Evaluation of human-animal relationship (HAR) in dairy goats

The aim of this study was to set up a valid, feasible and reliable test to measure the quality of the HAR in on-farm dairy goats’ welfare assessment protocols. Twelve commercial dairy farms in Northern Italy were selected and classified as “good” (n=6) and “poor” (n=6) HAR on the basis of reports from local veterinarians, confirmed by a survey about farmers’ attitude. HAR was measured by: snorting – the number of alert sounds; voluntary approach (VA) test – in a stationary situation, the latency to the first contact by goat and the % of goats that entered in contact with the observer and within a 1.5 m radius around him were recorded; avoidance distance (AD) test – the avoidance distance from a moving person and the % of tested goats, of contacts with the observer followed by withdrawal or acceptances of gentle stroke were recorded. Snorts were rarely and random expressed, so they do not seem suitable to be included in a protocol. A PCA was performed to confirm the validity of the variables recorded and to select the most promising indicators. The considered variables were able to discriminate between “good” and “poor” HAR farms. Latency to first contact seems a valid and feasible indicator (One-way ANOVA: P=0.01). This indicator is easy to perform and the VA-test might be stopped immediately after the first contact, saving time. Other variables resulted valid, but they were more time consuming or required a more specific training: % tested goats (P=0.006), AD mean (P=0.016), % contacts (P=0.006), % acceptance (P=0.003). Our preliminary results suggest that the latency to first contact is a promising indicator of HAR, that can be supported by other indicators if more deepened evaluation is required. In collaboration with WP3, the indicators developed in Italy were tested in a controlled experimental situation at SRUC facilities (Edinburgh) on 40 goats subjected to different HAR treatments (positive, neutral, negative). Data analysis is still on going.