The layout of this third part of the second volume of Animal Welfare is, in geperal terms, the same as in the earlier issues. There are five refereed papers, a number of Report and comments, seven signed book and video reviews and a letter commenting on an item published in a previous number of the journal.

When individual vertebrates loose grip on their life conditions stress symptoms appear and their welfare becomes problematic. Present day research supports the view that stress can originate when an organism experiences a substantial reduction of predictability and/or controllability (PIC) of relevant events. Behavioural (conflict and disturbed behaviour) and physiological (neuro-endocrine and autonomic processes) aspects of a reduction of PIC are reviewed. The highly dynamic patterns of the homeostatic mechanisms activated during stress make it difficult to deduce any simple relationship between stress and welfare.

A list of relevant stress symptoms has been presented, all of which indicate some stage of serious welfare problems. Their occurrence should never be typical of animals living in a farm, laboratory or zoo housing system. However, if after all this is the case, such systems have to be corrected and replaced by more appropriate ones as soon as possible.

The social behaviour, ranging, and stereotypic behaviours of four red ruffed lemurs (one female, three males) was observed during group formation and release into a 2.25ha natural habitat enclosure at the Duke University Primate Center (DUPC). The female was immediately dominant to all males and there was no female-male affiliation during the initial stages of group formation. The group became identifiable as a unit after release to free-ranging when affiliation and group vocalizations began. Affiliation and vocalizations continued during subsequent recagings. Male dominance rank reflected relative age, but was subject to reversals. The stresses involved in release and group formation, however, can temporarily produce new aberrant behaviours which are soon replaced by normal behaviours. Once released into the large enclosure, stereotypic behaviours became infrequent but did not disappear. Other novel behaviours such as catatonic huddle and all male huddles were observed during release. Natural habitat enclosures can be important tools in the psychological well-being of captive primates.

Straw bedding provides a number of functions which affect the behaviour and welfare of pigs including comfort, recreation and diet. It has been suggested that the importance of these different functions will vary depending on the life/production stage of the pig. The available literature indicates that all of the above functions are relevant to all the different stages except newly born piglets. The occupational value of straw appears to be highly important. The actual mechanisms by which straw affects the pig's motivation systems are still poorly understood. It is therefore uncertain whether suitable alternatives to bedding exist or even if straw bedding in itself is completely satisfactory. Until satisfactory alternatives are available straw bedding should continue to be recommended in terms of pig behaviour and welfare.

Individual differences in behaviour may be examined at two levels. First, individuals may differ in terms of frequencies, durations and/or patterning of particular measures of their behaviour. Second, individuals may differ in their temperament, ie in the way they react to environmental change and challenge. Individual differences in temperament are particularly relevant to animal welfare studies, for the welfare of an individual largely depends on whether it can cope with environmental challenge. Whereas the study of individual differences in behaviour at the first level may be achieved by using standard behavioural methods, the study of individual differences in temperament requires the use of more unusual methods, namely observers’ ratings and behavioural tests. Observers’ ratings provide information on subtle aspects of an individual's behaviour that could otherwise be overlooked. Behavioural tests facilitate comparisons between individuals in a more standardized way. It is suggested that both systems should be used together.

Taking individual differences into account when designing experiments may help reduce variability in studies on welfare issues and understanding the causes of individual differences in temperament may allow us to reduce the incidence of some welfare problems.

A comparison was made of the behaviour of budgerigars housed singly in commercially available cages obtained from a pet supplier, and budgerigars housed in a group of six in a small aviary. Budgerigars housed in the aviary consumed significantly more food and were more active, performing more wing stretching and flying. Caged budgerigars performed significantly more vocalizations. When tested individually, aviary birds were more active in a novel test chamber and were significantly more likely to approach an unfamiliar bird. Cage birds were generally reluctant to approach an unfamiliar bird, but showed an increasing tendency to approach when allowed a longer period of familiarization. Pet budgerigars are commonly housed in isolation from conspecifics, with little consideration of potential effects on welfare. The aim of this study was to provide some initial information about the effects of social isolation on the behaviour of budgerigars.

This volume contains the published proceedings of a conference held in late 1991 on institutional compliance with USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) regulations for the well-being of canines and non-human primates in research. The regulations have been criticized and were the subject of legal proceedings even before they were implemented. In February 1993, Judge Richey ruled that the sections concerning dogs and non-human primates were unlawful. So this is a publication that is, not only specific to the United States legal requirements but also, has to some extent been overtaken by events. Some of the papers review the available literature to support their theses, while others are reports of management practices at various institutions. After each paper there are transcripts of question and answer sessions which often suffer from a lack of structure and style. The first half of the book considers dogs, and in this section the emphasis is on the USDA requirements for space and exercise. These are important matters, particularly when the legislation only requires that the cage should be the square of the dog's length plus six inches! Having said that, in the introductory paper Wolfie points out, quite correctly, that far more is known about the social needs of dogs, and that these seem to be more important than small differences in cage or pen size.

In November 1991 the UC Center for Animal Alternatives was established within the nine campuses of the University of California. It is sited at the School of Veterinary Medicine on the Davis campus and is headed by Dr Lynette Hart. The stated aim of the Center for Animal Alternatives (CAA) is to build on the concept of the Three Rs (replacement, reduction and refinement) of Russell and Burch but, as replacement and reduction are being widely tackled in several other places, to concentrate on refinement factors which may affect the well-being of the animals being used by man.

This most useful annotated list of some 237 audio-visual presentations (video-cassettes and slide sets with associated audio-cassettes) relating to animal care, use and welfare has been prepared by D'Anna J Berry of the USDA National Agricultural Library's Animal Welfare Information Center. Audio-visual material can be produced for instruction, for education and for indoctrination and there are numerous examples of each of these in this catalogue. The subjects covered range from animal welfare/rights through research techniques used on animals, the care/husbandry of farm, companion and laboratory animals, to alternatives and the justification for biomedical research. The items listed were produced mainly in the 1980s and 1990s; each is described and commented on and the name and location of the producing organization is given (as in a book reference) but the detailed postal address is not. This makes it a little difficult for non-US residents - the material listed can, apparently, be borrowed by any US library but not by potential overseas users - they would have to approach the producing organizations directly. Nevertheless, this is a useful and informative catalogue of the audio-visual material available in the animal welfare field.

In 1989 the International Primatological Society (IPS) published an outline of general principles relating to the welfare and use of primates. These were followed in 1993 by very much more detailed codes of practice specifying requirements for physical and psychological welfare. The two sets of guidelines are complimentary, and to improve ease of access have now been published together as one volume. However, in the process a few typographical errors have crept in. Most of the use of non-human primates still occurs outside the source countries, but studies using primates are constantly changing. There are moves away from using wild caught animals towards captive bred supplies (sometimes within the countries of origin) and research in source countries is increasing. The use of primates cuts across national boundaries and there is a clear need for international agreement on the necessary standards. These guidelines, which have been produced as a synthesis of international expertise, are a step in the right direction and should help to persuade those whose regulations are not up to the mark.

These guidelines, which have been prepared by a working party of the Bat Conservation Trust, are directed towards those who find or are presented with injured/diseased or orphaned bats. Should the animals be treated and released, killed humanely or kept in permanent captivity? The legal, moral and practical aspects of these questions are dealt with. It is clearly pointed out that it is sometimes necessary to humanely kill badly injured animals; that release back into the wild is only justifiable if the animal is truly recovered from its injury/disease and that retention of the animal in permanent captivity should only be attempted when there is a reasonable chance that the bat will enjoy a decent lifestyle. This is a very realistic and useful leaflet.

This volume contains papers presented at a seminar organised by the State Veterinarians Branch of the New Zealand Veterinary Association and held at Rotorua (North Island) in June 1992.

This booklet has been written by the Humane Slaughter Association to help horse owners face up to the reality that sooner or later they may, on welfare grounds, have to decide to have their horse humanely killed. The practicalities of the matter are discussed in response to four questions.

This school education video, which is aimed at 7-12 year olds, has been produced by the National Farmers Union (South West Region) in association with the Wessex Poultry Committee. Its intent is to describe the realities of the poultry industry to school children and it has, seemingly, been made to counter the anti-intensive farming material freely available from other sources.