Welfare Assessment: Correspondence Analysis of Welfare Score and Hematological and Biochemical Profiles of Dairy Cows in Sardinia, Italy.

ABSTRACT: The need for animal welfare definition and assessment is increasing worldwide, and several studies have been conducted to help fill the knowledge gaps regarding the welfare of cattle. However, further studies are needed to provide valid synthetized measures for welfare evaluation. The aim of this study was to assess the welfare status of 16 Sardinian dairy cattle farms, based on the developed Animal Welfare and Biosecurity Evaluation checklist (AWB-EF) and the corresponding hematological, biochemical, and electrophoretic profiles of these animals. Considering the AWB-EF as gold standard, blood samples were collected from 230 Holstein breed dairy cattle, aged between 3 and 8 years, out of the periparturient period, and with no clinical signs of specific pathologies. Principal Component (PC)

SUBMITTER: Loi F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8002757 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature