Eggs contaminated with Salmonella Enteritidis are leading sources of human salmonellosis, but Salmonella Heidelberg and Salmonella Typhimurium are also egg-associated pathogens. The management practices and housing facilities characterizing different systems for housing commercial egg flocks can...

In intense breeding programs, rabbits are exposed to numerous stress factors which could affect their welfare and health. It has been suggested that group housing is more comfortable for does and similar to the living conditions of European wild rabbits. In this study, we compared three different ...

Intensive rabbit farming in Germany is subject to the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act and since 2014 also to the special requirements of the Order on the Protection of Animals and the Keeping of Production Animals (German designation: Tierschutz-Nutztierhaltungsverordnung). Due to legally...

This article describes the regulatory and welfare aspects for the design of farrowing houses for sows in Germany.

In Europe, conventional housing systems for finishing bulls (Bos taurus) tend to consist of group pens with a high stocking density. Up until now there have been no regulations in place defining bulls' space requirements, even although insufficient space allowance is considered to impair animal ...

After the ban of conventional cages, the question on the welfare of laying hens in alternative systems is raised. The furnished cages, which have been considered as welfare-friendly and which are allowed by EU legislation, are still debated in Germany. The crucial points are whether they offer...

Contaminated eggs produced by infected commercial laying flocks are often implicated as sources of human infections with Salmonella Enteritidis, but Salmonella serovars Heidelberg and Typhimurium have also been associated with egg-transmitted illness. Contamination of the edible contents of eggs is ...

Objectives: In order to gain information concerning housing conditions of budgerigars and cockatiels, the most frequently kept pet birds in Germany, a country-wide online survey among non-commercial bird owners was performed within the realm of the EXOPET study. Material and methods: The received...

Lameness remains a major concern for animal welfare and productivity in modern dairy production. Even though a trend toward loose housing systems exists and the public expects livestock to be kept under conditions where freedom of movement and the expression of natural behavior are ensured,...

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of housing and management factors on animal welfare indicators in dairy cows using a benchmarking approach. In total, 63 conventional dairy cattle farms with zero-grazing in Northern Germany were assessed using selected animal welfare...