Pain and Stress
This Welfare Topic aims to help Competent Authorities and other stakeholders with issues related to painful and stressful procedures performed on ruminants and equines. The documents published by the EURCAW Ruminants & Equines on this topic are not legally binding and may be updated periodically.
Legislation
The legal requirements referred to in thematic and indicator factsheets are based on EU legislation. National regulations in EU Member States may exceed these requirements.
Council Directive 98/58/EC states general rules for the protection of animals kept for farming purposes. Council Directive 2008/119/EC sets minimum standards for the protection of calves. There is no reference to the provision of enrichments except that calves must have visual and tactile contacts with neighbours when they are in individual crates (under 8 weeks of age).
- Article 3 Member States must ensure that animal owners and keepers take all reasonable measures to safeguard animal welfare and prevent unnecessary pain, suffering, or injury.
- Annex, 1 Animals must be cared for by a sufficient number of suitably trained and competent staff.
- Annex, 4 Sick or injured animals must receive prompt care, veterinary attention when necessary, and appropriate isolation with suitable bedding where required.
- Annex, 5 Records must be kept of medicinal treatments administered and animal mortalities observed during inspections.
- Annex, 19 Until specific EU rules on mutilations are adopted, national legislation on mutilation practices remains applicable.
Regulation (EC) No 1760/2000 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 July 2000 establishing a system for the identification and registration of bovine animals and regarding the labelling of beef and beef products and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 820/97
- Article 1(1) Member States must establish a system for the identification and registration of bovine animals.
- Article 3 The identification and registration system must include individual animal identification through ear tags.
- Article 4(1) All bovine animals must be identified with two approved ear tags bearing the same unique identification code to ensure traceability.
- Article 4(2) Ear tags must be applied within the period established by the Member State and before the animal leaves its holding of birth.
Regulation (EU) No 653/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 amending Regulation (EC) No 1760/2000 as regards electronic identification of bovine animals and labelling of beef
- Article 1(3) Updates EU rules by replacing traditional identification references with “means of identification” for individual animal identification.
- Article 4(1) All cattle must be identified with at least two approved identification means, including at least one visible identifier with a readable code.
- Article 4a(1) Identification must be applied within 20 days of birth, with a possible extension up to 60 days for the second identifier due to physiological development.
- Annex I Introduces approved identification means including conventional ear tags, electronic ear tags, ruminal boluses, and injectable transponders.
Knowledge
Painful procedures in farm animals, i.e. non-therapeutic operations and procedures which involve interference with or the removal of sensitive tissue or bone structure of the animal, are common practice. The rationale behind such procedures, which may be carried out by farmers, other qualified farm personnel, or veterinarians is threefold: (1) identification purposes; (2) reducing the risk of injury to the animal, other animals or caretakers; and (3) commercial reasons, such as improving production efficiency or meat quality.
Frequently performed procedures in dairy and beef cattle include identification marking (e.g. ear-tagging, ruminal bolus, injectable transponder, branding, notching), disbudding (removal of the horn bud before it attaches to the skull), dehorning (removal of horn tissue after it is attached to skull), castration and less often spaying (i.e. female castration), tail docking, teat clipping, and nose ringing. Handling during painful procedures is stressful for the animals and thus methods of restraint should be performed with care e.g. adopting low stress handling techniques and using appropriate equipment to restrain animals. All procedures should aim to minimise pain, stress and fear in the animals, as part of a good treatment.
Pain is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain as “An unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with, or resembling that associated with, actual or potential tissue damage.” (Raja et al., 2020) and is expressed through behaviour including: (1) during the procedure: defensive behaviours (e.g. kicks), withdrawal, and vocalisation; (2) after the procedure: changes in postures (e.g. lowered head, arched back, extended legs), in facial expression (e.g. eyes wide open), increased stimulation (e.g. grooming) of the painful area, reduced feeding/ruminating activities, increased immobility, social withdrawal (e.g. reduced social interactions, increased distance to pen-mates). The type and intensity of behavioural changes depend upon the type of pain, its source, its location and its intensity. Pain may have long term effects on mental states (e.g. long-term stress, negative affective states and cognitive bias) and can be divided into three types, which should be considered when assessing outcomes of painful procedures:
- Acute nociceptive pain (intraoperative phase): response to initial tissue damage; can be inhibited or minimised using a combination of local/general anaesthesia; sedation alone is not sufficient to reduce acute pain but can be used to facilitate the procedure and lessening the force of handling;
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Inflammatory pain (response to tissue damage): persistent until tissue damage is resolved; increased pain sensitivity (hyperalgesia) during the healing process; can be alleviated by using analgesia (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), opioids);
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Neuropathic pain (pain from nerve damage and dysfunction): occurs when the somatosensory system is damaged or has a dysfunction and can last indefinitely. It is possible that surgical procedures lead to neuroma development.
Any physical or mental suffering experienced by an animal that could reasonably have been suppressed, substituted or soothed e.g. through appropriate care, housing, handling, treatment or humane procedures (including the use of sedation, anaesthesia and analgesia), may be deemed unnecessary. Therefore, the primary aim must be to avoid or minimise the need for, the amount and consequences of painful and stressful procedures. In this context, the age of the animal should be considered. Procedures carried out at a younger age may result in less tissue damage and a reduced inflammatory and acute stress response compared with the same procedures performed in older animals. Young animals (including neonates) are able to experience pain, therefore proper pain alleviation has to be given at any age. In addition, there is indication that painful experiences in neonates may lead to a systemic increase in pain sensitivity that may persist into adulthood. Outcome measures (e.g. tissue damage, inflammation, behavioural responses/changes, physiological measures) may be used to assess the impact of such procedures and the according handling/restraint.
Tools for Inspection
With respect to the procedures applied in livestock husbandry, it is recommended to focus on the following areas:
- Farm records regarding application of sedation, anaesthesia, and analgesia during painful (surgical) procedures
- Signs of post-operative pain (e.g. behavioural changes such as increased restlessness, head shaking, decreased rumination, abnormal posture, tissue sensitivity, wound-directed behaviour)
- Specific changes to the body (Figures 1–3) as a direct consequence of the procedure (e.g. absence of horn buds, presence of nose rings, identification tags on ears, identification marks on other body parts, testicles)
- Presence of appropriate handling facilities and equipment
