Latest News From Animal Welfare

USDA announced this morning that it will scrap the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) and instead will opt to develop "a new, flexible framework for animal disease traceability in the United States

A comfortable cow is a happy, productive cow.

A comfortable cow is a happy, productive cow.

Metritis, a common reproductive disease, occurs in 10% to 30% of dairy herds. Typically diagnosed during the first 10 days in milk, metritis is associated with other transition and fresh cow challenges.

When cows are not in the milking parlor, they should be eating or lying down, so the popular thinking goes. Unfortunately, no one has explained that to the cows, say Marina von Keyserlingk and Dan Weary, professors and researchers in the Animal Welfare Program at the University of British Columbia.

"Genomics is a big step forward, but we still need daughter information,” says says Kent Weigel, University of Wisconsin dairy geneticist. "We're not yet at the stage where we can identify the next sires of sons without using conventional genetics tools.”

Neil Michael, director of technical services for ABS Global, says many herds consistently achieve pregnancy rates of 20% to 25%, with many commercial dairies already exceeding 35% to 40%. He lists eight influencers of reproductive success that every dairy should monitor.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently stepped up its surveillance of tissue residues in dairy animals. The agency has also begun publishing a list on its Web site of dairies and drug residues found.

Delegates to the 2010 American Veal Association (AVA) annual meeting adopted a statement of ethical principles and code of conduct as a way to articulate veal industry principles and confirm an industry commitment to "veal raised right.”

A much anticipated—and dreaded—segment on ABC Nightline appeared Tuesday evening, showing tail docking and dehorning on a 5,000-cow New York dairy farm.

Do neighbors grumble about your farming practices when you're out of earshot? Those who had a chance to anonymously register their complaints recently in a New York State survey didn't—much.

Evidence is mounting that cows housed in deep-bedded sand freestalls are outperforming cows on mattresses. En Espanol

Evidence is mounting that cows housed in deep-bedded sand freestalls are outperforming cows on mattresses.

Crisis management drill hones ability to respond to emergencies.

The Federation of Animal Science Societies (FASS) has analyzed the Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production's report "Putting Meat on the Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America” as well as the American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) response to the report. After a review by FASS' Scientific Advisory Committees, FASS agrees with AVMA that there are significant flaws in the Pew report.

California's animal confinement law could spread to other states.

Final National Guidelines Released

The National Dairy Animal Well-Being Initiative unveiled its final principles and guidelines at World Dairy Expo in October.

Released videos give the dairy industry another black eye.