerships in place ahead of time." – Crystal Mackay, Ontario Farm Animal Council (OFAC), who provided a play-by-play of how OFAC members aided in averting poultry health threats and supporting pigeon welfare during a recent pigeon industry crisis.

A broad range of information on the conference and livestock care in general is available through the AFAC Web site at www.afac.ab.ca.

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'Asking the cows': A new approach to livestock care innovation

Learning from the animals

More leading perspectives