Share this
The Sciences of Animal Welfare was written by David J. Mellor, Emily Patterson-Kane, and Kevin J. Stafford. The text is part of the UFAW(the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare) Animal Welfare Series and was published in 2009 by Wiley- Blackwell. The UFAW is an independent, international animal welfare organization promoting and improving animal welfare through science and education. The authors undertook the challenge of exploring animal welfare through the examination of the many sciences woven into the concept of animal welfare.
The text is divided into five parts: Introduction, Paths from the Past, Assessment of Animal Welfare, Human Inputs and Animal Welfare, and Thinking Outside the Box. Chapters throughout the text are divided further into sections with a highlighted title summarizing each specific area of discussion, or key concepts. The discussions are succinct, however, they stimulate tremendous reflection and consideration for the reader. The Sciences of Animal Welfare is an intermingling of many scientific and ethical considerations, not one exact science, thus presenting the challenge of considering all aspects of animal health and welfare.
One central theme spanning the text are the five domains of animal welfare: nutritional, environmental, health, behavioral, and mental domains. Introduced in the first chapter, the domains represent all aspects of animal life which comprise animal welfare and are explored by example throughout each section of the text. An absence of negative experiences in each domain does not necessarily equate to positive animal welfare, there are many considerations briefly explored and discussed which comprise the five domains.
“Chapter 7: Human-Animal Interactions and Animal Welfare” reviews society and cultural attitude towards animal treatment. Public perception throughout history has altered the manner in which animals—domestic, laboratory, and wildlife—have been treated and managed. Perception is a dynamic process which, with proper monitors in place, can have beneficial aspects for the animals. Current trends in agriculture and technology have increased the health of our domestic animals, for example, however with some diminishment of their natural actions and assumed less happiness. Organic farming and “free-range” agriculture provide for a more natural life for the animals and theoretically happier animals, however, with more propensity for inter-animal aggression and competition for proper nutrition.
The Sciences of Animal Welfare is a well-written introduction to the array of sciences brought together when considering animal welfare. Animal welfare science has emerged over recent years as a multi-disciplined, highly specialized field in which society has played a vocal role. The text maintains a positive spin on the future of animal welfare science, for example, in the realm of agriculture, as organic farms are unable to keep pace with the world’s population. However technological and agricultural advances have improved food production and don’t always equate to less positive animal welfare. The challenge will be to balance the benefits to the animals with the progress in science.
The authors did an excellent job in their presentation of a complex and multi-faceted topic in concise form. The text is easily navigated with use of the chapter section headings, as they are noted in gray and provide a synopsis of each section and a lengthy reference list allows for further investigation by the reader.
Sandra L. Jex is a veterinarian and consultant.