Volume 174, January 2016, Pages 147–153
Highlights
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- QBA is a suitable tool to identify the emotional state of donkeys on-farm.
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- A fixed list of descriptors was used consistently by different trained assessors.
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- It is important to invest time in training assessors.
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- QBA seems particularly useful in evaluating positive aspects of the life of donkeys.
Abstract
One
of the objectives of the Animal Welfare Indicators project was to
develop animal-based indicators to assess donkey welfare, including
their emotional state. This study aimed to develop a fixed rating scale
of Qualitative Behaviour Assessment (QBA) for donkeys, to evaluate the
inter-observer reliability when applied on-farm, and to assess whether
the QBA outcomes correlate to other welfare measures.
A
fixed list of 16 descriptors was designed on the basis of a
consultation in a focus group. The fixed list was then used by four
trained observers to score nine 2 min videos of groups of donkeys owned
by six farms and on-farm to score 11 donkey facilities representative of
the most common type of donkey facilities in Western Europe. On each
farm one experienced assessor collected different welfare measures on
all the adult donkeys. The QBA scores and welfare measures were analysed
using Principal Component Analysis (PCA, correlation matrix, no
rotation). Kendall's W and ANOVA were used to assess
inter-observer reliability. PCA revealed three main components
explaining 79% of total variation between them. PC1 ranged from at
ease/relaxed to aggressive/uncomfortable, suggesting that this Component
is important in the description of the valence of donkeys’ affective
states. PC2 was more related to the level of arousal of donkeys, ranging
from apathetic to distressed/responsive. The four assessors showed a
good level of agreement on the first two dimensions of the PCA
(Kendall's W varying from 0.61 to 0.90), and there was no significant effect of observer on donkey QBA scores (ANOVA p > 0.05),
both for the videos and on-farm. PCA of all measures together showed
positive QBA descriptors on PC1 (relaxed, at ease, happy, friendly) to
be associated with positive human–donkey interaction indicators (absence
of tail tuck, no avoidance, and positive reaction to an assessor
walking down the side of the donkey).
Our findings
suggest that QBA is a suitable tool to identify the emotional state of
donkeys on-farm. A fixed list of descriptors can be used consistently by
different trained assessors as a valid addition to a number of animal
welfare assessment indicators.
Keywords
- Donkeys;
- Qualitative Behaviour Assessment;
- Welfare assessment
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