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Basic Concepts

Defining Animal Welfare

“Animal welfare means the physical and mental state of an animal in relation to the conditions in which it lives and dies. An animal experiences good welfare if it is healthy, comfortable, well nourished, safe, is not suffering from unpleasant states such as pain, fear and distress, and is able to express behaviours that are important for its physical and mental state.” WOAH, 2019.

Human attitudes towards animals are very complex and influenced by a range of cultural, social, economic, and religious factors which manifest at individual and societal levels. Hence, animal welfare is directly linked to how humans interact with animals, especially those under their care. It has multiple dimensions including scientific, cultural, ethical, legal, social, political and financial which need to be considered.

Animal Welfare Frameworks

Initially, the focus of animal welfare was to avoid negative affective states (feelings), but it did not necessarily mean ensuring positive affective states. The current frameworks consider that animals should feel well, be biologically functional and live reasonably natural lives, all of which will not only reduce negative states but also provide animals the opportunity to have pleasant experiences and thus positive welfare states.

The Five Domains Model developed by David Mellor in 1994 is considered an evolution of the so-called Five Freedoms, in which four physical and functional domains – nutrition, health, environment and behaviour – influence the general mental state of the animal (the fifth domain), which results in the overall welfare state.


World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH)

The WOAH is the global authority on animal health and provides worldwide accepted basic concepts for animal welfare frameworks.
www.woah.org/en/what-we-do/animal-health-and-welfare/animal-welfare/
 

Welttierschutzstiftung (WTS)

The VETS UNITED Animal Welfare Teaching Modules, developed by WTS, provide an overview of the science-based frameworks of animal welfare.
www.teaching-animal-welfare.org


The Animal Welfare Foundation

The Animal Welfare Foundation, a charitable organization which promotes best practice and drive improvements in animal welfare, provides a short summary with fundamental concepts and bibliography on animal welfare.
www.animalwelfarefoundation.org.uk/research/what-is-animal-welfare/
 

David Mellor

First published in 1994 and continuously updated since then, the Five Domains model by David Mellor is a tool for understanding and assessing animal welfare.
www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/10/10/1870