P.PSH.0860-The Welfare of Bobby Calves in the Meat Supply Chain
Bobby calf welfare is impacted by on farm management.
| Publication date: | 05 April 2022 |
| Project status: | Completed |
| Relevant regions: | National |
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Summary
The bobby calf sector is the focus of consumer animal welfare concerns that risk the public perception of both the meat and dairy industries. The dairy industry and regulators have been seeking to address welfare concerns by comparing the standards of maximum transport time and duration off-feed to transport time captured by NLIS tag scanning. Despite this, there is a deficit of published, objective data on bobby calf welfare status available to validate the industry’s performance or enable potential improvements to be identified.
This project aimed to measure relevant welfare and health variables for bobby calves in the supply chain and test for relationships with distance travelled and farm of origin. Blood samples were collected and analysed from bobby calves originating from Victoria, NSW and South Australia after transport, fasting and lairage. Ear tag data was used to estimate the distance that the calves were transported and identify the farm of origin.
This analysis found that calves were more likely to show a negative energy balance or dehydration with increasing transport distance, with a greater impact over 500km. Most of the variation between calves was accounted for by the farm of origin. Over a third of calves showed a failure of passive transfer of maternal immunity.
These results highlight the importance of calf management and preparation on-farm to ensure good welfare during transport and lairage. Therefore, improving colostral management, calf nutrition, and calf health on-farm will likely improve bobby calf welfare. Policy/extension efforts should focus on these areas.
Objectives
· Determination and validation of the welfare state of bobby calves at the end of the meat supply chain under commercial conditions
· Identification of some of the key on‐farm and transport‐related risk factors for bobby calf welfare
· Development of evidence‐based management guidelines for the preparation, selection and management of bobby calves through the meat supply chain to minimise risks to their welfare
· Data‐based evidence and management strategies to minimise the animal welfare reputational risk to the meat sector through bobby calf welfare problems
Key findings
The impact of transport increased more per km for calves transported over 500km. However, the estimated effects of the distance of calves’ transportation were minor, even for calves travelling long distances, and the prevalence of hypoglycaemia was low. As expected, longer transport distances were associated with higher packed cell volume (PCV) and lower plasma glucose, indicating dehydration. Only a minor proportion of calves had CK results suggestive of welfare compromise due to muscle fatigue or damage, potentially related to handling or injuries/fatigue during transport.
The farm of origin had a significant effect on calf welfare at abattoirs, with most of the variability between calves due to farm factors. This variability was likely due to differences in feeding practices, calf health, and colostral management. Over a third of bobby calves sampled showed evidence of colostral passive transfer failure, 11% showed evidence of dehydration, and 12% were anaemic. Overall, these results suggest that on-farm calf management, especially colostral management, nutrition, and appropriate calf selection, should be targeted to improve bobby calf welfare. Further research in this area should also aim to quantify morbidity and mortality data in the commercial non-replacement calf supply chain, from birth to slaughter.
Benefits to industry
Consumers are becoming increasingly focused on animal welfare issues. If not addressed, these concerns represent a risk to the industry. This study provided a clear snapshot of the Australian bobby calf industry and the welfare of the calves in the supply chain, and highlighted interventions that will result in maximum improvements.
