ON FARM NATIONAL Measuring animal wellbeing I nvestment in objective Table: MLA‑funded projects investigating objective assessment of animal welfare animal welfare Project Objective assessment measures Expected timeframe assessment is helping Research partners to be developed and outcomes to demonstrate the Australian red meat Automating Central • Weight using walk‑over‑weighing End 2019: delivery of industry’s commitment welfare Queensland technology a proof‑of‑concept measurements University • NLIS information using scanning for an operational to improving the and interventions technology remote auto‑drafting wellbeing of livestock for northern system to separate in its care. Australia • Remote visual imagery calves from the herd. “We can only prove Immune fitness University of • Immunological biomarkers using Mid‑2020: prototype improvement if we can as a measure of Sydney blood and saliva, including scorecard to assess it objectively – animal health, genetic profiling categorise immune subjective assessment is welfare and • T‑cell assessment fitness relative to no longer good enough,” productivity gene expression. MLA Health, Welfare and New approaches CSIRO • Detection of duration and End 2021: Biosecurity Program Manager to the difficulty of parturition (dystocia) algorithms for Johann Schröder said. understanding using remote‑monitoring determining dystocia Research is on track to of underlying technology validated and identify animal‑based causes for • Metabolic energy balance using blood parameters measures such as respiratory neonatal lamb blood‑based biomarkers as representing greater mortality indicators of lamb loss risk risk of lamb loss rate, carcase characteristics determined. These and grazing behaviour, will make it feasible that might help assess an to remotely identify animal’s status relating to difficult births and hunger, heat stress, dystocia use biomarker traits and pain. for the selection of The intention is that these animals with lower measures, along with risk of lamb loss. husbandry practices, Objective, University of • Animal behaviours (low‑resilience Mid‑2022: a platform transport history and robust real‑time Sydney behaviours) specifically to collect and handling facilities, will animal welfare associated with calf–cow analyse data be able to be recorded measures for the separation (predation and from off‑animal and tracked through the Australian red weaning), hunger and heat and on‑animal supply chain to allow an meat industry stress assessed using technology to assess overall assessment of the remote‑monitoring technology: welfare according animal’s lifelong wellbeing. − ear tag‑based technology to the expression − robot platform‑based LIDAR of low‑resilience The table shows some of the (laser technology) behaviours. current MLA‑funded projects assessing animal welfare. ■ Welfare CSIRO, NSW • Animal‑based measures Mid‑2023: a set of benchmarking Department including animal affect and validated practical and management of Primary fear (flight zone and speed, measures and a Johann Schröder for beef cattle Industries vigilance, avoidance) producer tool or E: jschroder@mla.com.au • Resource‑based measures platform will be Christine Purdy accessing data from existing developed. E: cpurdy@mla.com.au software systems • Management‑based measures accessing data from existing sources on feeding, health (morbidity and mortality) and production (growth, reproduction, genetic selection and culling statistics) 19