Whaling continues despite a global moratorium, and the methods of slaughter used are a controversial welfare issue. If a whale is not killed instantly by an explosive harpoon, the Japanese use electric lances as a secondary killing device.

Video footage was obtained which documented the sequence of events in Japanese whaling operations, including the harpooning and application of electric lances to seven whales. A minimum time to death of each whale was estimated. To achieve immediate insensibility using electrical stunning, the electrodes must span the brain. This video revealed that electrodes tend to be placed between the pectoral and dorsal fins, and on the same side of the whale. In this case only a small proportion of current would pass through the brain, and ventricular fibrillation is unlikely. Previous work has shown that the currents used were likely to be 50-100 times too small to cause cardiac fibrillation or cerebral dysfunction.

A humane death cannot be achieved with inappropriate placement of lances and inadequate current application. A more effective secondary killing method is necessary.

Two experiments were carried out to determine whether lighting conditions during handling affected heart rate or behaviour in farmed red deer. In Experiment 1 heart rate was measured in 24 individual deer, held under restraint in a mechanical deer crush for two minutes, under either dark (0lux) or light (1500lux) conditions. A stethoscope was used to monitor heartbeat which was indicated vocally by the stethoscope operator on to a Dictaphone. In Experiment 2, 10 groups of three deer were confined for four minutes in an unfamiliar 4×6m light-proof pen with lighting provided either on the left or right-hand side of the pen, to provide a gradient across the pen from approximately 12 to 1000lux. For the first two minutes the deer were alone and for the second two minutes a person stood in the pen. An infrared video camera was used to record behaviour.

In Experiment 1, heart rate was lower (P < 0.05) in the dark compared with in the light when recording commenced, thereafter it decreased overall with similar (P > 0.05) values observed for the different lighting treatments. In Experiment 2, the mean position of the groups across the pen varied according to whether lighting was on the left or right, with groups displaced to the right when the lights were on the left, and standing in the middle of the pen when the lights were on the right (P < 0.05). During testing, groups moved away from whichever side the lights were on (P < 0.05). The experiments suggested that stress during restraint was reduced by providing darkness and that deer preferred dim lighting compared with bright lighting when confined in unfamiliar surroundings.

The resting behaviour of 64 groups of sheep was observed in the lairages of two slaughterhouses after transport for about four hours in a commercial livestock transporter. The sheep were scanned at five minute intervals for the initial three hours in the lairage pen. The median percentage of time spent lying per group was 17 per cent (range 1 to 63). The percentage of time spent lying was not significantly related to the duration of transport, time of arrival or slaughterhouse. There was a significant positive relationship between space allowance (range 0.22 to 0.98 m2 per sheep) and percentage of time spent lying per group (P < 0.001). Increased space allowance also tended to be associated with a decrease in the occurrence of all interactions between the sheep (P = 0.05). Groups penned with two unfamiliar groups tended to spend less time lying than those penned on their own or with one other group (P = 0.07). There was no significant difference in the total percentage of time spent lying by groups penned on slats and those penned on straw. The results indicated that the ability of sheep to rest in the lairage may be compromised by providing low space allowances.

Published information provides scientific evidence that traditional, involuntary restraint techniques of research non-human primates are intrinsically a source of distress resulting from fear. It has been documented that common methods of enforced restraint result in significantly increased adrenal activity as well as significant changes in a variety of other physiological parameters. There is no scientific evidence that the animals adequately habituate to involuntary restraint. Numerous reports have been published demonstrating that non-human primates can readily be trained to cooperate rather than resist during common handling procedures such as capture, venipuncture, injection and veterinary examination. Cooperative animals fail to show behavioural and physiological signs of distress. It was concluded that the advantages of training techniques over traditional restraint techniques will have to be explored more extensively in the future for the sake of research subjects and scientific methodology.

In 1989 Britain's leading game shooting organizations joined forces to produce the Code of Good Shooting Practice. Its purpose was to set out an agreed standard to which shooters should adhere. Amongst the many issues addressed in the Code was that of the release of hand-reared game birds, but little was said about the actual rearing of the birds themselves. This omission has now largely been remedied through the publication of The Code of Good Game Rearing Practice by The British Association for Shooting and Conservation, The British Field Sports Society, The Game Conservancy Trust and the Game Farmers Association. This small booklet covers the care, husbandry, handling and health of game birds being reared for subsequent release into the wild. It is essentially a series of guidelines based on the principle that ‘Game husbandry shall be conducted with all due consideration for the health and welfare of the birds concerned’.

In this paper social relationships (as defined by Hinde) between age/sex classes of kangaroos, wallabies and rat-kangaroos are reviewed and characterized by frequencies, direction and, where possible, intensity of behavioural interactions, by their patterning in sequences and by distance regulation. Male social organization in the wild for larger non-solitary species is organized in an age/size-related hierarchy. Frequent interactions among equal-sized males stabilize this hierarchy and large males by their simple presence deter younger ones from courting.

Depending on social organization in the wild, the presence of one or more males, sometimes males from different age classes, is desirable from the animal welfare standpoint.

The structure of breeding groups can be greatly improved in terms of welfare and breeding optimization, when a diversity of social relationships are as close to natural conditions as possible.

The behaviour of two groups of sheep was observed when they were placed in a pen on wooden slats and/or on straw bedding for 48h. When sheep were placed in the pen and not given a choice of slats and straw, the proportion of scans spent standing and lying by one group of sheep were not affected by floor surface, whereas another group lay down more on the straw than on the slats during the first 24h in the pen. There was more movement when on straw than on slats. When given a choice of either slats or straw for 48h, the sheep spent more than half of the scans on straw. The study showed that sheep show a preference for lying down on straw compared with wooden slats. However, sheep will lie down on wooden slats. Although straw is, quite rightly, recommended as a suitable surface for lying, there was little evidence in this study that slats provide an unsuitable surface for a slaughterhouse lairage pen.

Stress in humans has been reported to be associated with a decrease in the salivary immunoglobulin A (s-IgA) levels enabling the possible use of s-IgA to assess stress. Prolonged stress, if reliably assessed in a non-invasive manner, may be used to assess animal welfare. This study analysed groups of dogs undergoing physical and temperamental training and sIgA levels were measured by rocket immunoelectrophoresis in prospective samples. Behavioural assessment was carried out and Cortisol levels in saliva were measured by ELISA. A significant negative correlation (P <0.007) between the logarithmic Cortisol concentrations and s-IgA levels in saliva was recorded. The behavioural assessment of the dogs agreed well with the biochemical markers. It is concluded that IgA levels in saliva may be a useful marker of dog well-being and that stress results in decreased s-IgA levels.

In April 1994 the Australian and New Zealand Council for the Care of Animals in Research and Teaching (ANZCCART) held a conference at the School of Medicine, Christchurch (NZ) on ‘Animal Welfare in the Twenty-First Century: Ethical, Educational and Scientific Challenges’. The proceedings volume, containing the printed texts of the papers given at this important meeting, has now been published. The subjects covered ranged from ‘Ethical challenges’ (one paper), through ‘Educational challenges’ (seven papers), Scientific challenges (five papers), Challenges posed by the three Rs’ (five papers) to Protecting the New Zealand Environment - vertebrate pest control’. For details of some of the paper titles see the notice on page 2.

Pigs were selected at random from three lines (homozygous halothane positive, homozygous negative, and the heterozygotes). They were housed for four weeks within standardized environmental conditions with six pigs per pen corresponding to each of the three lines with two treatment combinations (6×3×2). Half of the pigs were allocated to routine care without humans entering the pen, while the other ones received an increased human contact treatment; animal-man interaction times were recorded. Before and after the four-week experimental period, pigs were housed individually for one day. A blood sample was taken for beta-endorphin analysis and heart rate was measured. The final heart rate measurements were continued during a transport of two hours. With respect to animal-man interaction times no clear treatment effect was observed. Increased human contact lowered the plasma beta-endorphin content to a greater extent as a function of time, while heart rate also became lower. The latter may result in an improved heart function during handling and transport. Differences with regard to the halothane gene were observed during housing conditions, but not during transport.

It is generally accepted that to carry out certain trials or procedures, particularly metabolism or digestibility studies, it is necessary to house animals singly, often in sterile metal cages which differ greatly from the animal's normal living accommodation. The lack of choice, mental and physical stimulation and general ‘creature comforts’ increases the stress of isolation.

The design of the buildings at the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition aim to ameliorate these unsatisfactory conditions and provide environmental enrichment, freedom of choice and mental and physical stimulation, in housing as similar as possible to the normal housing of domestic pets.

A questionnaire on methods of replacement and retention of pre-parturient vaginal prolapse, performed by the shepherd or veterinary surgeon, was completed by 108 veterinary undergraduate students after their farm experience as lambing assistants. The retention methods routinely employed included various suture patterns (72 replies; 66.7%), a plastic intravaginal retaining device (17.6%) and a truss (15.7%). In the sutured group, Buhner perivulval sutures, purse string perivulval sutures and horizontal mattress sutures had been used in 13 per cent, 46.4 per cent and 40.6 per cent of replies respectively. While 5mm nylon tape had been used for 52 of 72 (72.2%) procedures, autoclaved suture material had been used in only 29.6 per cent of replies. No analgesia was employed prior to placing the sutures in 40 (55.6%) replies. Frequent or pronounced abdominal straining by the ewe during replacement of the vaginal prolapse was observed by 69 of 108 respondents (63.9%). On a subjective basis 20 students (18.5%) considered that the welfare consequences of the procedure were a matter of concern and a further 40 students (37.0%) judged that the welfare consequences of the procedure were poor.

In 1987 the Australian Council for the Care of Animals in Research and Teaching (ACCART) was established as a result of increased awareness within the research and teaching communities of the distinctive issues that relate to use of animals in these fields. It changed its name to Australian and New Zealand Council for the Care of Animals in Research and Teaching (ANZCCART) on 1st January 1993, following the decision by the Royal Society of New Zealand to join and to represent a consortium of New Zealand organizations.

A study was conducted over 24 days to evaluate the effects of three environmental enrichment techniques (frozen balls of ice containing fish, various scents, hanging logs) on four captive African lions (Panthera leo). Behavioural data on activity level and behavioural diversity were collected daily during a baseline and an enriched session. All enrichments produced positive changes in behaviour. Enrichment was also associated with increased use of space by the lions. The enrichment techniques evaluated in this study each produced distinct and positive changes in behaviour thus reinforcing the need for variety to be exercised in captive enrichment programmes. Providing different enrichments allows animals to perform a greater range of behaviours, become more active in captivity, and will decrease the likelihood of habituation to certain enrichment items. Environmental enrichment should be a part of any management protocol for animal welfare and health.

The New Zealand Animal Welfare Advisory Committee - a body similar in status and function to the UK Farm Animal Welfare Council, but covering all domesticated animals - has, over the years, published a number of Codes of Recommendations and Minimum Standards for the Welfare of Animals.

In 1989 the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, the British Field Sports Society and The Game Conservancy Trust produced between them, The Code of Good Shooting Practice. This has now been reissued in a 1994/5 amended edition.

It has been known for many years that cigarettes are bad for the health. This knowledge has been largely acquired from epidemiological studies in the human population - where it is suggested that, in the UK alone, over 100,000 smokers die every year as a result of their habit.

Fifteen of the UK's largest medical charities have banded together to produce two discussion packs aimed at helping teachers to introduce the animal rights/animal welfare/biomedical research controversy to school discussion groups. One pack Animal Rights and Medical Research is directed towards sixth formers and other advanced students, whilst the other entitled Difficult Choices is intended for use with pupils aged 12 or older in their Research and Social Education (PSE) and/or English and Religious Education classes. Both packs are well produced and largely succeed in presenting their material in an interesting, straightforward and balanced manner.

It is estimated that, on average, some 30 per cent of dairy cows in the UK become lame each year. This common disease not only causes pain and distress to the cows themselves, it is also an economic drain on the whole dairy industry.

The Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, has just published the second edition of the International Directory of Primatology. The purpose of the directory is to enhance communications among organizations and individuals involved in primate research, conservation and education. It can be used by primatologists as a desktop working tool or by guidance counsellors, educators, librarians, students and the general public as a guide to primate programmes and information resources.