Welfare indicators
Dossier: Tail biting and tail docking
Indicators and checklists to monitor animal welfare on-farm and/or check or verify compliance with legislation regarding tail docking and tail biting.
How to assess tail biting? Tail biting may be assessed:
- On-farm
- Post mortem, at the slaughterhouse
How to assess the risk for tail biting? Indicators to assess the risks for tail biting cover the following six key risk-factor areas:
- Enrichment
- Climate
- Health and fitness
- Competition over resources
- Diet
- Pen structure/cleanliness
Supporting Commission documents
- Commission Staff Working Document on how to implement the Commission Recommendation and best practices to reduce the need for tail-docking
- Cutting the need for tail docking. Leaflet produced by the European Commission, available in 8 languages, including links to 2 best-practice videos (one in Finland and one in Italy) (EC, No date)
- Commission Recommendation (EU) 2016/336 on the application of Council Directive 2008/120/EC, laying down minimum standards for the protection of pigs as regards measures to reduce the need for tail-docking
How to assess tail biting?
On-farm
Tail
- In a first step you may estimate the length of the tail. Is it intact or shortened? A shortened tail can result from tail docking or from tail biting;
- In a second step you may assess minor or severe tail lesions. Severe lesions are recognized by wounds or necrosis.
Read more & links
At the slaughterhouse
Tail
At the slaughterhouse you may assess the tails after scalding:
- First estimate the length of the tail. Is it intact or shortened? A shortened tail can result from tail docking or from tail biting;
- In a second step you may assess minor or severe tail lesions. Severe lesions are recognized by wounds or necrosis.
How to assess the risk for tail biting?
Enrichment
Absence of sufficient and adequate enrichment materials is the largest risk factor for tail biting. The following indicators can be checked to ensure that pigs benefit from proper enrichment materials:
- Presence of sufficient and appropriate enrichment materials.
- Use of enrichment materials/exploratory behaviour. These animal based indicators confirm the provison of adequate enrichment materials.
Relevant links
- Pen enrichment, brochure in Dutch ‘Hokverrijking’, Kluivers-Poodt et al., 2019
- Enrichment for finishing pigs, Brochure of the EURCAW-Pigs “pre-project” EUWelNet (EUWelNet, No date)
- Manipulable materials and welfare assessment of pigs, scientific Opinion EFSA, 2014
Climate
Indicators to assess risks for poor thermal comfort and air quality include:
- Indicators of cold and heat stress;
- Eye-scores: redness, dirtiness;
- Pig fouling;
- Levels of harmful gases: NH3 and CO2 levels.
Relevant links
- Assessing climate and air quality, Q2E, EURCAW-Pigs, 2019
- Alarms for enforcement of “Open Standards” for Animal Welfare – Climate in Pig Houses, Report in Dutch, Vermeer and Hopster, 2017
- Different housing and husbandry systems and risks for tail biting, Scientific Opinion EFSA, 2007
Health and fitness
Specific indicators of herd health are:
- Mortality levels;
- Diarrhoea;
- Lameness levels;
- Percentage of pigs in hospital pens;
- Slaughterhouse and production records.
Read more & links
- Pig health compliance criteria, pig sub-group, in prep
- Minimum number of nursery pens, Q2E, EURCAW-Pigs, 2019
Competition over resources
The provison of sufficient resources can be confirmed by parameters such as:
- Skin lesions;
- Fighting/aggression;
- Variability in body size within a pen.
Relevant links
- Space and competition compliance critera, pig-subgroup, in prep.
Diet
The provison of an adequate and balanced diet can be confirmed by indicators such as:
- Good body condition;
- Absence of diarrhoea;
- Continuous access to fresh water.
Relevant links
- Diet compliance criteria, pig-subgroup, in prep.
- Different housing and husbandry systems and risks for tail biting, Scientific Opinion EFSA, 2007
Pen structure/cleanliness
The provison of adequate pen structures can be confirmed by parameters such as:
- Cleanliness of the resting area;
- Cleanliness/fouling of the pigs (see also climate).
Read more & links
- Different housing and husbandry systems and risks for tail biting, Scientific Opinion EFSA, 2007