Does the absence of zoo visitors during the COVID-19 pandemic impact Gorilla behavior?

Whether or not primates are behaviorally affected by the presence of visitors in a zoo setting is a question of great relevance to zoo animal well-being. The situation imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic provided an unusual opportunity to examine how the absence of visitors impacts behavior. We took advantage of this opportunity to study the behavior of a gorilla troop during periods of no-visitors compared to our long-term database on gorilla behavior during normal zoo operations. While there were notable individual differences in response to visitors, we found no significant relationship between presence of visitors and behavior. These results suggest that the presence of visitors does not have a significant impact on behavior and well-being of zoo-housed gorillas.

One Health, One Welfare, One Right: Introducing Animal Rights in Europe

The increasing interlinkage between humans and animals has led to the emergence of the `One Health' and `One Welfare' discourse. The covid-19 pandemic has proven the intersectionality between humans and animals and fueled these campaigns even more. The concept of One Health has in particular found its way into regulatory policy. A World Health Assembly resolution of 19 May 2020 includes a specific reference to One Health as an approach that could guide the research into the origin and transmission of covid-19 and the prevention of future pandemics. The EU also devotes attention to the One Health concept and approach, for instance with regard to its Action Plan against Antimicrobial Resistance and a study requested by the committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety that examines the relation between different zoonotic pandemics and the livestock sector. While we acknowledge the interwoven connection between animal and human welfare and health, a similar approach regarding legal protection has been almost totally ignored. Hence, regarding the current momentum of animal-human integration and following the example of these movements, the time has come to consider a `One Right' approach to address legal rights for (nonhuman) animals in Europe. This contribution will canvass two possibilities for legal animal rights within the framework of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (echr). Firstly, the umbrella of article 8 of the echr and the case for a human right to animal protection will be explored. Currently, it has been accepted that this right to respect for private and family life also entails the right to a healthy environment. It is contended that likewise simple animal rights can be created under Article 8 following a responsible anthropocentric angle. In contrast, a second entry-point which will be scrutinized concerns a biocentric viewpoint and departs from an extensive interpretation of Article 1 of the echr. Through a dynamic and (r)evolutionary interpretation the personal scope of the echr can be extended to include (certain) animals.

One Health, One Welfare, One Right: Introducing Animal Rights in Europe

The increasing interlinkage between humans and animals has led to the emergence of the 'One Health' and 'One Welfare' discourse. The covid-19 pandemic has proven the intersectionality between humans and animals and fueled these campaigns even more. The concept of One Health has in particular found its way into regulatory policy. A World Health Assembly resolution of 19 May 2020 includes a specific reference to One Health as an approach that could guide the research into the origin and transmission of covid-19 and the prevention of future pandemics. The EU also devotes attention to the One Health concept and approach, for instance with regard to its Action Plan against Antimicrobial Resistance and a study requested by the committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety that examines the relation between different zoonotic pandemics and the livestock sector. While we acknowledge the interwoven connection between animal and human welfare and health, a similar approach regarding legal protection has been almost totally ignored. Hence, regarding the current momentum of animal-human integration and following the example of these movements, the time has come to consider a 'One Right' approach to address legal rights for (nonhuman) animals in Europe. This contribution will canvass two possibilities for legal animal rights within the framework of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (echr). Firstly, the umbrella of article 8 of the echr and the case for a human right to animal protection will be explored. Currently, it has been accepted that this right to respect for private and family life also entails the right to a healthy environment. It is contended that likewise simple animal rights can be created under Article 8 following a responsible anthropocentric angle. In contrast, a second entry-point which will be scrutinized concerns a biocentric viewpoint and departs from an extensive interpretation of Article 1 of the echr. Through a dynamic and (r)evolutionary interpretation the personal scope of the echr can be extended to include (certain) animals. © 2022 Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden.

We don't know everything (we know) about dogs

This article highlights information on the beneficial and pathogenic microorganisms of the oral cavity of dogs, effects of grass consumption, and the breeding and care of dogs.

Exploring the use of complementary and alternative approaches to health care on UK dairy farms

The aims of this study are to determine if CAM use has potential to reduce unnecessary antibiotic use and support the global efforts against antimicrobial resistance, and to ensure that antimicrobials and other conventional treatment approaches are used where appropriate. 20 farms with a range of management systems, herd sizes and production goals were recruited to this study. Interviews were conducted with 24 farmers through a mixture of face-to-face, telephone and videoconferencing modalities necessitated by movement restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, 16 farms were visited to collect ethnographic participant observational data using ethnographic fieldnotes and photographs. Interviews were conducted using a topic guide and explored participants' experience of CAM, including drivers/barriers to CAM use, experiences of CAM use and how CAM might influence the use of conventional medicine such as antibiotics. Early findings indicate several drivers for UK dairy farmers to use CAM approaches, including their own personal [or friends' and relations'] experiences, the views of influential people and advisors, networks within the farming community and the fact that CAM use allows a greater sense of autonomy in health-based decision making. Farmers often refer to milk buyers and organic guidelines as factors which influence their use of CAM. They further refer to a desire to 'do something' for the animal and to minimise animal welfare related concerns. A range of CAM information sources were also consulted by farmers including, holistic health management organisations/courses, online materials, and pharmacies. Participating farmers associate the use of CAM approaches with other holistic health management practices, human-animal interactions, the actual character and physical characteristics of an animal and animal welfare. This indicates that CAM use is seen by farmers as part of a wider ethos and belief about holistic farming practices and land use. Additionally, data implies that some farmers value their positive personal experiences of CAM use over scientific evidence. In contrast, barriers to CAM use were also identified including: the perception that CAM approaches are reserved specifically for organic systems, little access to CAM and related resources and some existing tensions between farmers and other stakeholders' views. Early findings suggest that farmers are influenced in their use of CAM by a range of individuals within the agriculture community, including veterinary surgeons (some of whom use homeopathic practices), mainstream farming press and pro-CAM organisations and advisors.

Special Issue: One health. (Special Issue: One health.)

This special issue consists of 17 papers dealing with issues animal health (captive and wild primates), environmental health (rain forests and mountain areas), and human health (the role of religion in One Health, lessons from the Hanuman langur (Semnopithecus entellus) and other human-non-human primate interactions,and Covid-19).

Public concern for animal welfare and its correlation with ethical ideologies after Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in China

The outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) represents a major public health challenge and a serious threat to sustainable social development. A consideration of animal welfare is clearly justified, given the potential contribution of animals to the spread of the disease. The present study, therefore, sought to investigate the concern the Chinese people have for animal welfare (PCAW) and how their 'ethical ideology' (idealism and relativism) determines PCAW after COVID-19, through comparison with the same study, carried out in China in 2015. Our results demonstrated a significant improvement in Chinese PCAW after COVID-19. The adverse impact of COVID-19 may have resulted in a lowered idealism score and this decreased score served to neutralise significant correlations between idealism and PCAW, compared to the 2015 results. The global pandemic did not increase people's relativism score and a significant correlation was found between relativism and PCAW. Gender, age, educational level, public perception of animals after COVID-19, zoo and aquarium visiting were all shown to be predictor variables for PCAW. This study is one of the first to investigate Chinese PCAW after COVID-19 and can therefore provide knowledge that will potentially increase Chinese PCAW.

The welfare of wildlife: an interdisciplinary analysis of harm in the legal and illegal wildlife trades and possible ways forward.

Wildlife trade-both legal and illegal-is an activity that is currently the focus of global attention. Concerns over the loss of biodiversity, partly stemming from overexploitation, and the corona virus pandemic, likely originating from wildlife trade, are urgent matters. These concerns though centre on people. Only sometimes does the discussion focus on the wildlife traded and their welfare. In this article, we make the case as to why welfare is an important component of any discussion or policy about wildlife trade, not only for the interests of the wildlife, but also for the sake of humans. We detail the harm in the trade as well as the current welfare provisions, particularly in relation to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which guide global transport and trade. There are a number of ways that the current approach to wildlife welfare could be improved, and we propose ways forward in this regard.

Proceedings of the XIIth International Scientific Congress in Fur Animal Production, Warsaw, Poland, 24-25 August 2021

This proceedings contains 43 papers on the behaviour, welfare, breeding, reproduction, feeding and diseases of mink, blue foxes and chinchillas, as well as the impacts of COVID 19 on fur farming.

Sinking Mink: An Argument for Ending the Mink Industry in Nova Scotia

Some Canadian farms produce fox or chinchilla fur, but their numbers are dwarfed by the number of mink farms.2 In a similar vein, trapping is a fur-gathering practice that continues to exist in Canada to some extent, but it predominantly occurs in other areas of the country and is not discussed in this paper.3 Second, this paper does not explore the animal rights theory that it is inherently unethical for humans to use animals as resources. Enterprising farmers began to move with greater frequency into Canada's burgeoning fur farming sector.9 A group of mink farmers established themselves in Nova Scotia's Digby County during the 1930s.10 The availability of fish and eels made this a logical location to capture, breed, and raise the carnivorous and semi-aquatic mammals.11 The Nova Scotia Mink Breeders' Association formed in 1938,12 and its farmers reaped high profits as mink became the fur en vogue in the years following the Second World War.13 The Digby farmers followed in the footsteps of the Prince Edward Island ranchers who developed so many fox farming techniques. In practice, only one Canadian fur farmer has been convicted of violating this provision.20 The Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Farmed Mink (the "Code") is a publication offering a detailed set of guidelines for the proper treatment of mink.21 However, animal law scholars have criticized this Code, along with others crafted by the National Farm Animal Care Council, for being of indeterminate legal force.22 These Codes are also flawed because they are written by farm operators rather than independent third parties.23 Nova Scotia has enacted more legislation that applies to fur farming than any other province. The Fur Industry Regulations focus on the adverse environmental impacts of mink farming.30 The Regulations address topics like feces and carcass disposal and soil tests.

The impact of COVID- 19 pandemic on animals and veterinarians

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic process on animals, animal caregiver, and veterinary students, clinical academicians and self-employed veterinarians in our country were evaluated in this study. By examining the available resources on the subject, the situation in our country and in the world has been revealed. In addition, information is given on the characteristics of the COVID-19 agent and the differences between animal species. New studies in dogs and especially cats, in which coronavirus infection is common, will help us to provide information concerning the effects of COVID-19 in these animals and the contamination patterns and course of the disease.

Veterinary ethics in the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective: This research is the first study carried out to reveal the effects of Covid-19, which went down in history as the pandemic of our century, on veterinary ethics in our country. Material and Methods: The dimensions of the pandemic were revealed by examining the limited number of domestic and foreign resources on the subject. These studies were evaluated ethically in accordance with the purpose of our research.

A world in forced pause: human relationships with other animals for global welfare

According to physics principles, any action produces a reaction and generates consequences. Under this premise, it is essential to reflect on the actions we have in our relationships with other animals in current times. Our actions always bring implications, in many cases, affecting the welfare of animals, humans, or the planet. A unique virus, COVID-19, caused a pandemic, with more than 50 million cases in 188 countries as of November 2020. Evidence indicates its spread was a consequence of the human relationship with wild animals used for marketing and consumption, generating radical changes in social and economic dynamics, and significantly impacting animals. The lockdowns slowed down daily life, forced stop using vehicles, and reduce our excessive consumption of things. In just a few months, nature has shown that fauna can return to places where it had not been present for decades, the water cleared, the air cleaned, and a kind of natural balance returned. During the forced human quarantine, the outlook for production animals showed the fragility and low resilience of high-density industrialized systems. The excess of animals in contrast to the low number of processing plants (large in size, and therefore fragile when facing a problem like this) resulted in the emergency slaughter of millions of animals on farms. In the case of companion animals, they have suffered collateral damage due to conscious or involuntary relinquishment due to cities' surprise closures;additionally, humans' constant presence at home has generated multiple behavioral problems. For animals in zoos, the situation is also difficult, as visitors' absence reduced incomes;it has put many zoos around the world at risk of closure. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on animal, environmental, and human welfare is clear. Hence, the objective is to analyze the impact of the pandemic on global welfare.

56th Congress of Veterinary Epidemiology

This proceedings contains 10 papers on risk management policy of the ministry of health, labour and welfare for ensuring safe wild game meat, prospective of application of food safety risk assessment for game meat, coronavirus disease (COVID-19) for animal owners, shelter medicine and COVID-19, the characteristics of bats as natural reservoirs of the novel coronavirus, chalkbrood in honey bees and its control measures, the economic impact of classical swine fever in Japan, benzalkonium chloride resistance in Listeria monocytogenes isolated in Japan, COVID-19 outbreak and epidemiological research in Japan and the amendment of the act on domestic animal infectious diseases control.

Conference on humane innovations in education Ibrahim Arnautovic, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 12-13 November 2021

This issue contains 14 articles on students' self-study and self-assessment during the veterinary anatomy course at the University of Zagreb, Croatia;cost-effectiveness of 3d printing of anatomical models;solving the formalin issue in the veterinary anatomy teaching;alternative methods for vasopuncturing in veterinary medicine using an artificial rabbit ear;humane innovations in veterinary anatomy education in India;glycaemia as a reliable indicator for diabetes mellitus in dogs and cats;humane innovations and the advantages of replacing animal experiments and dissection;anatomical learning materials for the digital age;usage of dummies for training purposes in laboratory animal science;enhancing veterinary education and training through the use of the Elnady Technique (et) specimens;virtual reality (vr) in veterinary anatomy teaching;smart 3D meat inspection;educational animal use and alternatives;students' perspectives and attitude about the shift to emergency remote learning of veterinary anatomy during the COVID-19 pandemic;a new way of education-virtual reality;sonography as educational tool for recognition of anatomical structures in bovine ovaries;the sketchfab platform as a tool in veterinary anatomy education and students' assessment of the use of different neuroanatomical specimens in veterinary anatomy practical classes.

China's pet activists: Using moral arguments and epidemic concerns to make space for animal rights

In China, a widespread movement for animal rights arose only recently and without a strong level of state-based support, unlike the well-documented rise in Europe and North America. This movement has nonetheless become a vocal force for social change. Somewhat surprisingly, as other social movements have experienced increasing state-led resistance and pressure since 2012, the animal rights contingent has remained a vibrant part of the social landscape that mediates humans' relations with other animals. How have these agents been able to persist despite the greater political clampdown? We argue that the Covid-19 pandemic, first identified in China, has become a new resource for animal rights activists. These activists are working to leverage the growing fear of zoonotic contagion as a rationale for their work for dogs. © 2022 The authors.