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Human behaviour project set to improve cattle wellbeing
'To be able to improve animal wellbeing, we first need to understand the needs of the animal and how they are affceted by human behaviour'.

Initiative aims to deliver a set of possible interventions for vets and farmers

Animal health firm Boehringer Ingelheim has announced a new project to gain a deeper understanding of how human behaviour influences the wellbeing of cattle.

The project aims to gather information from farmers and veterinary surgeons across the globe on farming practices and routine pain management interventions. It forms part of a project called Cattle First, an initiative that works to foster health, wellbeing, innovation and sustainability on cattle farms around the world.


A press release reads: ‘To be able to improve animal wellbeing, we first need to understand the needs of the animal and how they are affected by human behaviour. However, in order to effect change, we ultimately need to understand the behaviour of people.


‘Behavioral science – the understanding of how and why people behave in certain ways – could be helpful. The theories that underpin behavioural science can help in many stages along this journey. In the context of farm animal wellbeing, it can help get to the root causes of what people do and why they do it.’


Boehringer is teaming up with Innovia Technology - a Cambridge-based innovation consultancy - to undertake the project, which aims to develop a set of behaviour-based interventions that may improve cattle wellbeing.


Project lead Laurent Goby, senior global marketing manager at Boehringer Ingelheim’s ruminant business, explains: “With the involvement of Innovia’s expertise, we expect to better understand farmers’ behaviour and motivations and analyse how their choices can affect cattle well-being. This should enable us to design interventions that target the reasons behind these behaviours and are acceptable and feasible to stakeholders.

“This ambitious and innovative project aims to deliver a set of possible interventions for vets and farmers, starting with one specific area of cattle welbeing. We expect that the work along the way will reveal many interesting and important aspects of pain management in cattle which may serve as a basis for practical interventions to ultimately improve cattle well-being,” he said.


For more information about the project visit www.farmanimalwellbeing.com

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Pet Blood Bank announces twists to annual fundraiser

News Story 1
 Pet Blood Bank has revealed that its annual fundraiser, 'Around the Coast in 30 Days', will now include mini challenges.

It is the fourth year of the challenge, which asks people to walk, run, swim or cycle a part of a 11,232 mile goal.

However this year's fundraiser, starting 1 May, includes extra challenges throughout the month. Pet Blood Bank says these tasks will showcase its work.

The challenge can be completed individually, or as a team, with miles recorded on the participant's fundraising page.

Register here

Click here for more...
News Shorts
SCOPS updates anthelmintics guide

The Sustainable Control of Parasites in Sheep (SCOPS) group has published an updated version of its free guide to anthelmintics.

Know Your Anthelmintics, created to help farmers and livestock keepers, lists the available products for treating internal and external parasites in sheep and gives advice on how they should be administered. This includes guidance on drenching and injecting correctly and minimising the impact that anthelmintics have on the environment.

The new version contains information about products released in recent months and changes to older products.

Kevin Harrison, sheep farmer and SCOPS chair, said: "I can't count the times I've used the SCOPS Know Your Anthelmintics guide when making decisions about my flock, to remind myself which group a wormer belongs to or check other details."

The guide is available on the SCOPS website.