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Research, writing, infographics + photography
Animal welfare, focusing on farmed animals
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The science of slaughter: Is the stunning of pigs in the UK slaughterhouses currently humane?
6 May 2022
The UK public are given assurances that animal welfare at slaughter in the UK is high, in part because animals are stunned prior to slaughter. Conversations around slaughter are often focused on ethics; the philosophical rights and wrongs of killing or around a vegan agenda. However, what about the science of slaughter? What is the evidence… Read >
Affleck, K (2022). The science of slaughter: is the stunning of pigs in UK slaughterhouses currently humane?. Alfred Journal, 1(11). https://www.winchester.ac.uk/about-us/academic-excellence/learning-and-teaching-development/alfred-journal/
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The science of slaughter: Is the stunning of pigs in UK slaughterhouses currently humane?
The UK public are given assurances that animal welfare at slaughter in the UK is high, in part because animals are stunned prior to slaughter. Conversations around slaughter are often focused on ethics; the philosophical rights and wrongs of killing or around a vegan agenda. However, what about the science of slaughter? What is the…
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Lobster welfare: serious welfare issues for lobsters in the UK, with focus on slaughter
Lobster consumption is increasing (Conte et al., 2021). In previous decades their sentience was not recognised and there was little concern for their welfare (Sherwin, 2001). Despite some authors maintaining that literature on pain in decapod crustaceans (which includes lobsters) is weak (Diggles, 2019; Sneddon, 2018; Puri, 2015; Rose, 2014), recent studies have concluded that…
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Chicken or egg: Hatchery welfare issues for female layer chicks
Many consumers now consider where eggs come from; chickens in various farming systems, but less so on where these chickens came from; the hatchery. The culling at hatcheries of male chicks, considered waste product as they cannot lay eggs, has increased as a consumer welfare concern1, and rightly so.
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The strong cow-calf bond broken: Behavioural and physiological stress responses
Cows form strong bonds with their calves shortly after birth, which increases over time together. In nature the mother and young remain together for months or years, however commercial farming practices requires the pair are separated far sooner, particularly in the dairy industry. The premature breaking of the maternal bond when cow and calf are…
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Forgotten Fish – UK and EU law
In UK and EU legislation (detailed within this post) one animal group is clearly lacking; fish. While both the EU and UK offer some protection neither have specific farm welfare legislation for fish. Of the farmed animals fish are the least protected group
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Examining farm animal welfare law in the UK and EU
A critical overview of legislation, primarily on-farm welfare, in the UK and EU. As the UK was recently an EU member their legislation is similar. Both are considered to have high animal welfare legislation compared to other parts of the world but still attract criticism, including the lack of law covering fish welfare.
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DATA VISUALISATION
(2) DEFRA (2019) https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/historical-statistics-notices-on-the-number-of-cattle-sheep-and-pigs-slaughtered-in-the-uk-2019
QUOTE
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” Animal Farm, George Orwell
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