Development of animal-related indicators to assess animal welfare in organic Peking duck farming (TBI FOUR PAWS Seal of Quality duck fattening project)
Project Leader: Gieseke, Daniel; Prof.Dr. Knierim, Ute
Project participants: FOUR PAWS - Foundation for Animal Welfare; Waiblinger, Susanne (Vet Med Uni Vienna); Eiermacher GmbH
Project description:
The objective of this project is to develop an animal-based indicator system for the assessment of Pekin duck welfare on organic farms and at a slaughterhouse for farm auditing purposes. Based on an extensive literature review appropriate animal-based indicators are identified and detailed descriptions and illustrations are provided. The proposed scoring schemes are tested in a field study on commercial farms and at a slaughterhouse with regard to the criteria validity, reliability and feasibility. Based on the findings of the practical tests on the farms and at the slaughterhouse, indicator selection and method descriptions are critically reviewed and modified if necessary. Subsequently, training materials such as practical guidelines and assessment cards for auditors and slaughterhouse employees are compiled.