Animal Welfare Auditing, Training & Certification

The best way to minimize animal welfare risk is to HAVE CONTROL OF YOUR ANIMAL WELFARE PROGRAM

Step 1 – Commitment From the CEO to middle management to the plant and barn workers, every person must be familiar and conversational in animal welfare Anyone can walk up to any employee and learn about their commitment to animal welfare Company employees should be in the schools and churches and cafes talking about animal welfare

Step 2 – Have a total program Very few animal ag enterprises have a total program. This would include: Dozens to hundreds of SOPs related to animal care HR pre-screening and continuous assessment of anyone that handles animals Documented training Intense internal auditing, corrective actions and documentation of corrective action

Step 3 – Have a complete 3 rd Party audit High-Quality 3rd Party audit features: Science based Statistically sound Peer reviewed Include all AW measures Seek continuous improvement

Step 4 – Assess and “improve” production practices Continuous assessment and improvement of science- based and perception-based production practices: Housing systems Handling practices Painful practices Treatment of ill animals Euthanasia procedures

Step 5 – Talk about your Animal Welfare Program Often Audiences : Employees Allied industries Trucking firms Feed companies Pharmaceutical companies Customers/Retailers Consumers The Public Animal Rights Groups

What is a complete 3 rd Party audit? High-Quality 3 rd Party audit features: Animal Well-being audit points are science based and objective Peer reviewed Include all AW measures Auditors PAACO-certified Audit instrument PAACO-certified Allow for professional judgment of qualified auditors

What is an Animal Welfare Audit? Major Categories of an audit: SOPs Health Facilities Condition of alleyways, feeders, waterers, chute Environment Temperature regulation, ventilation, air quality Animal Observations Lesions, ruptures, lameness Timely Euthanasia Humane Euthanasia Animal Handling General Daily handling Loading/Unloading

Take- home messages Perform a self reflection about your soft spots Gain control of your animal welfare program Internal audits Eliminate animal welfare issues over time Painful practices Practices that look bad on the evening news Objectionable housing systems Talk about animal welfare, often – truthfully

Who do you influence?

Thank you! Anne Visconti