FALL 2024 NEWSLETTER
VAFAW Gains 501(c)(3) Status from the IRS
We’ve been waiting…and waiting…and waiting.
Since filing for 501(c)(3) status more than eight months ago, VAFAW finally received notification from the Internal Revenue Service for the U.S. Government that its application has been approved!! VAFAW is now recognized as a public charity, and in addition to a long list of operational benefits to the organization, this new status means your charitable donations will be tax-exempt.
Celebrate this milestone with us
by making a donation.
Every little bit helps us advance the mission.
MEMBERSHIP BY THE NUMBERS
560+
Current number of VAFAW members
390+
Number of members who are veterinarians or veterinary students
SEEKING CHANGE
VAFAW Calls on Congress to Oppose the EATS Act
VAFAW signed a multistakeholder letter to members of Congress asking them to oppose efforts to advance the Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression (EATS) Act. The letter was signed by more than 150 organizations representing the agriculture, animal, public health, food safety, environment, labor, and legal sectors. The EATS Act would nullify any state law that impacts agriculture in other states and comes in response to Proposition 12, a California law mandating better housing conditions for egg-laying hens, pigs, and calves. The state law, which the U.S. Supreme Court upheld, applies to farms in California and those who wish to sell certain products in the state. In addition to preempting states’ rights and voter preferences, critics of the legislation argue that the EATS Act will have direct and indirect consequences on animal welfare, food safety, and public health. A legislative analysis by Harvard Law School reported that the EATS Act could jeopardize more than 1,000 state laws. VAFAW also believes the legislation will impact the autonomy of veterinarians by invalidating state laws that are deferential to veterinary expertise and judgment. VAFAW will continue to build awareness about the harmful impact of the EATS Act and seek out advocacy opportunities that help elevate our concerns.
New VAFAW Position Statement on Sow and Gilt Gestation Housing Submitted to AVMA
VAFAW recently submitted comments and a new position statement to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Animal Welfare Committee as it considers updates to its policy on pregnant sow housing. Since the AVMA’s policy on pregnant sow housing was last revised, animal welfare science has progressed rapidly with developments in key areas such as porcine behavior and cognition and housing systems that enhance sow welfare. To reinforce these advancements, VAFAW has created a new position statement that uses the Five Domains model (nutrition, physical environment, health, behavioral interactions, and mental state) to assess the welfare outcomes of sow and gilt gestation housing systems. VAFAW highlights that group housing, by providing more space and opportunities for social engagement, is critical to meeting the welfare needs of sows and gilts during breeding and gestation. This is the first in a series of position statements that VAFAW will publish. These position statements aim to provide a veterinary perspective grounded in animal welfare science that informs farm animal welfare policy.
Read the VAFAW position statement on sow and gilt gestation housing HERE.
WEBINAR SERIES
On August 21, 2024, VAFAW hosted our second webinar, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza: Vaccines and Vaccination Programs for Poultry. This was the inaugural event to advance one of VAFAW’s declared areas of focus—Ensuring Humane End-of-Life Practices. Erica Spackman, MS, PhD, a research microbiologist in the Exotic and Emerging Avian Viral Diseases Research Unit at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, presented the webinar. She provided details on vaccine availability for avian influenza in poultry, critical components of successful avian influenza vaccination programs, and metrics of efficacy and correlates for vaccine-induced protection for avian influenza in poultry. Since early 2022, over one hundred million chickens, turkeys, and ducks in the U.S. have been depopulated (killed en masse) due to the detection of HPAI on the farms where they live, and the depopulation methods most commonly used severely compromise animal welfare. The World Organization for Animal Health now recognizes that biosecurity measures and depopulation may no longer be sufficient to control the disease and recommends countries consider complementary approaches, such as vaccination. The presentation highlighted an emerging strategy for decreasing farm animals’ vulnerability to this devastating disease. At the speaker’s request, this webinar was a live-only event, and a recording is not available for replay.
Stay tuned for more VAFAW-hosted webinars that explore key topics aimed at improving farm animal welfare. Details and registration will be posted HERE.
WHAT WE'RE READING
Pain pathophysiology and pharmacology of cattle: how improved understanding can enhance pain prevention, mitigation, and welfare
Abigale H. Zoltick, Sabine Mann, Johann F. Coetzee, Frontiers in Pain Research
This excellent review paper discusses an overview of pain pathophysiology, the negative welfare outcomes associated with unmitigated pain, a review of available analgesics, the regulations governing their use, barriers to implementation of on-farm pain management, and current research to evaluate the pain response in cattle. article link
How U.S. Farms Could Start a Bird Flu Pandemic
Apoorva Andavilli, The New York Times
The avian influenza virus may become endemic in cattle, increasing the likelihood of an epidemic in humans. article link
Livestock and Pets: Validation of 72 pairs of photographs depicting dogs, cats, miniature rabbits, pigs, and cattle.
Aleksandra Rabinovitch & Dominika Bartosiak, Anthrozoos
Two hundred sixty-eight participants viewed sets of photographs of five animal species. Livestock animals were perceived as less cute and more dangerous compared with pets. Pet owners rated both livestock and pet animals as more positively valenced. Frequent meat consumers reported a more negative perception of livestock animals. article link
THE BOARD'S CORNER
VAFAW Board Member Dr. Barry Kipperman Highlights Flaws in AVMA’s Ethical Guidelines; VIN Poll Shows Majority Agreement
VAFAW board member Dr. Barry Kipperman published a commentary, “New AVMA ethics policy has a fundamental flaw,” on the Veterinary Information Network (VIN), an online community for veterinarians. He contends that recent changes to the AVMA’s Principles of Veterinary Medical Ethics, which assert that euthanasia, slaughter, and depopulation of animals are always ethical when the corresponding AVMA guidelines are followed, are illogical. These changes appear to absolve veterinarians of ethical concerns associated with intentionally ending animals’ lives. Many methods of animal killing sanctioned by the AVMA's guidelines on animal death (such as ventilation shutdown plus) are considered so inhumane and unethical that they are banned in other countries. Supporting Dr Kipperman’s concerns, a recent poll on VIN asked members, “What are your thoughts regarding VSD (ventilation shutdown)?” Of the 3059 responses, 42% believed VSD was “neither ethical nor humane” and should never be used, and 24% believed that VSD “is neither ethical nor humane but may sometimes be necessary.” The full results can be viewed using the link to the right.
View Complete VIN Survey Results HERE.
NEW DISCUSSION BOARD FOR VAFAW MEMBERS
A new discussion board on Facebook has been created exclusively for VAFAW members. This private forum allows for collaboration, networking, and sharing of information, perspectives, and expertise among VAFAW members. Participation in the group is a valuable member benefit, and we invite you to enroll to take advantage of it.
To join the discussion group, click HERE.
Please note that VAFAW is committed to fostering a respectful and inclusive discussion on animal welfare issues and practices in this forum. While diverse viewpoints are welcome, we expect all participants to engage respectfully and constructively, and disrespectful or degrading comments will not be allowed.
RESEARCH OPPORTUNITY
Researchers Using the Animal Welfare Assessment Grid for Farm Animals Seek Collaborators
Maintaining a high standard of animal welfare is essential wherever animals are managed. The Animal Welfare Assessment Grid (AWAG) is a unique online tool that objectively assesses and monitors the welfare of animals. It evaluates four parameters (physical, behavioral, environmental, and procedural) across the five welfare domains, providing a mean score for each parameter and a cumulative welfare score (CWAS). This allows for tracking the lifetime experience of individuals or groups of animals, visually demonstrating their quality of life. The AWAG's unique feature is its ability to drill down and identify specific factors that positively or negatively affect welfare, assess the success of treatment or changes in management systems, and make focused interventions. The AWAG has been developed and validated for use with varied species and types of animal use, including companion dogs, assistance dogs, racing greyhounds, captive wild animals in zoos, laboratory species, cattle, pigs, and racehorses. By working with an independent technology company that understands how data, systems, and processes can come together to deliver a strategy, investigators have solved the unique and complex problems of welfare assessment through the engineering of a technology-driven solution that integrates strategic thinking and hands-on action. They are now collaborating with companies that are developing precision livestock technologies to integrate this data into the AWAG factors to be measured and used to demonstrate welfare impacts. Their vision is that the AWAG is used in any arena to provide indicators on how the well-being of animals can be improved and demonstrate to regulators that a proactive approach is being taken, resulting in the delivery of improved husbandry and care. Its use in generating big data on animal welfare could inform policymakers. The system has further potential for retailer use and to increase consumer understanding of animal welfare issues, which is very relevant to sustainability and regeneration issues.
See more information, videos, and background publications HERE.
Interested? Here’s How to Get Involved:
Dr. Sarah Wolfensohn, Emerita Professor of Animal Welfare at the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Surrey, UK, is interested in partnering with students or faculty at various universities and veterinary schools in the United States to collaborate on research using AWAG with agricultural animals. She is especially interested in precision livestock farming (e.g., integrating the use of accelerometers). This is ongoing research with no set deadline for inquiries. If you or someone you know may be interested in collaborating with Dr. Wolfensohn, please get in touch with her at s.wolfensohn@surrey.ac.uk.
HIGH FIVE FOR FARM ANIMAL WELFARE
Know of a producer that deserves a VAFAW high five for excellent farm animal welfare?
Share their information with us at info@vafaw.org.
Did you miss the VAFAW Summer 2024 Newsletter?
Get caught up by reading it HERE.