Evaluating perception of animal welfare among owners of family farming units on dry tropical lands

Resumen

Objective: to evaluate the perception of animal welfare (AW) among owners of family farming units (FFUs) through selected livestock management practices.

Design/ Methodology/ Approach: A semi-structured questionnaire was applied to survey a sample of 80 FFU owners. The survey collected data on demographics, AW perception, feeding practices, infrastructure, animal handling and use of preventive veterinary care.

Results: among respondents, 92.5% were male and 7.5% female. 51.2% were over 60 years old, 36.2% were between 40 and 59 years old. Around 80% had 20 to 40 years of livestock-rearing experience. Educational attainment was low; 80% had no schooling, only 20% had an average of 4.3 ± 5 years of schooling. In terms of species, 47.5% raised small ruminants (sheep and goats) and 52.5% managed cattle; in a complementary way all raised other species (such as pigs, poultry, or equines) within mixed production systems. Notably, 98.8% of respondents were unaware of AW principles; none had received technical assistance or training related to AW. Feeding practices primarily relied on grazing native pastures, with 20% providing feed supplements (1–4 kg) during the dry season. Water sources included the river (53%) and deep wells (47%). Only 37.5% had basic infrastructure for animal handling, while 62.5% has none. A 33% of respondents practiced preventive veterinary care, whereas 67% only provided veterinary care to animals when symptoms of sickness appeared.

Limitations/ Implications of the study: traditional production systems in place pose a significant barrier to the implementation of effective AW measures.

Findings/ Conclusions: there is not AW perception in the FFUs evaluated. A critical need for outreach, education, and training programs is emphasized, in order to equip FFU owners with knowledge and tools to implement animal welfare standards.