Improving cattle welfare

a. Housing & Environment

• Provide sufficient space for lying, standing, and social interaction.
• Maintain good ventilation to prevent respiratory issues.
• Ensure comfortable lying areas (deep-bedded cubicles, straw yards, or pasture).
• Reduce heat stress with shade, sprinklers, or fans.

b. Feeding & Water

• Provide ad libitum access to clean water.
• Balanced rations to avoid malnutrition, ruminal acidosis, or obesity.
• Minimize competition at feed bunks by ensuring adequate feeding space.
• Encourage access to pasture grazing where possible.

c. Health & Disease Management

• Prevent and manage lameness (improved flooring, hoof trimming, footbaths).
• Control mastitis through hygiene, proper milking routines, and treatment.
• Regular vaccination and parasite control.
• Gentle weaning practices to reduce stress in calves.

d. Breeding & Genetics

• Avoid extreme selection for high milk yield that causes metabolic disorders.
• Select for robustness, longevity, and fertility traits.
• Encourage use of breeds adapted to local environments.

e. Behavioral Needs & Enrichment

• Provide access to pasture, exercise yards, or loose housing to allow natural behaviors.
• Group housing for calves instead of prolonged isolation.
• Enrichment with brushes, scratching posts, and varied environments.

f. Handling & Transport

• Train handlers in low-stress stockmanship.
• Use well-designed handling facilities (non-slip floors, wide passageways).
• Minimize transport duration, ensure adequate space, food, and water during travel.

g. Monitoring & Welfare Assessment

• Regular use of welfare indicators: body condition scoring, lameness scoring, lesion checks.
• Monitor behavior for signs of pain, fear, or discomfort.
• Implement continuous improvement programs guided by welfare assessments.