From Naturalness to Environmental Control: Influences of Transitioning Production Systems on Dairy Farmers’ Perceptions of Cow Welfare
Laboratório de Etologia Aplicada e Bem-Estar Animal, Departamento de Zootecnia e Desenvolvimento Rural, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Rod. Admar Gonzaga 1346, Itacorubi, Florianópolis 88034-001, SC, Brazil
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Animals 2024, 14(21), 3063; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14213063
Submission received: 28 August 2024
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Revised: 18 October 2024
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Accepted: 23 October 2024
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Published: 24 October 2024
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members’ Collection Series: Behavior, Applied Ethology and Welfare of Farmed Animals)
Simple Summary
Farmers are directly responsible for the care of farm animals. However, their activities are influenced by several externalities, which include global pressures driving shifts towards larger-scale, high-input, indoor production systems. In dairy farming, this process is seen in a growing trend towards transitioning from pasture-based to confined systems. These transformations may impact farmers’ perceptions of animal care, reverberating on their farming practices. This study explored how dairy farmers’ attitudes towards raising cows either in pasture or in confined systems are connected with their views on cow welfare and the way they care for their animals. Our results highlight that a shift from pasture-based to confined systems is accompanied by a change in farmers’ animal welfare conceptions from prioritizing natural living and resilience to a focus on intensive care and milk productivity. This study offers insight into how farmers’ views are intertwined with agricultural structures, suggesting that promoting farm animal welfare should rely not only on their attitudes but also on broader policies linked to farming practices.
Abstract
We conducted semi structured in-person interviews with 36 dairy farmers in a dairy producing region in southern Brazil undergoing intensification. Thematic analysis revealed that farmers’ perceptions of cow welfare were closely tied to their production environment. Farmers in pasture-based systems emphasized the importance of outdoor access and grazing, associating these with the cows’ intrinsic needs and longevity. Conversely, farmers operating confined systems, or those with positive attitudes towards transitioning to confinement, linked cow welfare to practices that aim at minimizing environmental stressors, enhancing comfort, and boosting productivity. Despite these differing views, empathetic concerns towards the cows were evident in both groups and influenced decisions such as improving farm infrastructure or using anesthetics in invasive procedures. However, the transition to confined systems was associated with a more instrumental view of animals, as seen in the abandonment of naming cows and in a greater focus on productive performance. All things considered, this study suggests that working structures may influence farmers’ perceptions of animal care, indicating that farm animal welfare likely depends not only on farmers’ attitudes but also on global and local policies that shape agricultural practices through incentives and constraints.
Keywords:
perspective; value; frame; opinion; belief; stakeholder; human–animal relationship; grazing; compost barn; free-stall
