Promoting Dairy Cattle Welfare: The Role of Veterinary Professionals in Canada

2024-01-16 11:25:24

Veterinary professionals in Canada show a bias toward minimizing negative experiences rather than actively promoting positive experiences.

In an effort to better understand the role of veterinarians in the welfare of dairy cows, a study conducted in Canada reveals that veterinary professionals show a bias toward minimizing negative experiences rather than actively promoting positive experiences for dairy cows. These animals.

The study, titled “Perceived role of the veterinarian in promoting dairy cattle welfare” and carried out by Canadian researchers, had the participation of 78 veterinarians and 148 veterinary students. Through an online survey, they were asked to rate on a 7-point scale the importance of the veterinarian’s role in promoting practices that influence the experience of dairy cows.

Results indicated that the highest priority was given to practices aimed at minimizing negative experiences (mean score of 6.8), followed by a balance between positive and negative experiences (mean score of 6.4), while promoting active of positive experiences received the lowest score (6.0), although all were rated positively.

By analyzing the qualitative responses provided by participants, four main themes were identified that explain the perception of veterinarians regarding their role in promoting the welfare of dairy cows. These topics included consideration of the animal, the producer, the veterinarian, and society in general.

An interesting finding was that participants indicated that promoting positive experiences was less important than reducing negative experiences, with a mean score of 5.9. The researchers identified four additional themes that explain the relative importance attributed to promoting positive experiences compared to decreasing negative experiences, focusing on frameworks to compare both experiences, impacts on the animal, the participant’s perception of their role, and feasibility. of the implementation.

Thus, although Canadian veterinarians show a favorable disposition toward the positive aspects of dairy cow welfare, the study suggests that their primary focus may be more oriented toward avoiding negative aspects of welfare. No significant differences were observed between the responses of practicing veterinarians and veterinary students in the quantitative analysis. This study offers a valuable insight into the perception of veterinary professionals in improving animal welfare in livestock systems.

Brunt Michael W., Haley Derek B., LeBlanc Stephen J., Kelton David F. Perceived role of the veterinarian in promoting dairy cattle welfare. Front. Vet. Sci., 18 December 2023. Sec. Veterinary Humanities and Social Sciences. Volume 10 – 2023. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2023.1325087

Tag

Related Posts

More news

1705405697
#investigation #studies #veterinarians #students #prioritize #wellbeing #dairy #cows

Leave a Replay