Bonded labour and donkey ownership in the brick kilns of India: A need for reform of policy and practice.

Slavery, in the form of 'debt-bondage', is rife in Indian brick kilns, where the enforcement of labour laws is poor. Working equids support brick-kiln workers by transporting raw bricks into the kilns, but the situation of equids and their owners within the brick kilns is relatively unknown. We describe the welfare of donkeys (Equus asinus) owned under conditions of debt-bondage, examine the links between owner and donkey behaviour, and outline the living conditions of both donkeys and humans working in the brick kilns of Gujarat, India. We then explore the unique experience of debt-bondage by donkey owners, compare migration trends to those of non-donkey-owning workers and assess impacts on their children's education. The physical and behavioural conditions of donkeys reflected that of their owners, creating negative feedback loops and potentially reducing productivity. All donkey owners experienced debt-bondage and were particularly vulnerable to unexpected financial loss. Donkey owners, unlike non-owners, migrated within their home state, enabling their children to attend school. Our work highlights the need for policy reform within the brick-kiln industry to acknowledge the pivotal role of working donkeys in supporting human livelihoods.

"Not All Who Wander Are Lost": The Life Transitions and Associated Welfare of Pack Mules Walking the Trails in the Mountainous Gorkha Region, Nepal.

Equids in general experience transient lives where ownership may change multiple times, for working equids this can be more extreme where ownership changes are not only numerous but abrupt, and situations encountered prove difficult, diverse and tough for equids to adapt. In this study, we investigate the life cycle of pack mules in Nepal, investigating the challenges they face during their lives through to end of life. To gain insight into the lives of mules, we conducted semi-structured interviews and livelihood surveys with 27 key informants, gathering the perspectives of the people working with mules. Welfare assessments of the mules were undertaken via the Equid Assessment Research and Scoping tool (EARS) by a trained assessor. Mules had to adapt swiftly to changes in industry type, enduring long distance transportation in overloaded vehicles and across country borders with no checks for biosecurity or welfare. Mules had to show swift adaptation to their new environment, to respond to and learn new tasks via inhumanely administered training, using inappropriate techniques, delivered by owners lacking in understanding of mule behaviour and learning. Environmental conditions were often hard; the negotiation of difficult terrain and challenging weather conditions during monsoon and subsequent high-altitude working without acclimatisation likely pushed mules to their biological limits. This study investigates the lives of a population of mules in the mountains of Nepal, developing a better understanding of their needs and their 'truth' or 'telos' informing what measures will help them to thrive.

Collar pressure mapping: An evaluation of seven collar types used on working donkeys in Europe.

BACKGROUND: Working donkeys represent an important source of energy worldwide. Poor working conditions and equipment affect their ability to work. Poorly designed, ill-fitted harness causes inefficient transfer of power and leads to health and welfare issues. Using technology to assess different types of collars provides a better understanding of those that are most efficient for working donkeys. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seven different collars were tested using pressure pads. Contact area, median, maximum and peak pressures were obtained for the whole collar and critical points. Eight donkeys pulled 20% and 40% of their body weight, using each collar, under controlled conditions. RESULTS: Contact area and pressures vary between collars and effort, with design and expansion capacity of the collars playing a major role. Simple collars designed specifically for donkeys performed well, with full collars designed for horses also having good results. Due to reduced expansion capacity and contact in the critical points, the breast collars were the least effective. CONCLUSION: Design, appropriate padding and manufacturing materials and adjustment capacity are key features for good collars, and such parameters are of paramount importance in terms of health and welfare for working donkeys.

Global donkey and mule populations: Figures and trends.

Knowing how many donkeys there are in specific countries where welfare is compromised is a key concern for targeting efforts to improve donkey welfare. Additionally, accurate population estimates are vital for providing evidence and addressing the impact of population threats. The FAO annually report the number of donkeys and mules in each country. The last paper to investigate global and region trends dates back to 2000 and used FAO data from 1961 to 1997. This paper is an update focusing on global, regional and country level donkey and mule populations to understand if there have been any changes in the trends reported by the previous study between 1997 and 2018. Results show that the general trend identified between 1961 and 1997 is continuing with the number of donkeys globally increasing at a rate of ~1% per annum whilst mule populations are in decline at a rate of ~2% per annum. Results also suggest that the trend identified in the original paper are still evident today with the largest increases in donkey population seen in the sub-Saharan African region and greatest reduction noted in Eastern Europe with these two regions having different socio-economic drivers influencing these changes. These results highlight the multifaceted socio-economic drivers influence changes in donkey and mule populations demonstrating the complexity of designing targeted one-welfare approaches. Whilst the FAO donkey and mule datasets are the best available for understanding spatial-temporal distributions in populations there needs to be greater effort to promote the communication of information from the country level to the FAO. This can be directly supported by NGO's by promoting the robustness of the FAO process for collating and disseminating this information. NGO's should also seek to highlight the importance of this information for understanding global regional and country level drivers for equid population changes and potential threats to welfare as well as using this information to facilitate projects that support one-welfare approaches.

Quantifying poor working equid welfare in Nepalese brick kilns using a welfare assessment tool.

BACKGROUND: Across Asia the brick-kiln industry is expanding. In Nepal, urban dwelling has increased in recent years, raising requirement for low-cost, mass produced bricks to meet the population needs. Working equids (WEs) play a key role in non-mechanised kilns. Assessing the welfare of these equids is the starting point to addressing concerns. In line with One Welfare principles, the health and welfare of animals, people and the kiln environment are interlinked. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In December 2019, 119 WEs were assessed in seven brick kilns in three districts of Nepal, using the Equid Assessment Research and Scoping tool, developed by The Donkey Sanctuary. The objective was to measure welfare at the start of the brick kiln season. RESULTS: Horses were the predominant species of WE. Hazardous housing and environments were seen in all kilns. Behaviour responses were mixed. Owner responses and animal examination indicated poor working conditions. Signs of harmful practice were evident in most animals. The majority were underweight, with poor general health, skin alterations and musculoskeletal issues. CONCLUSION: The welfare of equids prior to starting brick kiln work is poor, posing significant concerns for the actual working period. Intervention to enhance health and welfare is required.

A New Framework for Assessing Equid Welfare: A Case Study of Working Equids in Nepalese Brick Kilns.

Equids fulfil many different roles within communities. In low- to middle-income countries (LMICs), in addition to providing a source of income, equids also provide essential transport of food, water, and goods to resource-limited and/or isolated communities that might otherwise lack access. The aim of this investigation was to understand the welfare conditions that donkeys, mules, and horses are exposed to whilst working in Nepalese brick kilns. To understand the welfare conditions of equids in Nepalese brick kilns, the Welfare Aggregation and Guidance (WAG) tool in conjunction with the Equid Assessment, Research and Scoping (EARS) tool was used to understand the health, behaviour, nutrition, living and working conditions in brick kilns. Further analysis of individual EARS responses focused on key indicator questions relating to demographic information was used to investigate specific areas of welfare concern and attitudes of handlers towards their equids. Trained staff carried out welfare assessments between December 2018 and April 2019. The information gathered using the EARS tool was summarised using the WAG tool to pinpoint areas of welfare concern and suggest possible strategies to mitigate poor welfare conditions and suggest areas to improve the welfare of equids. Overall, the results indicate that to improve the welfare of equids working in Nepalese brick kilns, there should be better provision of clean water, both when working and stabled, equipment should be removed and shade provided during rest periods, with improvements made to housing to allow the equids to rest and recuperate when not working. Further work should also focus on collaborating with owners and equid handlers to improve their attitudes and practices towards their equids. Such improvements can be implemented via training of equid handlers and kiln owners whilst using the EARS and WAG tools to provide a sound basis on which to monitor the effectiveness and impact of education programs on equid welfare.

The Welfare Aggregation and Guidance (WAG) Tool: A New Method to Summarize Global Welfare Assessment Data for Equids.

Animal welfare can be represented by an array of indicators. There is, however, increasing demand for concise welfare assessments that can be easily communicated and compared. Previous methods to aggregate welfare assessments have focused on livestock systems and produced a single welfare score, which may not represent all aspects of welfare. We propose an aggregation method for the recently developed Equid Assessment Research and Scoping (EARS) welfare assessment tool that results in grades for five welfare categories: housing conditions, working conditions, health, nutrition, and behavior. We overcome the problems associated with existing approaches by using a single aggregation method (decision trees) that incorporates the most important welfare indicators in a single step. The process aims to identify equids with the poorest welfare and aid decision-making when allocating resources. We demonstrate its application using a case study of over 6000 equids across Europe and Asia, where equids in India and Pakistan had the poorest welfare status in terms of health (respiratory disease and open wounds) and behavior (signs of fear and distress, and limb tethering practices). We recommend identification of the specific causes of these issues, using either existing detailed welfare data or through issue-specific assessments by an appropriate professional, to guide the development of appropriate interventions and, ultimately, improve equid welfare.

Equid Assessment, Research and Scoping (EARS): The Development and Implementation of a New Equid Welfare Assessment and Monitoring Tool.

The assessment of animal welfare poses numerous challenges, yet an emerging approach is the consolidation of existing knowledge into new frameworks which can offer standardised approaches to welfare assessment across a variety of contexts. Multiple tools exist for measuring the welfare of equids, but such tools have typically been developed for specific contexts. There is no 'one size fits all' which means that resulting datasets are generally non-comparable, creating a barrier to knowledge-sharing and collaboration between the many organisations working to improve equid welfare around the globe. To address this, we developed the Equid Assessment, Research and Scoping (EARS) tool, which incorporates pre-existing validated welfare assessment methods alongside new welfare indicators to deliver a larger and more comprehensive series of welfare indicators than currently exists, creating a single resource that can be used to assess equid welfare in any context. We field-trialled three welfare assessment protocols within the EARS tool, and applied these to welfare assessment of equids in a variety of contexts across nineteen countries. The EARS tool proved a useful, versatile and rapid method for collecting welfare assessment data and we collected 7464 welfare assessments in a period of fifteen months. We evaluate the EARS tool and provide ideas for future development.

Experimental investigation of the effect of temperature differentials on hydraulic performance and flow pattern of a sediment retention pond.

Existing studies on sediment retention ponds (SRPs) have examined the effects of pond layout, inlet and outlet geometry and the installation of baffles on the performance of the SRPs. However, the effects of a temperature difference between the ambient water in the pond and the inflow are often neglected, and the buoyancy forces arising from these differences in temperature can potentially change the flow in the pond and hence its hydraulic performance. This study has experimentally evaluated the effect of these temperature differences on the flow field and residence time in a retention pond for a range of temperature differences. As expected a cold inflow sinks to the bottom of the pond while a hot inflow remains at the surface, but in both cases the inflow flows more rapidly towards the outlet than is the case for isothermal inflow. A counter-current was observed at the bottom or the surface of the pond for colder or hotter influents, respectively. These thermally induced flows significantly reduced the residence time of the pond, reducing the hydraulic performance of the pond and causing severe short-circuiting. The results have also shown that the temperature differences in the pond decrease with time, yet small temperature differences persist with the pond remaining thermally stratified.

Impact of Grassland Reseeding, Herbicide Spraying and Ploughing on Diversity and Abundance of Soil Arthropods.

In order to determine the interactive effect of reseeding, herbicide spraying and ploughing on soil fauna communities, we conducted a grassland reseeding experiment combined with pre-reseed management to examine how with the whole reseeding process affects soil faunal composition. Sampling occasions and exact treatments were as follows: (1) before chemical herbicide spray; (2) after spray but before ploughing; (3) after ploughing but before reseeding; and (4) after 1 year of recovery. Our results demonstrate that, Acari and Collembola were the two soil fauna taxa with the highest abundance and accounted for around 96% of the relative total abundance among the various managements. Herbicide application tended to increase soil invertebrate abundance. Conversely, subsequent ploughing significantly reduced soil invertebrate abundance and had an obvious negative effect on soil primary and secondary decomposers, which were mainly due to the variations of Acari (especially Oribatida) and Coleoptera group abundance. Moreover, reseeding also reduced the individual number of the groups mentioned above, and favored those predators with a larger body size and individual weight. After 1 year recovery, Collembola abundance recovered to the pre-treatment levels, while with Arthropod and Acari groups were still fluctuating.

Dynamically scaled phantom phase contrast MRI compared to true-scale computational modeling of coronary artery flow.

PURPOSE: To examine the feasibility of combining computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and dynamically scaled phantom phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging (PC-MRI) for coronary flow assessment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Left main coronary bifurcations segmented from computed tomography with bifurcation angles of 33°, 68°, and 117° were scaled-up ∼7× and 3D printed. Steady coronary flow was reproduced in these phantoms using the principle of dynamic similarity to preserve the true-scale Reynolds number, using blood analog fluid and a pump circuit in a 3T MRI scanner. After PC-MRI acquisition, the data were segmented and coregistered to CFD simulations of identical, but true-scale geometries. Velocities at the inlet region were extracted from the PC-MRI to define the CFD inlet boundary condition. RESULTS: The PC-MRI and CFD flow data agreed well, and comparison showed: 1) small velocity magnitude discrepancies (2-8%); 2) with a Spearman's rank correlation ≥0.72; and 3) a velocity vector correlation (including direction) of r(2) ≥ 0.82. The highest agreement was achieved for high velocity regions with discrepancies being located in slow or recirculating zones with low MRI signal-to-noise ratio (SNRv ) in tortuous segments and large bifurcating vessels. CONCLUSION: Characterization of coronary flow using a dynamically scaled PC-MRI phantom flow is feasible and provides higher resolution than current in vivo or true-scale in vitro methods, and may be used to provide boundary conditions for true-scale CFD simulations. J. MAGN. RESON. IMAGING 2016;44:983-992.

Impact of bifurcation angle and other anatomical characteristics on blood flow - A computational study of non-stented and stented coronary arteries.

The hemodynamic influence of vessel shape such as bifurcation angle is not fully understood with clinical and quantitative observations being equivocal. The aim of this study is to use computational modeling to study the hemodynamic effect of shape characteristics, in particular bifurcation angle (BA), for non-stented and stented coronary arteries. Nine bifurcations with angles of 40°, 60° and 80°, representative of ±1 SD of 101 asymptomatic computed tomography angiogram cases (average age 54±8 years; 57 females), were generated for (1) a non-stented idealized, (2) stented idealized, and (3) non-stented patient-specific geometry. Only the bifurcation angle was changed while the geometries were constant to eliminate flow effects induced by other vessel shape characteristics. The commercially available Biomatrix stent was used as a template and virtually inserted into each branch, simulating the T-stenting technique. Three patient-specific geometries with additional shape variation and ±2 SD BA variation (33°, 42° and 117°) were also computed. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis was performed for all 12 geometries to simulate physiological conditions, enabling the quantification of the hemodynamic stress distributions, including a threshold analysis of adversely low and high wall shear stress (WSS), low time-averaged WSS (TAWSS), high spatial WSS gradient (WSSG) and high Oscillatory Shear Index (OSI) area. The bifurcation angle had a minor impact on the areas of adverse hemodynamics in the idealized non-stented geometries, which fully disappeared once stented and was not apparent for patient geometries. High WSS regions were located close to the carina around peak-flow, and WSSG increased significantly after stenting for the idealized bifurcations. Additional shape variations affected the hemodynamic profiles, suggesting that BA alone has little effect on a patient׳s hemodynamic profile. Incoming flow angle, diameter and tortuosity appear to have stronger effects. This suggests that other bifurcation shape characteristics and stent placement/strategy may be more important than bifurcation angle in atherosclerotic disease development, progression, and stent outcome.

Hemodynamics in Idealized Stented Coronary Arteries: Important Stent Design Considerations.

Stent induced hemodynamic changes in the coronary arteries are associated with higher risk of adverse clinical outcome. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of stent design on wall shear stress (WSS), time average WSS, and WSS gradient (WSSG), in idealized stent geometries using computational fluid dynamics. Strut spacing, thickness, luminal protrusion, and malapposition were systematically investigated and a comparison made between two commercially available stents (Omega and Biomatrix). Narrower strut spacing led to larger areas of adverse low WSS and high WSSG but these effects were mitigated when strut size was reduced, particularly for WSSG. Local hemodynamics worsened with luminal protrusion of the stent and with stent malapposition, adverse high WSS and WSSG were identified around peak flow and throughout the cardiac cycle respectively. For the Biomatrix stent, the adverse effect of thicker struts was mitigated by greater strut spacing, radial cell offset and flow-aligned struts. In conclusion, adverse hemodynamic effects of specific design features (such as strut size and narrow spacing) can be mitigated when combined with other hemodynamically beneficial design features but increased luminal protrusion can worsen the stent's hemodynamic profile significantly.

Overcoming spatio-temporal limitations using dynamically scaled in vitro PC-MRI - A flow field comparison to true-scale computer simulations of idealized, stented and patient-specific left main bifurcations.

The majority of patients with angina or heart failure have coronary artery disease. Left main bifurcations are particularly susceptible to pathological narrowing. Flow is a major factor of atheroma development, but limitations in imaging technology such as spatio-temporal resolution, signal-to-noise ratio (SNRv), and imaging artefacts prevent in vivo investigations. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelling is a common numerical approach to study flow, but it requires a cautious and rigorous application for meaningful results. Left main bifurcation angles of 40°, 80° and 110° were found to represent the spread of an atlas based 100 computed tomography angiograms. Three left mains with these bifurcation angles were reconstructed with 1) idealized, 2) stented, and 3) patient-specific geometry. These were then approximately 7× scaled-up and 3D printing as large phantoms. Their flow was reproduced using a blood-analogous, dynamically scaled steady flow circuit, enabling in vitro phase-contrast magnetic resonance (PC-MRI) measurements. After threshold segmentation the image data was registered to true-scale CFD of the same coronary geometry using a coherent point drift algorithm, yielding a small covariance error (σ2 <;5.8×10-4). Natural-neighbour interpolation of the CFD data onto the PC-MRI grid enabled direct flow field comparison, showing very good agreement in magnitude (error 2-12%) and directional changes (r2 0.87-0.91), and stent induced flow alternations were measureable for the first time. PC-MRI over-estimated velocities close to the wall, possibly due to partial voluming. Bifurcation shape determined the development of slow flow regions, which created lower SNRv regions and increased discrepancies. These can likely be minimised in future by testing different similarity parameters to reduce acquisition error and improve correlation further. It was demonstrated that in vitro large phantom acquisition correlates to true-scale coronary flow simulations when dynamically scaled, and thus can overcome current PC-MRI's spatio-temporal limitations. This novel method enables experimental assessment of stent induced flow alternations, and in future may elevate CFD coronary flow simulations by providing sophisticated boundary conditions, and enable investigations of stenosis phantoms.

The flow fields involved in hydrodynamic imaging by blind Mexican cave fish (Astyanax fasciatus). Part I: open water and heading towards a wall.

Blind Mexican cave fish (Astyanax fasciatus) sense the presence of nearby objects by sensing changes in the water flow around their body. The information available to the fish using this hydrodynamic imaging ability depends on the properties of the flow field it generates while gliding and how this flow field is altered by the presence of objects. Here, we used particle image velocimetry to measure the flow fields around gliding blind cave fish as they moved through open water and when heading towards a wall. These measurements, combined with computational fluid dynamics models, were used to estimate the stimulus to the lateral line system of the fish. Our results showed that there was a high-pressure region around the nose of the fish, low-pressure regions corresponding to accelerated flow around the widest part of the body and a thick laminar boundary layer down the body. When approaching a wall head-on, the changes in the stimulus to the lateral line were confined to approximately the first 20% of the body. Assuming that the fish are sensitive to a certain relative change in lateral line stimuli, it was found that swimming at higher Reynolds numbers slightly decreased the distance at which the fish could detect a wall when approaching head-on, which is the opposite to what has previously been expected. However, when the effects of environmental noise are considered, swimming at higher speed may improve the signal to noise ratio of the stimulus to the lateral line.

The flow fields involved in hydrodynamic imaging by blind Mexican cave fish (Astyanax fasciatus). Part II: gliding parallel to a wall.

Blind Mexican cave fish (Astyanax fasciatus) are able to sense detailed information about objects by gliding alongside them and sensing changes in the flow field around their body using their lateral line sensory system. Hence the fish are able to build hydrodynamic images of their surroundings. This study measured the flow fields around blind cave fish using particle image velocimetry (PIV) as they swam parallel to a wall. Computational fluid dynamics models were also used to calculate the flow fields and the stimuli to the lateral line sensory system. Our results showed that characteristic changes in the form of the flow field occurred when the fish were within approximately 0.20 body lengths (BL) of a wall. The magnitude of these changes increased steadily as the distance between the fish and the wall was reduced. When the fish were within 0.02 BL of the wall there was a change in the form of the flow field owing to the merging of the boundary layers on the body of the fish and the wall. The stimuli to the lateral line appears to be sufficient for fish to detect walls when they are 0.10 BL away (the mean distance at which they normally swim from a wall), but insufficient for the fish to detect a wall when 0.25 BL away. This suggests that the nature of the flow fields surrounding the fish are such that hydrodynamic imaging can only be used by fish to detect surfaces at short range.

Device management winning formula.

The progressive development of an electronic-biomedical engineering (EBME) department at Bedford Hospital NHS Trust is providing many outstanding benefits. Nicholas Marshall reports.