SUMMER 2025 NEWSLETTER
VAFAW Has A Global Reach
Did you know that VAFAW is helping improve farm animal welfare around the world? We are excited to report that our current members represent 36 countries. This global reach allows VAFAW to harness the power, expertise, and voices of those with diverse backgrounds to advance our mission. The interest from veterinarians and others around the world also drives our commitment to share free educational content that will improve farm animal welfare. VAFAW-hosted webinars on topics such as pain mitigation, humane end-of-life practices, and living environments have drawn an international audience. We are reaching passionate people far and wide who are committed to improving farm animal welfare.
WEBINAR SERIES
UPCOMING WEBINAR - Recognizing and Managing Pain in Cattle - July 16, 2025
Painful management procedures and disease conditions are common in cattle production systems. How can we better support animal welfare through more effective pain management? Join Dr. Eduarda Bortoluzzi, animal welfare professor and scientist, for a meaningful discussion on improving pain control in cattle. She'll explore the fundamentals of pain management, emerging pain detection methodologies, and the development of pain models to achieve more effective and scientifically grounded relief.
Click HERE for more details and to register.
RECAP: VAFAW-Hosted Webinar on Advancing Sow Welfare through Group Housing and the Five Domains Model
On May 5, 2025, VAFAW hosted a webinar by Dr. Jeremy Marchant, Chief Scientist at Organic Plus Trust, titled “Essential Elements for Successful Group Housing of Sows.” Dr. Marchant, a renowned farm animal behavior and welfare expert, particularly regarding pigs, explored the challenges and benefits of transitioning sows from gestation crates to group housing. Attendees learned that intensified livestock production has led to the use of gestation crates due to economic factors, high stocking density, and ease of management. Domestic pigs exhibit complex natural behaviors inherited from their wild boar ancestors, and confinement significantly disrupts these behaviors, presenting serious welfare challenges. The webinar discussed how the Five Domains framework informs the design of sow housing, the struggles people face with group housing for sows, and strategies for facilitating the transition. Key topics included managing aggression, providing enrichment, and providing sows control over their environment. The session concluded with a look at future trends in U.S. pig housing. This was the first session in VAFAW’s webinar series, “Promoting Living Environments That Meet the Animals’ Physical and Psychological Needs.”
Click HERE for a replay video of this webinar and others.
Mark Your Calendar!
VAFAW will be hosting a full-day virtual symposium on farm animal living environments on Saturday, October 18, 2025. Six speakers will present an evidence-based approach to improving living environments for various farm animal species. Up to six hours of free, RACE-approved CE credit will be provided to those who attend the live event.
VAFAW TRAVELS COAST TO COAST
VAFAW is traveling from coast to coast this year to meet with our members and others committed to improving farm animal welfare.
In March, VAFAW attended the Student American Veterinary Medical Association (SAVMA) 2025 Symposium in Davis, California, and next weekend, we will be in Washington, D.C., for the AVMA 2025 Convention. We love sharing details about the impactful work VAFAW is doing, especially on our three focus areas: preventing and mitigating pain experienced by farm animals; promoting living environments that meet animals’ physical and psychological needs; and ensuring humane end-of-life practices. Thank you to those who stopped by the booth at SAVMA, and we look forward to seeing some of you soon in Washington, D.C.!
The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Convention
July 18 – 22, 2025
Walter E. Washington Convention Center
Washington, D.C.
VAFAW ADVOCACY: SEEKING CHANGE
VAFAW-Supported Directive to USDA About Nitrogen Methods of Poultry Depopulation Advances in U.S. Senate and House Ag. Appropriations Committees
The U.S. Senate and House Appropriations Committees solicited feedback from stakeholders about federal funding priorities for the agriculture industry. VAFAW provided outside witness testimony calling for report language to be included in House and Senate funding bills that directs the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to “facilitate and invest in research of whole house gassing with nitrogen and high-expansion nitrogen-filled foam as methods of large-scale poultry depopulations, particularly during animal disease emergency response events." The House and Senate committees accepted the recommendation. Report language is used to express Congressional intent and often directs agencies on how to spend federal appropriations. The testimony from VAFAW stresses that, in contrast to heatstroke-based depopulation methods, nitrogen-based depopulation methods, when properly implemented, better protect animal welfare by “rapidly inducing unconsciousness in animals without causing pain and with little to no distress.” Ensuring humane end-of-life practices for farm animals is one of three focus areas for VAFAW, and we are committed to advancing higher-welfare nitrogen-based methods of depopulation. Earlier this year, VAFAW hosted a webinar on nitrogen anoxia for the depopulation of livestock.
View the VAFAW testimony to the U.S. Senate and House Appropriations Committees (Subcommittees on Agriculture)
Report language from the House Agriculture Appropriations Committee (see page 37) and the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee (see page 55).
A replay of the VAFAW presentation on nitrogen-based depopulation methods is here.
VAFAW Endorses Legislation to Advance Federal HPAI Vaccine Strategy
VAFAW recently endorsed two bills in the U.S. Congress aimed to improve the federal response to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). The Supporting Avian Virus Eradication Act (H.R. 2868), also known as the SAVE Our Poultry Act, is bipartisan legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives that would advance HPAI vaccination research, enhance biosecurity practices for poultry producers, and analyze the impact of poultry vaccination on trade. The Avian Influenza Vaccination Strategy Act (S. 908) was introduced by U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-SD). It would require the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in partnership with others, to develop and finalize an HPAI vaccination strategy. VAFAW supports the advancement of poultry vaccines to mitigate the impact and spread of avian influenza. Since the start of the outbreak in February 2022, more than 174 million chickens, turkeys, and ducks have died from the disease or been depopulated to control transmission. The most common method of depopulating birds in the United States, ventilation shutdown plus heat (VSD+), involves shutting down the ventilation in a poultry house, sealing it, and injecting heat or heat combined with humidity so that the birds are killed by heatstroke. Studies have shown that VSD+ causes severe, prolonged suffering before death by heatstroke occurs. Advancing humane end-of-life practices is one of three focus areas for VAFAW, and preventing the spread of bird flu through poultry vaccination means fewer birds in commercial flocks will be sickened by HPAI or die via low-welfare depopulation methods.
VAFAW endorsement letter for the SAVE Our Poultry Act is HERE.
VAFAW endorsement letter for the Avian Influenza Vaccination Strategy Act is HERE.
VAFAW Advocates to Prevent “Export” of Low-Welfare Depopulation Methods Common in U.S.
The World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) establishes international standards to improve animal health and welfare via the Terrestrial Animal Health Code. In June, VAFAW submitted evidence-based comments to the USDA’s Veterinary Services (America's formal representative to WOAH) on Chapter 7.6, Animal Welfare at the Time of Killing for Purposes Other Than Slaughter. This chapter of the Code addresses depopulation (mass killing) of farm animals to control diseases, like highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). These comments will help inform what changes the U.S. will request, as a WOAH member country, in subsequent drafts. While this chapter presumes that the decision to kill the animals has been made, VAFAW requested that post-depopulation debriefing reports include measures to lower animals’ vulnerability to future depopulation. VAFAW also highlighted the importance of preparedness in ensuring that, in emergencies, higher-welfare depopulation methods are quickly accessible. WOAH is considering including two low-welfare killing methods widely used in the U.S.: ventilation shutdown with supplementation (VSD+) and water-based foam (WBF). These methods cause death through heatstroke and airway obstruction, respectively, and violate WOAH’s requirement that methods should not cause avoidable distress, fear, or pain. Without draft revision, these low-welfare methods could become globally accepted standards. VAFAW’s comments describe the pathophysiology of these methods and what the animals experience. They request that VSD+ be removed and that use of WBF be deemed unacceptable in all but the most extreme circumstances. VAFAW also suggested clarifying edits to the sections on higher-welfare, anoxia-based depopulation methods.
A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
British Veterinary Association Calls for Ban on Farrowing Crates
The British Veterinary Association (BVA), in conjunction with the Pig Veterinary Society, has called for a ban on the use of farrowing crates for pigs. Approximately 60% of sows in the U.K. are currently housed in such crates for a maximum of five weeks around the time of parturition and nursing. These crates eliminate a sow’s ability to take more than a single step forward or backward, turn around, or carry out typical comfort activities. A 15-year transition period is proposed for existing British pig producers to switch over to less confining housing. The BVA represents more than 19,000 practicing veterinarians and veterinary students in the U.K.
Ohio Updates Standards for Disbudding/Dehorning
Earlier this year, the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board revised the rules for disbudding/dehorning of all cattle and goats. Ohio is now the only state in the United States to legally require pain mitigation for all disbudding and dehorning.
WHAT CAUGHT OUR EYE
Farmers’ Attitudes Towards Animal Welfare
Maria José Hötzel, et al., Animal Frontiers
This meta-survey of farmers’ attitudes about animal welfare was derived from interviews and questionnaires completed by farmers on all five continents and Oceania. Most farmers accepted that farm animals are sentience and have emotional capacity, but their opinions were influenced by factors such as nationality, age, gender, consumer expectations, and economic constraints. Read the article HERE.
Stares and Ear-Twitches: The Linguist Learning to Speak the Expressive Language of Cows
Christopher J Preston, BBC Future
Inspired by philosopher Eva Meijer’s work, sociolinguist Leonie Cornips studies cow language. More than mere "moos," Cornips contends that cows' "languaging practices" include eye contact, ear movement, and neck stretching. To study cow language, she embeds herself in a local herd, as a type of ethnographic research where the researcher observes the object of her research. Interestingly, she studies not only how cows communicate with each other but also how cows engage in interspecies communication with humans like herself and the farmer. Throughout history, language has separated humans from other creatures, leading philosophers to argue that humans have special value. But if animals also use language, it challenges this belief. For veterinarians, recognizing animal-specific communication can help assess health and welfare.
Read the full article HERE, but if you’re short on time, check out the BBC video version HERE.
C.D.C. Study Finds Silent Bird Flu Infections in Dairy Veterinarians
Emily Anthes, The New York Times
A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that three U.S. dairy veterinarians had undetected infections with the avian influenza virus. They showed no symptoms and were identified through antibody testing among 150 veterinarians. Bird flu may be spreading more widely among cattle and humans in the U.S. than previously recognized. The findings highlight the need for surveillance and transparency to better control the spread of H5N1 in the U.S. Read the article HERE.
Animals That Feel the Slice of the Knife
Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times
This op-ed delves into animal slaughter in the U.S. Kristof critiques recent policy changes, including increased slaughter line speeds and the dissolution of food safety advisory panels, which may reduce oversight and exacerbate animal suffering. He emphasizes the contradiction in a system where individual animal cruelty is punishable, yet large-scale industrial practices may go unchecked. Kristof argues that the current system's efficiency comes at an ethical cost. Read the op-ed HERE.
Veterinarians have an increased risk of suicide compared to the general public and comparable occupations. Moral stress arises when someone’s ideals for how animals should be treated are not aligned with work-related expectations and regulations. This documentary addresses the emotional demands and moral stress of veterinarians caused by euthanasia, the demands of pet owners, economic limitations to patient care, and economic euthanasia, resulting in compassion fatigue, burnout, career attrition, and in some cases, suicide. It is a reminder that “caring for the caregiver” is important and that the rewards of a career in veterinary medicine can come with a cost. While small animal vets are highlighted, these challenges also apply to those caring for farm animals.
Watch the documentary HERE.
SPOTLIGHT ON VAFAW LEADERS
Recent publications and exciting work from members of the VAFAW leadership team
Overcoming Scientific Cruelty: Bernard Rollin’s Fight for Animal Rights
Barry Kipperman, DVM, DACVIM, MSc, DACAW, American Journal of Economics and Sociology
VAFAW Board member Dr. Barry Kipperman published an inspirational essay in The American Journal of Economics and Sociology titled, “Overcoming Scientific Cruelty: Bernard Rollin’s Fight for Animal Rights.” Dr. Kipperman was also interviewed for a radio podcast on “Our Relationship with Animals: A Chat about Ethics.” Guests and lawyers discussed the legal status of animals in society, and whether we should have different obligations to animals raised for food and to wildlife compared to animal companions.
A Call to Action: Ameliorating Moral Distress among Veterinarians
Indu Mani, DVM, DSc, MSc, Canadian Veterinary Journal
Veterinarians experience higher rates of suicidal ideation and suicide than the general population, with psychological distress, moral distress, and systemic stressors such as student debt and access to lethal means contributing to the issue. As moral distress in veterinary medicine becomes more clearly defined, Dr. Mani reviews new tools and measurement scales which are being developed to identify its causes and mitigate its harmful effects. Read Dr. Mani's article HERE.
Cameron Krier Massey, JD, MPH, MSc, Journal of Food Law and Policy
This article from VAFAW Co-Executive Director Cameron Krier Massey reviews and proposes changes to the Livestock Indemnity Program. This federally run disaster assistance program compensates livestock owners and growers for animal deaths and reduced value caused by eligible conditions, including extreme weather. Currently, the program does not require producers to show use of a disaster mitigation plan before drawing down payments. Krier Massey argues this is a missed opportunity to safeguard farm animal welfare and compromises the fiscal integrity of the program. She draws on her many years of working for and with members of Congress to propose ideas for programmatic oversight and reform.
FOSTERING CONNECTIONS
VAFAW Sponsors ACAW Short Course and Members of Leadership Team Present
VAFAW is proud to have provided sponsorship of the American College of Animal Welfare Short Course, held at Purdue University, June 3-6, 2025. VAFAW Director of Education Dr. Abby Zoltick presented “Pain in Farmed Animals: Understanding the Barriers to Mitigation and Improving Welfare.” Board member Dr. Jim Reynolds spoke about “Review of On-Farm Livestock Welfare Audits and Assessments.”
VAFAW Presents to the Canadian National Farm Animal Care Council
On June 20, VAFAW’s co-executive directors, Gwendy Reyes-Illg and Cameron Krier Massey, provided a virtual presentation to the Canadian National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) describing VAFAW’s mission and work. NFACC is composed of various stakeholders from the Canadian agricultural sector, including animal welfare organizations, and develops national standards for the care of farm animals. The presentation was well received, and we look forward to future opportunities for collaboration.
Learn more about the NFACC HERE.
MEET OUR PHILOSOPHER IN RESIDENCE
Philosophers in residence are professionals trained in philosophy who provide expertise in various educational, research, corporate, and nonprofit settings. For VAFAW, a philosopher in residence offers essential support for its mission, which includes providing a veterinary perspective grounded in animal welfare and ethics. While veterinary ethics is a key part of the foundation for VAFAW, and veterinary schools often provide some training in it, a philosopher can contribute a broader ethical perspective that can aid in value discussions, education, advocacy, and research. For example, a philosopher can support VAFAW by providing background in philosophical research for VAFAW’s policy and welfare frameworks. Incorporating a philosopher’s logical reasoning can also enhance the structure of arguments in VAFAW’s position statements and outreach to policymakers. With expertise in philosophical research, VAFAW’s philosopher in residence can also assist in teaching for workshops and writing reports. As VAFAW’s first Philosopher in Residence, Dr. Kate Brelje provides relevant philosophical literature to support VAFAW’s research; facilitates discussions about moral value, animal welfare, and ethics; and reviews ethics-related portions of VAFAW materials. Dr. Brelje first met VAFAW co-founder Dr. Gwendy Reyes-Illg in Dr. Bernard Rollin’s Animal Ethics class at Colorado State University. Inspired by Dr. Rollin’s life and work, Dr. Brelje has continued research in animal ethics, including her 2023 article in Essays in Philosophy entitled “More than Humans: A Case for Inclusion of Non-human Persons in Care Ethics.” She looks forward to using her philosophical expertise in service of VAFAW’s work and mission. Watch for Dr. Brelje's "Philosopher's Corner" in future newsletters. It promises to stretch our thinking and provide a space for reflection on the complexities of our work.
A QUESTION FOR YOU
Did you learn something useful in this newsletter? Providing free educational content to advance farm animal welfare is core to our mission, and we put significant time into pulling together relevant articles, policy updates, and resources for each issue.
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